Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Spent HOURS last night trying to get pics of this year's hypos. Simply maddening! I ended up with a few pics in cups. They'll help sale but they weren't really what I was looking for. Any tips from you guys who seem to have a nack for taking pics of smaller milks?

some usta put them in the icebox to slow 'em down......yo....tony.....how's family????

I too can spen upwards of a couple hours trying to get my Olympus digital cam to focus and re-focus and, sometimes, as daunting as it may be, come up with some pretty decent shots. I ditch any attempts at zoom (it's always better with a macro-lens, which my camera is not equipped to use however my brother-in-law is a semi-pro photographer and I've used his gadgets -- wow...) and just get as close as I can, hold my breath (lol), press the button to adjust focus, and click. But damn it takes many shots to get it juuuuust right.

Jerry Kruse

" alt="Image">

Depending on the type of camera you have you will have difference challenges.

If you have a point and shot type of camera...then you can switch to manual focus mode so you don't have to wait for the auto focus to kick in before the picture.

One other trick is to put the snakes into a larger container and take a picture of all of them at the same time. Then you can crop out the individual snakes as needed. All you need is a simple photo editing program....and some luck.

-RG

Nervous milksnakes can be quite a challenge that's for sure!LOL

I've had pretty good results with a few different methods.

*cut a notch in a suitably sized plastic container, let the snake slither in, put a heavy object on top, and one to cover notch,.....wait a while for it to get "comfortable" and coil up, then with camera "pre-set" as much as possible,.... SLOWLY lift the container up enough to get it out of the pic, and snap a few. The snakes usually give you time to take a few before deciding it's time to "bolt off"!!LOL

* For a "point and shoot" digital, sometimes I'll use a BIGGER file size format, snap a few from a safe distance, so it doesn't spook the snake, and crop it down to a smaller size with any number of photo programs to give a "closer" affect.

* Sometimes if the hide box is lifted SLOWLY, many times I've been lucky enough to use "macro" setting, and get right up in their faces at times.

* Yes this can be very frustrating at times, and when they get too worked-up, I just put them up and wait for another time. But as you might already know, it helps a great deal when you move slow enough that the snake DOES NOT NOTICE too much, and feel threatened.

* Also,....lots of shots, and lots of luck!LOL

best regards ~Doug

-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Best regards, ~Doug

-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

hey doug were all of those shots taken with the a540?
adam
i really like the close up of the nelsoni scaleation
-----
hybrid breeders association
1.1 puebladurans
1.1 sinacorns
1.1 hypo corns
1.1 crimson corns
1.1 striped ghosts
1.1 kenyan sand boas
1.1 mbk
1.1 albino corns
1.1 childrens python
1.3 ghost corns
1.0 butter
1.0 snow corns
1.0 jurassic milk
1.0 house snake
0.1 anery pueblacorn
0.1 bloodred
0.1 eastern milk (eatin pinks)
0.1 striped albino corn
0.1 albino nelsons
0.1 anery motley
0.1 normal corn het hypo,anery
0.1 hypo tang hondo
0.1 rosy boa

Hey Adam!,.........

Actually, the Cal.King, Sinaloan(maybe some nelsoni influence), and the "temporalis", where taken a long time ago with a 35mm Canon AE-1.......the rest were shots with my A-540.

And the real tight "macro" shot of the scales, was actually of the Honduran in the close "portrait" shot(DO-TA-DOOO!!!)

Hope your animals are doin' good!

~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Correction,......it was of the Honduran in the close portrait's daughter!!

~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

ive been lookin at an a540 but am not quite sure yet. all of the animals from daytona are doing great they are all eating even the little house snake(pink heads only!!!) i had recieved a few animals from deon right before daytona and 2 out of 6 are eating and one died about 2 weeks after getting them from him. they were some of his problem feeders. also i just bought 2 puebla durans from the classifieds(not that you care about hybrids) and will be getting 2 pastels from vince here shortly. how are the ghosts hondurans doing? you better start power feeding them so i can get a baby or two ha ha.
at work the other day i heard some kid picking on another kid and the one kid looked at the other and screamed dooh-ta-doo .....i almost lost it
adam

-----
hybrid breeders association
1.1 puebladurans
1.1 sinacorns
1.1 hypo corns
1.1 crimson corns
1.1 striped ghosts
1.1 kenyan sand boas
1.1 mbk
1.1 albino corns
1.1 childrens python
1.3 ghost corns
1.0 butter
1.0 snow corns
1.0 jurassic milk
1.0 house snake
0.1 anery pueblacorn
0.1 bloodred
0.1 eastern milk (eatin pinks)
0.1 striped albino corn
0.1 albino nelsons
0.1 anery motley
0.1 normal corn het hypo,anery
0.1 hypo tang hondo
0.1 rosy boa

Adam,.......

The little "fella's" are doing just fine!.....I had one stubborn male ghost that didn't want to eat since I got him,....
and he finally came around for me the other day!

I also had a feeding problem with the male "brooksi" from the pair I bought at the show, and he "downed" a meal for me on the same day as the other!!

Wasn't really a big deal,.....they just needed some movement to arouse their feeding response, since I was trying to get them eating F/T pinks, and they wanted live.........I'll get 'em switched over to F/T later on after a few more meals!(DO-TA-DOO!)

I wish I could have seen that kid yell "DO-TA-DOO" to the other kid with you!!!, I'm sure we would have "fell out"!LOL

later, ~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Sometimes feeding them, let them retire to their hide box, and then photograph, works well. Focus on area you want before removing hide box. You should have better luck.

Mike

Hey Tone having fun with the wriggly little dickens?
If they're nestled in the bedding under a piece of cardboard you have a couple seconds to snap pics when you lift the cardboard.

While they're choking down a meal (even a tail) is a great time to take dozens of pics otherwise, I'm afraid it's just a ton of patience required and a defense pose eventually.
Good luck, Jeff

Sometimes its just best to move on and try it again some other day. Personally I like to trick them into a small container by making it a hide box over night then slowly move them out of the cage removing the lid and grabbing a few shots.

He was nice and steady but the light was very poor

So I decided to hold him hehe.

I will also do the "zoom in" method, I was about 3 feet from her with the cage door open.

Behind glass, but hard to tell . Pic I took @ Reptiland in PA

-----
Jason A.
"Long time Herper, first year Breeder `07."

are better than no pics....just post some for us to see Tony
-----
Paul Weaver
Carolina Herps

Did this by sliding a deli cup under a piece of hi quality glass. I turned down the light waited for him to calm down and took the shot letting the flash do the work. I'm thinking about painting the inside of a few cups to emulate natural substrate. it wont be perfect but better than the hi contrast of the white cup

Awesome pic man. Actually, I think the deli cup works pretty well with that hypo. Really brings out his white bands.

I only had a single hypo egg this year that hatched, and unfortunately he has some type of spinal problem. Too bad because he's really beautiful and loves to eat.
-----
Paul Weaver
Carolina Herps

Very Nice, but why not use a deeper deli cup with some substrate in it? Derek

Awesome snake! You could try to throw some aquarium gravel in there.

Best,
VInny
-----
“There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that whilst this planet has gone on cycling according to the fixed laws of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.” -C. Darwin, 1859

Natural Selection Reptiles

I can see you're giving "little dude" plenty of viddles!!LOL

NICE ANIMAL!!!!

~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Yeah stick to you guns and stay away from lizards and they take to feeding pretty good. Coastals require some TLC but they hardly deserve their difficult reputation.

Tony here's another picture
Tery M

For decent deli cup shots, just put some sand or other natural substrate on the bottom of a deli cup, and use a slightly bigger cup.

But I think the icebox and feeding work well. But to get pattern differentiation necessary to coastal buyers on those little worms...tough no doubt. More megapixels please! J