Nature photographers, I believe, should know a thing or two about nature. The more they know about flora and fauna species, the better. It’s like taking the photograph of a person and be able to tell his or her name.

I don’t know what type of plant this is but here it is anyway.

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You can tell the weather just by looking at the photographs under which they are taken.

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This is my 100th post since I started this blog on October 11, 2007. It has been a journey punctuated by rapid burst of entries and several long intervals in between.

This photo of a dragon fly was taken today at the Butterfly Park in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Heeding my own advice on taking photos, I’ve taken dozens of shots but alas, the weather was not helpful. The sky was overcast and the rain came soon enough.

To commemorate my 100th entry, I’m posting here all the usable shots out of several dozens I’ve taken at the park before the rain came.

This one looks like a dead leaf. I almost missed it.

That’s about it, folks. Hope the photos have given you some visual treats.

Posted in Blog, Flower Macro, Insect Macro, Nature, Plants Macro 5 Comments »

DP Review says: Depth of field (DOF) is a term which refers to the areas of the photograph both in front and behind the main focus point which remain “sharp” (in focus).

Depth of field is affected by the aperture, subject distance, focal length, and film or sensor format. A larger aperture (smaller f-number, e.g. f/2) has a shallow depth of field. Anything behind or in front of the main focus point will appear blurred.

A smaller aperture (larger f-number, e.g. f/11) has a greater depth of field. Objects within a certain range behind or in front of the main focus point will also appear sharp. [Source: Digital Photography Review]

Depth too narrow

The problem with taking macro shots with point-and-shoot cameras is that the depth of field is often too narrow that only a very small portion of an image will appear sharp.

At times you’d get frustrated because of the lack of f values for you to manipulate.

Aperture-priority and manual setting 

So the next time you buy a point-and-shoot camera, make sure it has an aperture-priority setting or better still, a manual setting which will allow you some room to play with this thing called the depth of field.

If you already have a point-and-shoot camera with these features, be happy now that you can have some freedom to make a difference for each of your shots.

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Fungus; some are edible, some are not. The ones in this picture are not, at least not in the way we consume mushrooms.

These are not poisonous though; on the contrary, old people in my tribe would tell you they contain some health properties but only eminent herbalists would be able to say what the properties are. Definitely not aphrodisiac if that’s what you are thinking.

You can tell poisonous fungus by their smell. If they they don’t smell like chemicals, they can’t be poisonous.

Anyway, this was another photo opportunity which I should have explored extensively, like taking much closer shots of the fungus from various angle.

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One of the greatest disservice a photo-taker or photographer can do to a scene is not exploring its photographic potentials extensively.

Like in this photo. I was in this place only once and all that I could do was to take this single photo of the sharp-pointed grass growing by the shore.

I could’ve taken many more, including dozens of macro shots from this vantage alone. Alas, I was inexperienced then. Not that I’m now but I’ve taken tons of photos ever since to know what a huge mess I made out of this photo-shoot opportunity.

I can almost see the photos I’ve missed — eye-piercing close-ups of sharp pointed grass. But I’ve learnt my lesson, and I hope with this blog post, I’ve made you learn yours.

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Dry seeds waiting to disperse in the wind…

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The sensitive plant, or scientifically known as Mimosa pudica L., can be found in abundant in Tropical areas.

According to Wikipedia, Mimosa pudica L. is a creeping annual or perennial herb often grown for its curiosity value: the compound leaves fold inward and droop when touched, re-opening within minutes.

In my place though, the plant is considered a nuisance plant and therefore, is not grown.

But according to older people in my village, you can actually boil the root and drink the water to treat indigestion. Not scientifically proven though, so I don’t recommend you try it. It’s not poisonous though, so you can drink the water from the boil root just for the heck of it.

Posted in Plants Macro 3 Comments »

This plant is known in my tribe as lidah buaya, or literally “The Tongue of Crocodile”, not sure why though, perhaps this one does resemble the shape of the reptile’s tongue.

Anyway, this is a type of succulent plant that thrives on wet and shaded ground. I found this at the back of our house in KL. This is one plant you can grow many others simply by throwing the leave on the ground.

Posted in Plants Macro 2 Comments »

Noun. A plant with a weak stem that derives support from climbing, twining, or creeping along a surface…

In good hands, vines can be a very good macro photography subject. I was just playing with the camera when I took this picture, only to realise later that there were many other shooting possibilities I should have explored. But not to worry, vines are everywhere. I can always go to the bushes and have a field day shooting vines.

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