A pair of Purple Hairstreaks

[Tony Moore]

Lots of these about yesterday - not sure how many will be left come Spring after the Blue Tits have their fill .

Tony M.

[Nick Broomer]

Excellent photo Tony.

All the best, Nick.

[David M]

Best ovum shot I've ever seen.

Superb.

[Tony Moore]

Thanks, Guys,

I spent three hours today looking for Black Hairstreak ova, without success . However, I did find a couple of Brown Hairstreaks. Here's one of them:

Tony M.

[David M]

What are you using to achieve that level of detail, Tony?

[Tony Moore]

Hi David,

I use a Sony A65 and a Sigma 105mm macro with a 10x Nikkor microscope objective fixed with a step-down ring. This is set up on a solid rig, opposite a Newport micrometer stage to which the egg is attached. It is lit with a ring flash and slave, diffused through a polystyrene cup. I then take about 40 shots, changing the focus by a couple of thou each time, and stick the images through a Zerene Stacker. It's quite tricky to get everything lined up properly, but it's a fascinating technique when you get into it. Have a look at :/www.photomacrography.net - there are some really astonishing images there. If you're interested in trying to do some, you'll find the guys on the site incredibly helpful. I attach a non-butterfly stack to show the sort of thing that you can produce.

Tony.

[attachment=0]2013-05-20-12.11.03 ZS PMax.jpg[/attachment

[David M]

Do you know, I was going to JOKE that you were using a microscope but in many ways, you are. I suppose ova, being unlikely to fly away serve as perfect subjects for this kind of photography.

Many thanks for sharing and I look forward to seeing a few more.