Photographing Insects: Lessons Learned

What I learned during two months of insect photography

A scorpion fly (Panorpidae). I think this shows that I have improved. Finding an interesting insect, getting a good composition, and having it in focus from head to tail. Photo by the author.

I have now been photographing insects for two months, and took a few thousand pictures with my Canon R7. So what did I learn? And did I improve?

The most important thing I found out is that I really like photographing insects. It is a nice combination of technical skills and art. It is great to be outside. And it is very rewarding when you spot some interesting insect and manage to photograph it in a satisfying way, before it flies away. Also, you do not need the patience that other types of wild-life photography require.

Initially I was primarily interested in obtaining a nice, sharp picture. But I am getting more and more interested in the insects themselves. What are they called? How do they live? How common are they? Fortunately there is a lot of information about insects on the web. I will write a future article about this.

Here are some of the things I learned during the past two months.

Equipment

I really like the Canon R7 for insect photography. The APS-C sensor gives considerable extra magnification and the 32 MP resolution gives lots of room for digital crop. I strongly recommend you to use a camera with an APS-C sensor when shooting insects.

Initially I just used the kit lens, but then I started experimenting with extension tubes and a Raynox 250 close-up lens. Currently, I am always using the extension tubes. You need them if you do not have a true macro lens. The Raynox 250 I use very rarely. It is much harder to focus handheld, and cropping the images digitally gives a larger depth of field. But for very small insects it has its use, so I do take it with me.

I am using a flash all the time. My Godox V350 flash and the lens diffuser work well. I still use TTL, but normally with a +1 exposure compensation. I am a bit disappointed with the recharge time. Also, the lens diffuser has its problems. Because it sticks out in front of the lens, it often bumps into the top of the plant on which the insect is sitting, making the plant move and focusing difficult, or scaring the insect away. This is largely due to the small focus distance I have to use. With a true macro lens this might be less of an issue.

Cinnamon bug (also called black and red squash bug). I had never seen this one before. I spotted him under some leaf. It took a long time before he decided to move to a place where I could nicely photograph him. Photo by the author.

Focus and other settings

I normally shoot with a shutter speed of 1/320, which is the shortest possible when using a flash. This give a rather dark background, which I like. I use electronic first curtain to avoid camera shake. I use aperture F13, which seems to be the best compromise between depth of field and diffraction. And I use ISO 200, to require a bit less flash power, such that it recharges quicker.

Initially I used manual focus, but now I am almost always using autofocus. It is common belief that for macro photography you need manual focus, but this is no longer true. Autofocus has improved so much. You do though need a modern camera and, in particular, a lens with very fast autofocus. When shooting handheld, you are constantly moving the camera slightly and the autofocus needs to adapt to that instantly. Otherwise the image will not be sharp.

Initially I used a single point focus area but now I switch to the smaller spot focus most of the time, to precisely control what to focus on. Only rarely, when this does not work, I switch to manual focus.

Holding the camera

I am gradually learning how to hold the camera more steady. That is the reason I can now use the spot autofocus area. I also regularly hold the camera away from my eye to get closer to an insect at a difficult location. This is a bit harder to control though. Moving slowly is key. My keep rate has definitely gone up.

The thing that makes my photographing life the most difficult is wind. And there is a lot of wind in the Netherlands. Holding the branch or leaf with the insect on it does not work very well yet. Fighting the wind is not fun but sometimes you cannot avoid it to get a nice shot. Fortunately, I found some interesting places nearby where there is hardly any wind, and regularly go there.

Green lacewings. I saw this one at a very windy place, so it was really difficult to get it in focus. Took at least 10 shots. Photo by the author.

Finding insects

I am definitely getting better at finding interesting insects. With the extension tubes I can now photograph much smaller insects, so I am looking for them. This requires me to move very slowly and look very carefully.

Once I spot an interesting insect I now proceed much more carefully. I first set my camera settings and focus point for the image I want to take. Then I slowly approach the insect to take the shot. I engage much longer with a single insect, trying to take a photograph from an interesting angle, or waiting until it moves to a more interesting or more approachable place.

Also, I have more attention for the background and take post processing into account, for example by leaving enough space around the insect for composition.

Post processing

I have become way more critical. Any picture I do not want to show to others, or use otherwise, I throw away. When multiple pictures of the same insect are almost identical, I keep just one.

My post processing skills are also improving. I now have an almost fixed sequence of actions: crop, develop, minor retouch if necessary, enhance colors, sharpen (when required), improve dynamic contrast, and add a soft vignette. I will discuss post processing in a future article.

I photograph much smaller insects now. This grass fly is less than 5 mm long. Photo by the author.

Next steps

So I think I am definitely improving. I hope you agree when looking at my images. But there is a lot more to learn.

Even though the current setup does work, I have decided that I want to buy a good macro lens. It gives better sharpness, more flexibility, a higher possible magnification, and a larger distance to the subject. I will do some comparisons in the next article.

Also, I am starting to think about what do do when winter is coming (still a few months away). I probably want to learn how to shoot insects indoors. This requires collecting (dead) insects, preparing them, setting up a small indoor studio, and getting into focus stacking and, maybe, extreme macro. I will continue to report about my endeavors.

Next: Choosing a Macro Lens

Previous: Raynox DCR-250 vs. Extension Tubes

Mark Overmars is a dedicated insect photographer that loves to share and regularly publishes about his work and about photography in general. You can visit his website at www.insectphotography.org. Download his free insect photography book at www.insectphotography.org/book.