Oooooooh... Purdy lighting!

Natalie · Jan 6, 2012

I ordered a Honl Traveller8 collapsible softbox for my MT-24EX macro flash last week, and I just opened it up tonight and couldn't wait to give it a spin. However, it's freezing outside, so I literally just ran out to my Venus Flytraps, took one shot, and then ran back in. Surprisingly, the settings I had set while I was inside happened to be perfect, so one shot was all that was needed. I know I'm not going to win any awards for composition with this shot, but look at the light! It's so smooth!

And it's not just that the lighting is smooth, it makes the photos sharper than before as well. Here's a 100% crop of the above picture - you can see the individual cells in the leaf! And this isn't even a true macro either.

I'm going to really give this softbox a try tomorrow, I can't wait.

EricD · Jan 6, 2012

Nice indeed....nice macro!

Derrel · Jan 6, 2012

Yeah, pretty soft,even light for close-ups!

Overread · Jan 6, 2012

Nice lighting!
traveller8 Softbox you mean one of those right? It seems a little big for the twinflash - mind shooting a pick of the flash setup just so I can get an idea of scales and fitting?

Natalie · Jan 6, 2012

Yep, that's the one. It actually fits on the MT-24EX perfectly right out of the package, no need to buy velcro tape like with my Gary Fong Puffers.

Natalie · Jan 7, 2012

Continuing the carnivorous plant theme, here are a few more pictures to illustrate the lighting. I can't wait till I can find some critters to practice on and get good photos!

The light is all flash in these shots, no ambient light.

Snakeguy101 · Jan 7, 2012

Very nice! I think I am more impressed by your carnivorous plant collection than the photos to be honest though. Here is one I took of my venus fly trap just yesterday.

DSC_3293 by Snakeguy101, on Flickr

Robin Usagani · Jan 7, 2012

Very cool. How does it trap fly? Sticky inside or it will close instantly?

Natalie · Jan 7, 2012

Thanks guys!

Haha, I wish these plants were mine! All the ones I just posted were taken a local carnivorous plant nursery, California Carnivores; only the Venus Flytrap in the first post is mine. I do have lots of carnivorous plants of my own, but most of them are dormant and ratty-looking right now.

Snakeguy101, your plant looks like it has a lot of new growth! Do you keep it mainly outside or inside? Seems like you would have the perfect climate for them. Last summer mine were struggling with the low humidity while sitting on the deck in the sun, but I think that's just because the places where I bought them were keeping them in high humidity and they needed time to adapt. Mine are looking like they're poised and ready for spring, I see a bunch of new traps folded up down near the bases of the plants.

Schwettylens, Venus Flytraps capture insects by snapping shut on them. They have sensitive trigger hairs on inside of the leaf, and when something brushes against the hairs twice within a short period of time, the leaves snap shut on the insect. It's really fascinating, and you can see a BBC video of it here:

EDIT: Unlike in the video above, the flies don't actually squeal and the traps don't make crunching noises when they snap shut. The producers added a bunch of sound effects to make the video more dramatic. :lol:

Robin Usagani · Jan 7, 2012

Poor fly. So sad at the end

.

Natalie · Jan 7, 2012

Haha, if it makes you feel any better, I believe a few scientific studies have shown that most kinds of carnivorous plants actually benefit insect populations. This is because they actually have a very low catch rate - the majority of the time, the insect gets away with a free nectar meal.

Robin Usagani · Jan 7, 2012

But you can see the sad face and hear the sound of the fly...

Compaq · Jan 8, 2012

The nature is awesome! I'm glad my knowledge of the theory of evolution is better than average, and I wish I knew much, much more!

Nature is God.

jaicatalano · Jan 8, 2012

Looks good.

Snakeguy101 · Jan 8, 2012

Natalie said:
Thanks guys!

Haha, I wish these plants were mine! All the ones I just posted were taken a local carnivorous plant nursery, California Carnivores; only the Venus Flytrap in the first post is mine. I do have lots of carnivorous plants of my own, but most of them are dormant and ratty-looking right now.

Snakeguy101, your plant looks like it has a lot of new growth! Do you keep it mainly outside or inside? Seems like you would have the perfect climate for them. Last summer mine were struggling with the low humidity while sitting on the deck in the sun, but I think that's just because the places where I bought them were keeping them in high humidity and they needed time to adapt. Mine are looking like they're poised and ready for spring, I see a bunch of new traps folded up down near the bases of the plants.

That's awesome. I wish there was something like that around here. I used to have a nepenthes but I couldn't keep it alive for very long. The Fly trap is on a high from being in the agar (from being tissue cultured) which is why it has a lot of new growth and has not gone dormant for the winter. I keep it outside usually but we have had a few freezes lately so I am keeping it inside for now. It is sitting on top of my eyelash viper tank and I have a humidifier (the fog in the picture) so it keeps it nice and moist.