[Discussion] Androctonus spp.

Nice coloration on the last tail segment! I thought at first it was a hector, but I the color of the pedipalps looks normal.
Awesome A.a.

thanks tfleming and DolbyR. shes a normal morph. i accidentally got her as gravid. i have 3 males. 6i and two 7i. I'll take a few shots of them later with my other 6i female when i get home. thanks again!

Obeah wrote:

Hi guys i really enjoy reading this thread and learned alot from each and everyone of you. im kinda old/new in ASF. old because i joined a long time ago but i only read and read to every threads. btw, androctonus sp is my all time favorite. their personality and reputation in this hobby. i want to share some of my A.australis photos i hope its not too late for me to share it with you guys! this was taken 2 months ago before and after she gave birth. enjoy.

Click here to view:

Great series of shots. Especially pic #1.. it is a good side view shot of a gravid A.australis mum 2 months prior to birth.

Generally most shots are taken nicely at in different angles which tells a different story about the beautiful A.australis.
Well done

Thanks GS. i find photography + scorpion as an art. i never get tired of taking pictures of this beauty even if its redundant. but i wish i had a macro lens and take it to the next level of scorpion photography

Yes, taking pictures of Scorpions can be a form of ART too

Invert photography is a good way of documenting the growth and changes in a specimen.
Definitely not redundant at all.. but it really takes a lot of discipline in doing that..

Btw, what gears are you on currently?

Those pics are already now pretty amazing. I would say the device behind the camera is more important than the gear itself. GS, your iPhone pics prove my point!
I still need to learn a lot about macro photography, specially lighting and camera settings. Need to find some time to finally read those e-books I bought in the summer.

Yes, i miss using my iphone for shots too.. particularly its because of the ease in usage.
The only configuration/settings to be made are to the positioning of my table lamp.. LOL
Light is the indeed THE source of quality image!

This is one my favorite iphone4 shots..



I only moved on to DSLR after reaching my limits of utilising an iphone4 camera.
More things to play/ experience with.. aperture.. shutterspeed.. iso.. white balance.
I'm still learning as well... and its really great to share with you guys.. lolz

My suggestion is.. get into practice asap. Nothing beats it and the more you shot.. the better you get!

I'm actually glad I opted for not buying the DSLR at this point. I'll take a while to learn all the settings of this cam, so a DSLR would had mixed me completely

Did you use a specific app for focusing etc. on the iPhone? I bought one 2 months ago, so I could probaby try to get used to its camera functions and use it when I need to react fast.

Your PNS has great settings to play with too

When i was still using my iphone.. i just used the default camera. The trick is getting the right amount of light at the right place.. tap the focal point you wish to achieve and BAMB! Done!

However, recently i installed an app called Camera+ on my iphone.




Its awesome.
You can separate the focal point and white-balance (WB) by using two fingers as contact point.
That way, you can adjust the lighting required. E.g. By dragging the WB cross-hair to a darker place, you can brighten the overall pic while you still have the focusing cross-hair to choose your focal point.

Or.. you can simple use it like the default iphone camera with a single tap.

Check it out if you haven

DolbyR wrote:

I would say the device behind the camera is more important than the gear itself. GS, your iPhone pics prove my point!

This is so true, kind of like me at the moment. All the gear, no idea LOL Still trying to get my head around basics at the moment, but I'll get there, eventually You did the right thing Dolby by keeping it simple at first.

I totally agree that scorpion photography is a form of art and it's that subject alone that got me to buy my dslr and have a go. I'm always on GS' or Hauser's sites drooling over the works of art! I'm even in the process of working out a tattoo for myself from some of GS' pics, hope you don't mind mate but your A'a's are too awesome!

Lovely shots by the way Obeah, keep 'em coming Definitely not redundant, would like to see what you could do with some macro glass.

JamieLawrence wrote:

I'm always on GS' or Hauser's sites drooling over the works of art!

+1

I'm actually thinking about DIY'ing something like Hauser's LED lighting. I tried some shots with a basic clamp lamp and no flash, and there was definitely improvement. I used regular incandescent bulb so it made the pics (the last ones in my thread) bit yellowish, but next time I'll try with a CFL.
Probably 2-3 LED projectors like his would work ideally.

i agree with you GS, the position of lighting is very important and yes indeed the key to a good outcome. i'm using 2 cameras at the moment, for macro shots i use sony cybershot and the other one i borrowed to my gf is a canon 400D. im not a technical person when it comes to cameras because im only using one with a limited functions.. angle and lighting is all that i need for now. and i only use external lighting like (LED/sun). hopefully soon i will learn more about the technicalities of photography when i have my own dslr and lenses. hehe.

btw thanks for the compliment guys. now i really want to see some artsy androctonus photos.

JamieLawrence wrote:

DolbyR wrote:

I would say the device behind the camera is more important than the gear itself. GS, your iPhone pics prove my point!

This is so true, kind of like me at the moment. All the gear, no idea LOL Still trying to get my head around basics at the moment, but I'll get there, eventually You did the right thing Dolby by keeping it simple at first.

I totally agree that scorpion photography is a form of art and it's that subject alone that got me to buy my dslr and have a go. I'm always on GS' or Hauser's sites drooling over the works of art! I'm even in the process of working out a tattoo for myself from some of GS' pics, hope you don't mind mate but your A'a's are too awesome

Feel free my friend... I'll be more than happy

i'll post some new updated photos soon.

mating photos: Androctonus australis

Nice pics Obeah.

Great shots Keep them coming!

thanks! have you heard Androctonus australis "australis"? its very yellowish in color compared to common Aas.

Heres the link please check.
http://www.scorpions.lt/index.php?option=com_simplelists&view=simplelist&layout=select&category_id=37&Itemid=49

Took a few Macro shots on a Androctonus australis 7.instar female specimen to share:

Carapace
#1


Metasoma
#2


Tarsal
#3


Tarsal Setae
#4

Awesome pics GS! Is the female's chela more curved compared to the male? The size difference in the "notch" does not seem very big.

nice detailed shots you have there. yeah i agree it seemed that theres no difference on both chela.

My 7i male Androctonus bicolor.

DolbyR wrote:

Awesome pics GS! Is the female's chela more curved compared to the male? The size difference in the "notch" does not seem very big.

Thanks Bud.
Yes, not a significant difference has been observed.
That is why all other methods other than pectine count can only be used as a reference.. not a clear indication.

Obeah wrote:

nice detailed shots you have there. yeah i agree it seemed that theres no difference on both chela.

Thanks mate

Obeah wrote:

My 7i male Androctonus bicolor.

Very nice shot & awesome pose!

Try to get some shots which are "head-on" with the bug facing the lens.
Its simple angle but the effect is definitely Great