Madhusudhan Srinivasan

March 2019 - Snail

Original

About the Image(s)

I could make this image from my trip to Western Ghats (Agumbe) in India during the last monsoon around June ’18. While a group of us strolled in rain for macro subjects, we got many interesting insects, amphibians etc. This Snail, with its antennas fully stretched, caught our attention too. It was generally crawling on a plant stem looking for its meal. Couple of us immediately switched to the Off-Camera flash mode to play lights and shadows with it. Fortunately, I could get this frame making it interesting to see its grip, shell colors & pattern along with the stretched antennas… couldn’t ask for more from this beautiful creature…

Gears used:
Nikon D7200, Sigma 105mm f2.8 macro lens, Godox TT685 external flash with DIY diffuser

Exif:
Manual Mode, 1/160, f13, ISO200, EV -1 stop, Weighted Avg. Metering

This round’s discussion is now closed!
11 comments posted

Lisa Cuchara
(Groups 41 & 44 & 46)

what a cool subject! wow! the colors and patterns and textures in this little snail are awesome.

I love the Godox flashes, and thank you for so much detail about the image and capture.

Tell us more about the DIY diffuser, please...

I think just a touch of selective sharpening and selective contrast on the shell would make this POP...

Posted: 03/09/2019 13:54:07

Thanks a lot Lisa. I like your version too. DIY diffuser - used a white plastic box to go around the flash and included couple of layers of Styrofoam sheets to diffuse the light. Hope this helps. Posted: 03/11/2019 04:59:37

Larry Treadwell
(Groups 36 & 67)

You never seem to disappoint. How you find such unique subject each month is amazing. This composition is really complimentary to this image. I like that the limb is not straight with downward angles shown at both ends. Again, you handled the background perfectly and it really sets of the snail. The fact that you got this with its head out and the antennae open is just perfection. Even thought the back end of the snail is slightly soft, it is not noticeable unless you look closely so it does not matter. Lisa's idea of sharpening and adding contrast looks like it might work well. Posted: 03/10/2019 11:51:17

Thanks for your even encouraging comments Larry. Hope to live upto that expectation in future too... :-) Posted: 03/11/2019 05:01:04

Priscilla Farrell

Greetings Madhu, Impressive image. I think you did well with your original post processing. Lisa's fine tuning is a plus. The lighting, composition and background are very well done. I think you made an exceptional capture especially under rainy conditions. The results are admirable! Posted: 03/10/2019 13:25:22

Appreciate the feedback Priscilla. Yes, Lisa's version of the image is also little better. Happy to take the cue from there. Posted: 03/11/2019 05:02:06

Neal R. Thompson, M.D.

What a great image...great accentuation of the simple subject with nice background, good color contrast, sharpness and the positioning of the subject just perfect. I agree with Lisa. Posted: 03/10/2019 17:25:30

Thanks for taking time to comment Neal. Posted: 03/11/2019 05:02:48

Murphy Hektner

Hi Madhu, Fine image very well composed. Like the dark background as there are no distracting elements to take attention away from the subject. I think Lisa's idea of adding a bit more life to your subject is well taken. Your use of flash worked well on this image. Posted: 03/13/2019 00:56:26

Hi Madhu, very nice image. I like the dark background and the placement of the snail. Lisa's suggestions are good and makes it pop. Well done. Posted: 03/13/2019 07:40:56

Madhu, impressive image. You did a great job lightning up the original to show the beautiful details of this creature. The cropping is appropriate and the image has good perspective, giving dimension to the subject. Also, the focus nicely emphasizes the texture. Well done! Posted: 03/23/2019 15:58:30

PID Digital Dialogue

Group 63