tinusbum Loc: east texas

it looked like a small fly when i first saw it but it was waspy when i looked through the viewfinder. handheld Nikon D5100 at ISO 320, with Sigma 150-mm macro lens & full set of tubes, 1/60-sec at f/16, SB-400 speedlight at 1/4 power, with DIY 'sonic diffuser'. tom

martinfisherphoto Loc: Lake Placid Florida

Hey Tom
What's your WD with the 150mm and Tubes??

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

Yeah, I wanna know too! You always seem to nail these. I just got a set of Kenko extension tubes, -- and I'm struggling to get acceptable DOF. I know it's small, but so far my stuff sucks.

tinusbum Loc: east texas

with the 150 and a full set of tubes the working distance is 6" from the end of the lens

martinfisherphoto Loc: Lake Placid Florida

With the 100mm our working distance is 6 inches before the tube, I love this space and really use to it. Now of course we lose about half that with the full set of tubes. Tom is also really good with squaring up to his subjects. This is the Greatest Tool when trying to acquire good solid DOF.

martinfisherphoto Loc: Lake Placid Florida

Thanks Tom. Since I'm picking your brain what's your choice of aperture with the tubes. I having some success with F/29 but diffraction starts to really kick in. I go back to F/22 and lose some of my DOF sense the tubes reduce my WD.

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

I've been using f/22 with the tubes. Usually I don't go there, but gotta save the DOF. I've been working on squaring it up. Today I was lying on a cold sidewalk (28-34 today) shooting a 1" slug and trying to keep it squared up. I left before the white suits arrived with the strait-jackets.

;-) Ya gotta be a little crazy!

tinusbum Loc: east texas

that is a tough one,i like all i can get, but i like to keep my flash at 1/4 power, so with the lens set at MFD, I can usually get f/18 to f/22. but when i shoot flies or anything that size i have to back off to get the whole body in the shot then i have to go to f/14 to f/16. tom

tinusbum Loc: east texas

WOW! i think this is a fungus gnat,i missed my chance at a gnat's a$$ (00)

tinusbum Loc: east texas

i checked my WD with my 105 and tubes its 4"

Mousie M Loc: Coventry, UK

Great pics. Unless you recognise the species (which I don't) there are some clear cut differences between the orders (wasps are hymenoptera, meaning waisted with wings, flies are diptera meaning two wings) True flies only have one pair of wings the others are modified into halteres or tiny gyroscopes behind the wings. Wasps sometimes fold their wings together so it looks like one pair. In the first pic it looks a bit like that, but the second pic is clearly one pair only so I am going with a fly. This is also consistent with piercing mouthparts (look carefully at the little needle! This is what separates out the really good macro shots!) A long abdomen extension often means a parasite, usually a wasp, which lays its eggs through a long tube stuck into a caterpillar etc. But they tend to hold them up above the body in a curve and have a pointy end. Those wings look like hunter's wings.
I think think you have a fast flying, hunter fly which goes around sucking juice out of a prey beasties.
If you check this out further, beware of ichneumon flies (which are actually the wasp order) and sawflies (a separate group, not flies or wasps, which drill into solid wood to lay eggs in grubs) both have long ovipositors.

Mousie M Loc: Coventry, UK

Also, an extra shot from above is less artistic, but helps when identifying!

I have just lashed out and bought the Nikon 105mm macro lens. Not had time to play yet, but the DOF look fearsome short!

Keep shooting, and have fun!

tinusbum Loc: east texas

thanks everyone! mousie next time i'll try to get the above shot for I D tom