Scale

I'm not fond of being photographed, nor of putting myself in my insect macro shots. But needs must: it was blowing a hoolie this afternoon, and when I spotted this Acericerus ribauti leafhopper on a hazel twig, not only was the hazel blowing wildly back and forth, but the hopper was determined to keep herself on the opposite side of the hazel to me. I grasped the twig in my left hand and used the camera with my right, but I had to keep twisting the twig to bring her into view, and by the time I managed to get decent focus on her she was scuttling towards my hand. From here she hopped onto my finger, then after warming herself for a few seconds she took off and flew away to find a quieter perch. I suppose that having my thumb nail in the photo does at least convey a sense of scale.

This photo was shot with the Godox MF12 twin flash and a pair of Ian McConnachie diffusers, which I ordered on Thursday evening and received today. I'm very happy with this service, and quite pleased with the diffusers, which are a big improvement on the ones supplied by Godox. I put them to the ultimate test this afternoon, shooting some Parent Bugs which are amongst the most reflective insects I know, and though you can see in my second photo that the results aren't perfect, they're just about acceptable, with both colour and texture showing in the specular highlights. And I should say here that photographing the shinier shieldbugs can be a nightmare in available light too, unless it's absolutely flat. 

In time I may try to improve my flash results still further by adding some extra diffusing material inside the two diffusers, but for now I'll carry on experimenting with them as sold. Ideally, in still conditions that will allow me to keep both hands on the camera.