Published in Canadian Geographic ” Best Wildlife Photography 2016″.
Every year the Canadian Geographic society publish a special edition magazine of photos from their different contests that they run during the year. In this year issue I have 2 photos published in it on page 63 and 69, it’s probably no surprise that they are 2 photos of Frogs 😉
Taken with my Fuji X-E1 and 14mm from a canoe.
This one was taken in a small pond with my Canon 7D and 400mm lens + extension tubes.
Weekly photo of 16 August 2015
It’s been some weeks now that I’ve posted a photo, I didn’t had time and didn’t take much photos. Yesterday I went Frog hunting with my camera and came back with Bullfrog shots.
I found this one particularly interesting with the blood sucking Mosquito on the Frog’s nose !
I used extension tubes on my Canon 400mm/5.6 L to get closer, my camera was mounted on my tripod which was immersed almost completely in the water to get that eyes view.
Frogs are back …… finally !
It’s been a long winter and I was happy to see my first frogs this week ! I was able to photograph my first Green Frogs in one of my favorite pond. I hope that this summer will be great and that I will get some great shots !
Close view of a Green Frog. I positioned my camera as close as possible to the water level, in fact I went a little too close and the base of my 7D and the tip of my lens touched the water ….. Oups ! Taken handheld with my 7D and Sigma 180mm/5.6 APO Macro, ISO 800 at f/8, I used the LV to focus since it was impossible for me to see in the Viewfinder.
My gear for the 2015 Frog season.
I just switched back to Pentax just in time for the 2015 frog season, i carefully selected my lenses to be useful for photographing frogs. I bought lenses that have a good minimum focusing distance or repro ratio so that i can use them to take the portrait of my little friends.
Here is my Pentax lenses which will be useful on my tripod but also handheld with the help of the SR:
– DA 16-85mm WR for bigger frogs that will let me close enough to use that lens to show them in their habitat kind of shot.
– DA 55-300mm WR that i will use mostly from 100mm to 300mm.
– Tamron 90mm Macro will be my main working lens especially for the Gray Tree frog and Spring peeper frog but also to take close-up shots of the bigger ones.
– Takumar (6×7) 135mm/4 Macro, this lens have a 1:3 ratio on a 6×7 camera and will give me more rech than my Tamron 90mm Macro.
I still have my Canon 7D and will be able to use my 400mm/5.6L with and without extension tubes when frogs will be out of reach of my Pentax DA 55-300mm WR. Also i have a Sigma 180mm/5.6 APO Macro that have a 1:2 repro ratio that i will use on my 7D for more reach but still can do Macro shots.
I’m excited at the coming season that should start in a few days, i will be trying to vary my POV and came-up with different perspective and atmosphere. I will also explore new ponds this summer so that will help vary the environment in my photos.
Here are teaser photos from last year to give you an idea of the coming season 🙂
Young Spring peeper frog.
Green Frog.
Young Gray Tree frog with part of it’s tail still present.
Weekly photo, 02 November 2014
This week i found a new pond area which is along a dirt road along the highway close to my work. I’ve already went on that dirt road often but never walked the small trail that start somewhere along that road. I think i will certainly go next spring to photograph frogs, looks like a great habitat for Gray Tree Frog and Spring Peepers !
You’re lucky, you can’t smell the odor of rotten eggs that was in the air that morning, ponds often smell that.
Fuji X-E1 with XF 18-55mm, polarizer and tripod.
Weekly photo, 05 October 2014
I found this adult Green Frog in a shallow pond covered with autumn leaves, always good to photograph Frogs in different seasons.
Taken with Fuji X-E1, XF 55-200mm with a 10mm Extension tube, tripod.
Weekly photo, 08 June 2014
Frog season is great, we had good periods of rain, the water level in the small ponds is still high and there is a lot of Mosquitoes as well. This week i tried a more artistic rendering of this Green Frog.
Taken with Fuji X-E1 and 18-55mm, handheld with OIS activated.
Sometimes Frogs are very cooperative !
Yesterday before going to work i stopped at a local Park where there is some small and bigger ponds with different species of Frogs and Turtles. But it was cold (10C) and there was not many Frogs to be seen, i took some photos of a frog but not very good, after 30 minutes i had to go to work.
Today was another story, the morning was warmer and humid, Frogs were easy to find and i just choosed the ones that were more photogenics and cooperative. However at that place they are more nervous than at another pond i go also for photograpphing Green Frogs, i usually use my 400mm lens with Extension tubes (all the photos posted here were taken with that lens).
I started with this Green Frog, not satisfied because of the OOF branch in the foreground.
Not far away, this one was on the shore probably waiting for something to eat.
Watch your back my little friend, they were 2 on that mossy rock, the other one jumped as soon as i tried to get close. Fortunately this one stayed there. At first i wanted to photograph it from the side but it would have been difficult to get a good shot, so i took it from behind.
This one was very well camouflaged amongst the dead dark leaves, i liked the reflection in the water which adds to the photo.
Just as i was walking back to my Truck, i saw another Green Frog on the shore on moss covered rocks.
It’s a beautiful Park for photographing Frogs because of the different ponds setting, some are surrounded with Cattails and like the photos posted here where i concentrated myself on the series of small and shallow ponds.
Again after 30 minutes i needed to leave and go to work, will try to go again tomorrow morning and see if i will get lucky!
Frogsicles !
This morning i took my first photos of Frogs in 2014, but it was not what i was hoping for as my first shots ! This 2014 spring is cold like the winter we had and it looks like we will have 2 more weeks of cold days. This morning it was -1°C, again, and there was ice on the waterholes. What i found in a small waterhole (about 2×6 feet) beside the small pond (about 5×20 feet) both not very deep, is 5 dead frogs caught under the ice.
I found 5 Frogs dead in that small waterhole, maybe too small for them.
So it looks like these frogs choosed a too small waterhole for the long winter and just suffocated.
Here is an interesting article i found about the subject:
http://www.naturenorth.com/winter/winterkill/Winterkill.html
Macro Photography: part 3
Now that i talked about the gear and how to use it, i will talk more about the artistic part and how to record and compose shots. The good thing about Macro/Close-up photography is that you can do it everywhere, you don’t need to live in a wild area, you can get some great shots even in your backyard. When i’m walking in the forest most of the time i’m looking on the ground to find an interesting subject. Once you found something interesting you will need to look for the best angle from which to photograph it, walk around (if possible) and get down on your knees if necessary.
I like this photo of a young Leopard Frog that i took early one morning on the shore of a small pond because it shows the animal in it’s habitat. There is enough DOF on the frog but not too much that the background would become distracting, the Bokeh of the lens also helps here. The low point of view and the dew covered grass adds to appreciate that little fellow.
Pentax K-01 with DFA 100mm Macro WR, ISO 1600, 1/60 sec. at f/5.6, handheld.
Background and DOF control
When shooting Macro photos you need to be aware of the background and always position your camera and also choosing the appropriate aperture to blurr the background so it will not distract the viewer from the main subject. You might need to move some weeds or branches in the background to have a cleaner composition. Color of the background can affect the final look of your shots and give different feelings when looking at the result.
Sometimes the background can add to your subject especially if the subject is smaller in the frame and it’s part of the habitat (like the photo above of a Leopard Frog).
In this photo of a Leopard Frog i selected a wider aperture to blurr the surrounding of the frog and was shooting handheld at ground level but the lens was braced on a kind of bean bag.
Pentax K-01 with DFA 100mm Macro WR
Controlling light
You might need to control the light hitting your subject, you can use a flash, but personally i prefer natural light (i don’t own any flash). I often use myself, camera bag or even took off my shirt to shade my subject from direct sunlight when necessary. If i need to fill-in some light i use my DSLR book (which is always in my bag) to do that or you can have a small reflector.
I was looking for photographing frogs at one of my favorite pond and saw this Crab spider with her prey on a flower. Since they were underneath the petals the light was not so good so i used my DSLR user guide to fill-in some light, even then the white petals were blown-out but i can live with that. So always keep your eyes open, you never know what you can find.
Pentax K-01 with DFA 100mm Macro WR, tripod.
Finding subjects
Often the most difficult part is finding an interesting subject, taking time to look around, taking time to relax will open your mind and be more productive than walking too much in hope of finding a better place. Usually the longer i stay at the same place the best shots i get. When i’m shooting frogs it’s the same thing, i try to find the frog that is in a better surrounding and let me get close enough to make a good photograph. After that i work around it and try different lenses if possible.
This was taken after a rainy day followed by a cold night, the water drops just frozed on the leaves. The difficult part was finding a subject with a beautiful surrounding. The technical part was easy, just stopped down the lens to have enough DOF to render everything in sharp focus.
Sony NEX-3 with SMC Macro-Takumar 50mm/4, tripod.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with shutter speed, DOF, lenses or even WB and ISO. Modern cameras give you a lot of choices and  you’re only limited by your imagination. Don’t forget to bring your camera with you as often as you can since a Macro lens and a camera don’t take that much space and you never know when a small subject will cross your road.
This photo of a leaf caught in ice is a good example of having a camera with me. I took that photo on my way to work, i stopped on the shore of a lake and walked on the ice until i found the best subject.
Pentax K-01 with DFA 100mm Macro WR, Tripod.
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