Portrait of a Dragonfly

[Romy Ocon]

Barely 2 inches long, this tiny dragonfly fills the frame, thanks to the close focusing distance of the Sony RX10 IV at the long end that results into some decent magnification. I must've unintentionally touched the zoom lever a bit - the EXIF data reported only 595 mm equivalent focal length, instead of 600 mm.

The focus magnifier and peaking level make precise manual focusing a breeze at such a static subject, rendering the head area and both wingtips sharp. I positioned the camera such that the foliage at the back is a good distance away - the outcome is a wonderfully blurred background that imitates what can be achieved with a DSLR and a telephoto lens.

Shooting info - Bued River, Rosario, La Union, Philippines, September 5, 2018, Sony RX10 Mark IV, 595 mm equiv., f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/60 sec, manual focus, manual exposure in available light, Uniqball UBH45 + Manfrotto 455B tripod, uncropped full frame resized to 1500 x 1000.

[Bobby Kintanar]

Excellent shot Ka Mastah!I've also been into Macro lately and I'll post some of my captures in another thread. Just because our legs are shaky, our joints can no longer endure long treks, and our arms aren't as strong as they were to carry all the long teles in search for birds, doesn't mean we give up our passion :-)

[Romy Ocon]

Thanks, Ka Bobby.... there's a whole new world of small critters out there, whose beauty is waiting to be recorded by aging birdnuts.

[tina mallari]

LOL !!! Natawa ako sa aging birdnuts !!! Super nice macro Romy. Was it hard to get? Just one camera for birding and macro?

[Romy Ocon]

Thanks, Plain Idol.... the RX10 IV is my go to body for bird and macro videos. Looking forward to the availability of the Coolpix P1000 (with its 3000 mm reach).

I think I'm done lugging around heavy stuff, hehehe.