Frogs from the lightbox

[Ron]

A couple weeks ago I constructed a rather ghetto lightbox photo shoot for some of my frogs. Figured I would share some of them...

Ranitomeya ventrimaculata


Ranitomeya fantastica


Ranitomeya lamasi


Ranitomeya summersi


Ranitomeya ventrimaculata

[Ron]

Dendrobates auratus (Caribbean, Costa Rica)


Dendrobates auratus (Canal Zone, Panama)

[Ron]

Oophaga pumilio (Chiriqui Grande)


Oophaga pumilio (Chiriqui Grande)


Oophaga pumilio (Isla Bastimentos)

[Ron]

Epipedobates tricolor




Phyllobates vittatus

[John]

Stunning photos Ron. I applaud your confidence with the dart frogs. I've wanted to try my imitators in my lightbox but I don't feel confident in restraining them. Got any secrets?

[John]

By the way, the fantastica, lamasi and vittatus photos are my favourites. Which race of lamasi is that?

[Ron]

Thanks John. I don't really have any tips: my lightbox is just a 19 quart Rubbermaid tub turned on its side and lined with printer paper. This way they're closed in on all sides but one...and on that side is a massive human being with a bright light and camera. Rather than paper, I would recommend using some sort of white plastic sheets (kitchen cutting pads?) if you can as the paper tends to absorb the moisture from the frogs and they sometimes stick to it in pretty unnatural poses. Then I just hold and position a small clip-on lamp in one hand while I snap away with my point-and-shoot camera in the other.

P. vittatus is one of my favorite species, hands down--this photo doesn't at all do them justice. You really have to see them in person.

The lamasi in the photo is the "highland" form...also sometimes called the "standard" form because it was the first type introduced to the hobby.

[John]

Thanks Ron. The lightbox part didn't concern me, it was the possibility of escaping frogs. Ray Coderre has some vittatus, and I've seen them a few times but they are one of his more elusive frogs to photograph. I must admit that I'm very taken with "Standard" lamasi but they seem to be hard to come by.

[Kurt]

Awesome pictures! Love the lamasi, vittatus, and pumilio.

[Wembley]

These pics, make me want a better camera, and get some good pics of my frogs. Wonderful Pictures!!!!!

[Mcbobs]

Really awesome pictures! I've always wanted fants and standard lamasis, but they are just out of the price range for a broke college student.

-Matt

[John]

These pics, make me want a better camera, and get some good pics of my frogs.

If I had a penny... While a good camera helps, getting photos like this is at least as much due to the photographer's skills as to the ability of the camera to take nice photos. In my opinion, 90% of it is the photographer's skills - that's a no brainer. So practice with your current camera, try different settings and do some reading . You can also ask questions of course.

[Wembley]

I totally agree on the camera and needing to have a good photographer, I work at a Best Buy where I get to look at the really nice ones all the time, so that doesn't help . I just want a camera that doesn't take an eternity to take a picture. I miss a lot of nice shots waiting for it to take the picture.

[John]

That's a fair point that I will grant you.

[Ron]

Along with what John has already said: my camera is a Kodak EasyShare DX6490 point-and-shoot I bought 7 or so years ago. It has a macro button and auto focus, which really helps with these sorts of things. But I've spent that many years really learning how to use it and understanding its quirks and limitations, and then working with (and in spite of) them. This camera has been brough on backpacking trips, to the desert, to West Africa...it has dirt and pieces of dust on the inner lens I can't remove and that show up in images if I shoot too directly into the light (a new camera would probably cost less than sending it in to get repaired). But if I had a better camera, I bet my pictures would actually be of lower quality than what I'm able to current do with this camera. Of course there is a learning curve...but right now this camera is familiar and I can adjust and do what I need to without hardly thinking about.

[Kurt]

What did you photograph in Africa?

[Ron]

Hi Kurt, I'll try and start another thread and share some of the photos I took while there.

[McLaura]

Really amazing photos! My favorites are the pumilios. Those are on the wishlish for when I know more about them and have a little more space and cash. I will also say that point and shoot cameras can be fantastic - the digital macro button on my Canon SD750 took amazing pictures.

[John]

the digital macro button on my Canon SD750 took amazing pictures.

You make it sound like you just happened to be there while the camera did all the work :P. Take some credit!

[graphicfrog]

Hello....
i'm not english...so sorry
so i will know were i can download photos on high resolution...
thank you so much