Night Walk At MacRitchie Reservoir Park (23 Feb 2024)

 The weather was pretty hot and dry for the past few days and I hesitated to go for my macro photography session, nevertheless the need to test out my new camera rig that I decided to give it a try at the MacRitchie Reservoir Park.

The rig is almost there but I am still having issues with inconsistent flash triggering, probably due to the damage camera hot shoe.

Darkling Beetle ~ 5 mm

Darkling Beetle ~ 3 mm

Chafer Beetle (Apogonia expeditionis) ~ 10 mm

Darkling Beetle ~ 3 mm

Darkling Beetle ~ 1 mm

The number of beetle encountered on this trip was miserably small but it is still a good trip as I was able to test out the new camera rig. Sadly, I will still need to settle the inconsistent flash triggering. Hopefully the issue can be resolved by the next macro photography session.

Afternoon Walk At Windsor Nature Park (16 Feb 2024)

It has been raining for most part of the week but the weather for today was forecasted to rain as well. As I have redo my macro camera rig, so I was eager to test it in the field. Taking the chance, I decided to go to Windsor Nature Park to test out my new macro camera rig.

When I reached the place, the sky was overcast and the wind was blowing very strongly. It seemed like it is going to rain, nevertheless I pressed on and proceeded with the session. Here's a shot of a cluster of white mushroom found at the base of a rotten tree trunk.

Darkling Beetle ~ 4 mm

Net-winged Beetle ~ 10 mm

Fungus Beetle ~ 10 mm

Fungus Weevil (Acorynus frontalis) ~ 15 mm

Pintail Beetle ~ 3 mm

Pleasing Fungus Beetle (Triplatoma gestroi) ~ 25 mm

Darkling Beetle (Ceropria superba) ~ 10 mm

The wind suddenly picked up and the sky looked threatening, so I decided to end the trip early and head home. Although there were only a handful of beetles encountered, it was still a good trip as I was able to test out my new macro camera rig. 

Blessed Lunar New Year (10 Feb 2024)

Here Wishing Everyone A Blessed Lunar New Year!

 

Morning Walk At Windsor Nature Park (09 Feb 2024)

 The weather looks great so I decided to go to Windsor Nature Park to test out my modification of my macro setup. The issue of the loose hot shoe prompted me to mount my flashlight by the side. This makes manual focusing a challenge due to the weight imbalance and putting a strain on my right hand. Nevertheless, the setup works and I am able to get a much deeper depth-of-field because of the flashlight. 

Although the weather was dry when I set off, the place looked pretty wet and looked like it rained not too long before I arrived at the place. As expected, the number of beetles encountered on this trip was pathetic.

The first beetle was this 10 mm Net-winged Beetle lookalike that I am still not able to have an identity on. Do leave a comment if you know the identity of this beetle.

Net-winged Beetle ~ 10 mm

Leaf Beetle ~ 5 mm

Although the number of beetles encountered was pathetic due to the wet weather, the trip gave a good field test of my macro setup. Guessed that I will need to tweak my setup more.