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Paper Wasp

William H.

Critical Thinker
W
Joined
Feb 26, 2002
Messages
467
A couple of weeks ago I spotted a paper wasp making a nest under the eave on my balcony, I was surprised at how patient she was with me as I photographed her. I had the camera an inch away from her numerous times over the past week or two and on just a few occasions she started getting agitated. When she got a little angry at me she would start to flex her wings, move her antennas, and turn to face me, just once she flew at me but stopped short of attacking.

I check her out a couple times a day so I think she's getting used to my presence.

abee3a.JPG




abee1.JPG



Here she is posing with an egg:


paperwasp.JPG




Today I read that if you supply them with colored paper, they will incorporate it into their nest, so I've put some construction paper up near her to see if she'll use it. The nest currently has ten cells, but she'll be adding to it the next two or three months so it should get several times larger.

I'm going to try to get some good close-ups of the larva and pupal stages, I'll post the photos in this thread if they turn out well.
 
Those are indeed some nice shots.

I am resisting the urge to go into camera nerd mode...
 
I suppose this is a good time to ask. Does anybody know where I can find this thing I saw on Invention, or maybe it was Next Step... anyway it allowes you to take photos or video with everything in focus all at once; no matter the distance. It was so cool. I'd like to find it because I'm going to be a videographer/photographer.
 
Those are really nice pics, I'm guessing you're using a 200 mm micro lens or thereabouts?

Wasps get quite used to people, at my parents house they would always build nests between the door and the storm door. They never stung anyone, despite people going in and out within a foot of the nest.

Maybe you can get the wasp to use the construction paper if you shred it and put it next to it's water source (usually a mud puddle).
 
Very nice.

You could probably sell these to National Geographic.
 
Wow, what great photos! I love them.


Go into camera nerd mode, RP, so I can listen in.
 
bewareofdogmas said:
I suppose this is a good time to ask. Does anybody know where I can find this thing I saw on Invention, or maybe it was Next Step... anyway it allowes you to take photos or video with everything in focus all at once; no matter the distance. It was so cool. I'd like to find it because I'm going to be a videographer/photographer.
Click to expand...

I think I remember something like that, although it was at the experimental stage. Something about a grid in front of the camera perhaps... anyway from what I remember I don't think the results were that great. I would think most "full-focus" schemes like that are destined to failure for some reason or another - you might just have to settle for longer exposures with a smaller aperture, or combining multiple exposures with difference focuses, for which you can use:

http://helicon.com.ua/pages/index.php?heliconfocus

David
 
I loved them. I made the one posing with the egg my desktop icon. Do I owe you royalties?
 
epepke said:
Very nice.

You could probably sell these to National Geographic.
Click to expand...

Don't you know National Geo only takes photos shot on KodaChrome? ;)

Out of those shots, the bottom one is the money.

Other than that, I have no idea what type of camera, as it is irrelevant, but a longer macro lens would be my guess.

Also, if you can, and i know it may be difficult because the bug would be moving a lot, use a tripod, cable release, and lock up the mirror. It will make a huge difference to the sharpness.

And as for the camera with everything in focus, a pinhole with a short focal length is the only thing I can think of. Other than that, short lenses, small apertures, and using the hyperfocal distance are your best bet. The lens makes the difference as to how close the subject can be before it is out of the DOF. Also, you will lose sharpness because of diffraction, as most lenses are sharpest stopped down two or three stops from there maximum aperture.
 
I want to point out that William needs to take as many photos as he can before the eggs hatch. A lone yellow jacket will not abandon her nest to chase after a possible threat; once a few of those eggs hatch and pupate, however, you might have a bit more trouble getting so close.
 
Glad everyone liked the photos, I wasn't sure if there would be any interest so I almost didn't post them, now I'm happy that I did.

WildCat said:
...I'm guessing you're using a 200 mm micro lens or thereabouts?
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That's a good guess on the lens, the specifications say "38-190 mm when converted into a 35 mm still camera".

Thanks to Soapy Sam for answering the camera question and posting the link, there is a photo of the camera at the bottom of the thread.

How close did you have to get to take those
Click to expand...

There is a "macro" button on the lens, when this function is enabled you can shoot a subject from as close as 7/8". So I was probably about an inch away on the extreme close-up, and a little farther back on the others.



You could probably sell these to National Geographic.
Click to expand...

I wish you worked there! If they would like to buy them, I'd love to see them in their magazine, but I get the impression that it's very difficult to get a photo published with them. Maybe I'll send them a link just for the fun of it.


I made the one posing with the egg my desktop icon. Do I owe you royalties?
Click to expand...

For the moment, no charge. But that policy may change if I get published in National Geographic and I get all full of myself.



Also, if you can, and i know it may be difficult because the bug would be moving a lot, use a tripod, cable release, and lock up the mirror. It will make a huge difference to the sharpness.
Click to expand...

I don't yet have a tripod or cable release, but I might get them in the future. Not sure if I can lock up the mirror, I'll have to look into that one, but thanks for the tips.



...once a few of those eggs hatch and pupate, however, you might have a bit more trouble getting so close.
Click to expand...

Yes, I'm wondering about how protective she might get once the eggs hatch, especially if I'm taking photos of the young when she's out getting food. I'm fairly comfortable when she's right in front of me and I can judge her mood, but if she returns to the nest and catches me real close to it, I'm a bit concerned about being vulnerable to a surprise attack.
 
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