Thanks for your comments Adam, Troy, Phil, Baz & Paul, I appreciate them.
Hmm, the EXIF data was saved with the jpgs, but it looks like the upload may have stripped the data from the files?
The macro shots were taken with a Canon 7D and Canon 100mm F2.8 macro lens. The minimum working distance (from front lens) of the macro is approx 15cms and I try to work in the range 15-25cms.
At 15cms, you get 1:1. That is, a 5mm long insect will be recorded as a 5mm long image on the 7D’s APS-C 22mm x 15mm sensor.
I shoot manual exposure, 1/250 sec, F11, ISO100, which effectively kills the background by under exposing. A Canon 580EXII flash set to E-TTL II provides the main illumination. The flash is heavily diffused to minimise hot spots and harsh shadows. If the BG is bright I dial in + 1/3 or +2/3 Flash Exposure Compensation but for most shooting conditions, I have it set to -1/3 FEC. At these close distances, the flash never fully discharges so I’m probably getting an effective exposure of at least 1/1000 sec, which helps freeze the subject and takes care of any camera shake/operator wobble.
For focusing, I use AF, selecting the centre AF point in AI Servo mode, with the drive set to 3 frames per second. All are single shots, processed in CS5 using Topaz Detail & Topaz Adjust plug-ins.
The rest is pure luck!
Cheers
Dennis
PS - The 2nd image of the full-body dragonfly was taken hand held with the 300mm F4 on a Canon 40D.