Incy wincy jumping spider

NOWADAYS, I have more reasons to walk around my neighbourhood.Jumping spiders contributes to that and I am enjoying my Canon EOS7D every day, hour
and minute because it is able to capture something as small as 8mm and reveal some
astonishing details.Right now, I am working with very basic equipment.I have a 50mm f2.5 compact macro lens which gives a 1:2 magnification.To get even closer, Canon has manufactured an EF-lifesize converter to go with the 50mm,
but unfortunately, this became obsolete.The only option I can forsee, is an upgrade to the EF100mm F2.8L IS lens. Going back to jumpers, I found that there are at least 10 different species of jumping
spiders lurking around my neighbourhood.I was very lucky to get some really good photos of the spiders and as a stop-gap measure, I
will be adding an extension tube to get a higher magnification of the arachnids.

Tale of the Blue Tiger Beetle

I was out snapping shots of insects at a pandanus patch near my house one afternoon and
noticed that there was a strange-looking bug making its way around the foliage.It has a metallic-blue coloured body with red coloured legs.I wasted no time by removing my Raynox DCR-250 close-up attachment on my Canon EF
50mm f2.5 compact macro lens and started taking shots of the bug.It was moving around so much, I managed to cap off two shots and that was it.My primary focus was a large jumping spider that is on the prowl on the green patch.There are at least two species of spiders thriving in this small area.I also noticed a large aphid that was mating on a patch of leaves. On any given day, I would have squashed this ugly pest. But seeing as it is, I left the aphid
alone as its not in my way.While I was tracking the jumper's movement, I saw the blue bug resting on a cowgrass. There, it stood elegantly, as if it was waiting for me to photograph it in full glory.I took aim with my camera and shot at least 60% of the beetle in frame and used my pop up
flash diffuser to give it a softer lighting. Now, it turned out that the blue coloured bug was a tiger beetle.I was told by macro photographer Liew Wai Keong that the blue beetle is very hard to
capture because its a sensitive bug.To make matters worse, it has a mettalic body which reflects light, making direct flash
photography very harsh.In total, I managed to get six shots of the blue tiger beetle and the following day, the bug
was nowhere to be found.Maybe someday, it would wander around the pandanus patch again and this time, I will be
waiting with my camera and close-up lens.

Dangerous curves ahead..

I guess that by being a late bloomer, things are really slowly getting started for me.This year alone, I forsee a slow career growth.There's much to be done and personally speaking, I don't really give a fuck about 'going with the flow' or 'moving
with the pack'.Come what may, I'll take it with my stride.And on the column that I produce on a weekly basis, my collaboration with Lam Soon had came to an end and
there are plans to extend their sponsorship.We've had talks and I floated some ideas. I guess that the sponsor was looking for a way out without being too direct about it.But seeing as it is, I feel that the future with this one is rather bleak.Sink or swim, the show must go on.I've done considerably well in 2009 and hope to maintain a steady course throughout the year.