Recent content by StuartUK

I have a Canon R and one of my lenses from a long history of Canon usage is an EFS 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. It works fine on the R using the supplied adapter. The R has a cropped mode and that is automatically selected when you mount an EFS lens. So no problem at all.

Hoverfly, Volucella zonaria

Not a drone fly! This is the hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus - sometimes called "Marmalade fly". "The Drone Fly" usually refers to Eristalis tenax, although the term is also used for other members of the genus Eristalis - hovers that generally mimic bees. Hoverflies mostly don't have common names...

The orange-red soldier beetles are Rahgonycha fulva - known as "Hogweed bonking beetles" because they are very often seen mating on umbels of that plant.

Mostly Episyrphus balteatus, but the bottom one is Eupeodes luniger. The head on one, I can't tell - not enough in focus.

The second one is a hoverfly, a female Syrphus vitripennis or torvus.

The hovers are Episyrphus balteatus and Melanostoma mellinum

I agree with TimHughes: there are two separate issue here shooting in 4k (whether or not you have a 4k monitor) is advantageous because it gives you more wiggle room to crop and zoom whilst editing Whether or not you render your finished video to 4k I shoot in 4k on my Canon R (mainly natural...

I bought a Nikon Coolscan III many years ago to try and digitise my (extensive!) 35mm colour slide collection. I never had much success with it and eventually gave up and turned to a failrly cheap and run of the mill A4 Canon flatbed scanner instead - which came with carriers for 35mm film...

As the previous post says, focus rails are rather tricky to use. It is difficult to get the camera on a rail on a tripod into the right position without disturbing the insect. Shooting a stack on a focus rail is also quite a slow process. The simplest alternative is to use "machine gun mode" to...

Cobra is correct - it is a hoverfly. Female Platycheirus. Not sure of the species from this angle, but I suspect it is one of the scutatus group.

I don't think it is identifiable from this photo. TimmyG's suggestion of a Heleomyzid is a possibility, my first thought was a Dryomyzid, but it could also be a Sciomyzid of the genus Tetanocera. If you want an ID, take several phoros - top view showing the wing venation and a close up showing...

Common names are always a problem, but "Window gnat" is the name used for Anisopodidae which are Nemotocera - i.e. they have long antennae. This is a Lonchopterid - a "Pointed wing fly". Assuming it was taken in Britain, this is a small family with only 7 species, all in the genus Lonchoptera -...

Work towards the next major update of GIMP, v3.0, is proceding and a devlopment preview has been made available (labelled version 2.99.2). Clearly, this is a work in progress and is an unstable, development version that should only be used for testing and not for anything serious, but I have...

Join your local Camera Club/Photographic Society. There will almost certainly be a number of people interested in wildlife photography. They will be able to help with equip,ment, techniques and places to go. Much better to be able to see other peoples gear and get their views on strength and...