So you might have asked yourself how I managed to get a "studio" session with a snake, and the answer is that in this case it was really easy...

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, 1/250th sec at f/16. Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX in ETTL mode. ISO 100. RAW processing in Adobe Camera Raw.

When you subject is the size of a quarter, it is really easy to take him into the studio for a photo shoot. The hardest thing about dealing with this snake was being concerned with his welfare - with how small it was, I really didn't want to inadvertently injure it.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, 1/250th sec at f/16. Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX in ETTL mode. ISO 100. RAW processing and cropped in Adobe Camera Raw.

Luckily, this little guy was full of character and was very cooperative, giving me a number of different poses and holding them while I repositioned to take the photos. I was able to use both the Canon 100mm and Canon MP-E 65mm macro lenses and get right up close to him without any issues.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, 1/160th sec at f/22. Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX in ETTL mode. ISO 100. RAW processing and cropped in Adobe Camera Raw.

After the studio session, I did take him out in the grass to hopefully get some more "natural" photos, but as soon as I set him in the grass, he quickly vanished into the grass and other than some fleeting flashes of him slithering through the grass I couldn't keep track of him. I was still happy to have gotten the chance to have the nice photo session with this little guy.

- Bill