I think your technique is getting there. I see improved sharpness and exposure in every shot you're posting so just go on !
From this batch I like the frog eye best.
Thank you. I am trying to work on (quite literally) everything, from being more patient with my shots, to lighting, to really every aspect, including processing.
I'd like to post a couple more today, but it's raining cats and dogs ... and I just stepped on a poodle
One comment is that you might consider to varying your composition a bit more. All your main subjects are very central in the frame. Maybe try some "golden rule" compositions where you try to put the point of main attention (maybe the eyes or some other strong point in your subject) on one ofe the intersections of the 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines that would devide the frame in three equal parts horizontally and vertically.
Just a thought that might improve the impact of the pictures you take.
Thanks for the reference on the book. I'll check it out.
No prob. Yes, from a photographer's view, you are right, I should look to vary my composition (and probably shoot something besides bugs and critters too). However, I am trying to get as many butterfly photos as I can (reptiles, amphibians, etc.) eventually to make my own "field guide," not for commercial purposes so much as for just a personal goal. So getting as much as I can get in the frame, centered, is what my goal is for the time being.
But I do appreciate the message, and I think I will start to try to diversify a little, just to mix things up a bit. I am saving for the 100-400mmm telephoto, as well as the 10-22 ultrawide zoom, the latter of which I think will create some real possibilities in the direction you suggest. As a matter of fact, I have been reading that ultra-wides (with converters) make excellent macro lenses that offer unique perspective, like for instance getting as close as possible to a leaf and yet still be able to get the whole subject in view. Or, as you suggest, perhaps (say) have a close-up of a lizard in one quadrant, with his approaching prey in another. Just thinking out loud
Jack