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How on earth do you...

dan803

dan803

Born this way
Shoot a tongue flick? They are so common yet I can't get a good one to save my soul! It's frustrating! :mad: I've tried everything. If I get one it's blurry.
 
I shoot rapid sequence for about three shots. If you blow on the snake, it _might_ flick. Really, you just have to take about 50 shots, and hope you get lucky.
 
Luck is a major part. And shoot a lot of pics. :D
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Nanci said:
Really, you just have to take about 50 shots, and hope you get lucky.
Click to expand...

This sentence sums it all up!

If you wait until you see the tongue flicking, by the time you take the picture, it will be over. Just take LOTS and LOTS of pictures, and hopefully some of them will not only have tongue in them, but be in focus as well.

A macro lens helps a lot too. :rolleyes:
 
If you want a clear pic of a flicking tongue you will need good light and/or high ISO. A flash is also necessary because the strobe stops the motion of the tongue. I would first try direct sunlight, try to get an iso of 1/1000 or better or use a flash. And as others mentioned you will need to fire a lot of shots to catch it.
 
Keep trying and shoot a lot of pics, you'll get it. Just think how lucky we all are these days getting good pics of our snakes (or anything else). Taking a lot of pictures has always been key to getting good nature/action shots, but 20 years ago you had to "burn a lot of film" to get the shots. A photographer might burn $100 in film to get a couple of good shots, and now we can take 500 pictures and it doesn't cost a dime!
 
Similar to the picture above, I found that when I put mine on a tree branch outside, she was flicking her tongue like crazy, probably all the new scents, and I got lots of tongue pics. Maybe try going outside, when it is warmer of course (I see you are in also in from Illinois, and I know I don't even want to go outside right now :) ) or maybe try putting your snake somewhere it has never been in your house where there may be different smells. I also agree with taking lots of pictures :)
 
A burst mode would probably be the best way to get one. I have yet to get any full tongue shots from my corns, and the two I got from my female BP were not the best angle and a bit blurry.

Take a snake outside and keep taking pictures. Their tongues go nuts when they explore something so new.
 
charlie1 said:
If you want a clear pic of a flicking tongue you will need good light and/or high ISO. A flash is also necessary because the strobe stops the motion of the tongue. I would first try direct sunlight, try to get an iso of 1/1000 or better or use a flash. And as others mentioned you will need to fire a lot of shots to catch it.
Click to expand...

if possible, ALWAYS keep ISO as low as possible. higher ISO's create a lot of noise in a photo. and yes, a flash certainly helps. it is a MILLION times easier to catch a tongue if you are using a DSLR, but it can definitely be done with P&S cameras too, it's just not nearly as easy.
 
Yep, just shoot a lot of shots...when the tongue looks good the shot is no good, and when the snake is just right, no tongue...oh well, try again.
 
Good tongue

Great toung shot, but not so great in other ways.

See what I mean,...try again.
 

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Oh, ... I was going to give you the data on this shot to get that tongue...
Exposure time 1/60
F-number 4.2
ISO 400
flash fired
Auto white balance
 

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High shutter speed would help as well. Play around with your camera settings. Try shooting in manual mode. Set the aperture wide open...lowest F stop,ISO around 200,and a high shutter speed. This way you can just wave your hand,then get the shot. Oh,and put your camera in continuous shooting. Snap,snap,snap..
 
This is one of my favorite tongue shots.
 

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All the info is really helpful. If I need to take her outside I should probably wait until spring, especially since we just got about 3 feet of snow. XD
 
Nanci,

You really have some great photography...what lens are you shooting with?
 

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I just use a Casio Exilim. The first pic was my old camera, the second pic is my new one.

Of the current models, this one is probably the closest.

It looks like they are going toward removeable batteries, for charging, rather than a cradle. I like the cradle, and have never run out of battery, or had a camera that wasn't fully charged.

I have a big, fancy camera, but it sits in its bag in the house, because it's too big to go on my bike, or in my purse, or in my pocket, or hiking, or whatever.
 
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