Green Lizard

[Bjørn Rørslett]

A very pregnant and docile female lizard we stumbled across yesterday. It happened to be rendered beautifully green by my Fuji S5Pro broad-band camera set up for false-colour emulated Infrared Ektachrome photography.

The lens was the humble 35.135 mm f/3.5-4.5 Zoom-Nikkor AIS, here in its 'macro' (sic) mode. This mode is actually quite useful as it is engaged at the longest focal setting for once. This old lens is low in reputation and hence low in price on the second-hand scene, yet constitutes a true hidden gem for IR photographers.

[Mongo]

Very nice composition and effect. Mongo may now view that lens in a better light

[Hugh_3170]

+1 to what Mongo said.

The image is also a true hidden gem  - shows the benefits of getting in close.  Love the details on the lizard, the wood grain, and on the hasp.

[tommiejeep]

+1 to both Mongo and Hugh,  love the contrasting colours, textures and the composition,  IR is well beyond my experience .  Maybe some day.
Many thanks for sharing something new to me and simple can be great.
Tom

[BW]

Love the composition and color rendition of the lizard, even thoug it looks like some foreign species. It also suprises me that my dialect word, hasp, also seem to be the same word in the english language

[Thomas Stellwag]

thanks for sharing this great picture
it seems to be a lizard model - this is perfect posing with the iron parts of the door

[Bjørn Rørslett]

In visible light, the little lizard looked just like - well - a lizard, of greyish-brown colour. The Infrared Ektachrome emulation through the Fuji S5Pro gave it the delicate green colour that set the animal off from the weathered outbuilding wall.

We approached it very carefully so as not to spook it and make it shed its tail in lizard-like manner. As it thought the best hiding practice was to freeze all movements and 'blend' into the background, working it was easy if distance was kept.

Here is another portrait of the lizard, with the same humble 35-135 mm f/3.5-4.5 Zoom-Nikkor AIS lens,

[Bjørn Rørslett]

A comment on the side: before people rush out to stockpile these 35-135 zoom lenses, do keep in mind it has to be used for purposes such as IR photography in order to shine. For ordinary, visible-light, photography, it is merely an average performer at best. A fate it shares with other lowly regarded Nikkors such as the 43-86 mm f/3.5, by the way

[simato73]

A comment on the side: before people rush out to stockpile these 35-135 zoom lenses, do keep in mind it has to be used for purposes such as IR photography in order to shine. For ordinary, visible-light, photography, it is merely an average performer at best. A fate it shares with other lowly regarded Nikkors such as the 43-86 mm f/3.5, by the way

You must be somewhere warmer than Norway I presume?
Judging based on the scarcity of reptiles in the UK, lizards should be very uncommon in Norway. Is that so?

[Bjørn Rørslett]

We were at 59° 53' 31.80" N,1 1° 51' 31.80" E ; ie. south east of Oslo towards the Swedish border.

Lizards are not uncommon in this part of the country. No idea about their general Norwegian distribution, though.

[Hugh_3170]

Børge, the word hasp is usually applied to a hook type fastener for a door or a gate, which is the case in Bjørn's photograph.  English seems to steal words from just about every language on the planet. 

Love the composition and color rendition of the lizard, even thoug it looks like some foreign species. It also suprises me that my dialect word, hasp, also seem to be the same word in the english language

[Jakov Minić]

Bjørn, that is one funky lizard. Lovely treatment of colours and detail!

[Bjørn Rørslett]

Apparently there is just a single lizard species here in Norway, the Common Lizard, and it is found even up in the high North.

This lizard Zootoca vivipara is, as indicated by its name, viviparous, or rather, the eggs hatch directly as they are deposited. Which for all purposes amounts to the same as giving live birth.

[Tristin]

Lovely image!  The colors and tones are pleasant and the composition is also pleasing.  Though I wish the tail tip made it. 

[simato73]

We were at 59° 53' 31.80" N,1 1° 51' 31.80" E ; ie. south east of Oslo towards the Swedish border.

Lizards are not uncommon in this part of the country. No idea about their general Norwegian distribution, though.

Interesting, thanks.