Coogler has recently been uploading terrifying photographs of ants on Reddit, with one post receiving over 65,000 upvotes.
Coogler’s Nikon D7500 was used to capture the macro portraits, which resemble Halloween masks, using a macro rail, which moves the camera in minuscule movements while taking photographs along the way.
I have to take anywhere from 30 to over 300 shots to get one final shot, says Coogler.
This is done so that the focal region can be seen as a thin slice. To “stack” all of those photos, I employ a technique known as focus stacking. The image is then processed to improve the contrast and sharpness.
Coogler adjusts the lens, which works with full-frame cameras, to a 5x magnification, allowing him to get closer to an ant’s head than most people would dare. He also utilises two gooseneck LED lights, which he diffuses using paper towels.
The resulting images disclose details about the insects that the human eye would never notice—and that some of us would prefer not to see.
That’s good because I didn’t need to sleep tonight.
“Beautiful shot, yet absolutely scary,” says another.
Coogler enjoys photographing everything from minute species to massive, faraway structures. The Andromeda Galaxy, Saturn, and its rings were photographed by the adolescent photographer. He has also photographed chimps at the zoo, as well as people.
