CERATIOMYXA FRUTICULOSA SLIME MOULD

Slime Moulds were originally considered to be fungi but are now separated into their own classification. They are becoming popular among macro photographers despite their tiny size. Many species make fascinating subjects for the advanced macro photographer. Being so small they often need more specialised lenses and equipment to do them justice. Most species are only a couple of mm in size.

Woodlands are often the best place to look for many of the common species. Old wet decaying wood is the ideal place to look. Many are extremely delicate and are easily damaged. Autumn and winter are the best times to look for these fascinating organisms.

The photographic setup for the final image. This was a nice intact specimen with no damage. I wanted to show the subject in this case in its entirety rather than isolating part of it.

Photographic details: Nikon D850, 105mm micro nikkor, Novoflex MagicBall, and supported on the PRO75 tripod.

An image showing the subject on the LCD monitor. I used focus peaking in this case and focus stacked the subject to produce a final composite image comprising 55 shots. The importance cannot be over-stressed about having a completely stable setup when focusing stacking to ensure you get the best result possible.

Final image. Examples such as this don't stay in good condition for very long. It's important to take advantage when you can. A day's delay can produce a very different result.