THE PHOTOGRAPHY OF REPTILES. 59 





Blindworm. 



dingy one will change his skin after a week or two 

 among fresh surroundings, it is well to give one's 

 captives a fair rest before attempting to photograph 

 them. Apart from the photographic advantage of a 

 fresh and brilliant appearance, they will, by this time, 

 have become accustomed to their owner (if he has 

 looked after them), and, as a natural consequence, be 

 better sitters. 



The blind worm or slow-worm is really a lizard, but 

 photographically a snake. By this is meant that the 

 photographer-naturalist will find much the same 

 difficulties in photographing a blindworrn as he would 

 in photographing an adder or grass-snake. The 

 difficulty arises from the fact that it is impossible to 

 get the whole of a blindworm or snake of a reasonable 

 size on the plate and in reasonable focus without stopping 

 down to something like f/32, and that, therefore, a 



