Replaced background

Macro photography, virtually by definition, has shallow depth of field. Even at f/32, when a small subject is close to the camera, the background will be soft and most probably a completely undefined blur. We have all been taught that out of focus backgrounds direct our attention to the subject, and this is a good thing. That's true. But . . . that's not what our eyes see. And, a sharply defined background gives a sense of environment which can also be a good thing. In the past couple of years, I've been using Photoshop to place interesting and artistic backgrounds behind macro subjects as well as birds. It's a very different look. Remember, blurred backgrounds are man-made constructs. They don't exist in the real, non-photographic world (notwithstanding flaws in our eyesight). I photographed this tomato hornworm (which becomes a five-spotted hawk moth upon emergence from its cocoon) on a plant in my garden at f/32, but the background was still blurred and it wasn't very attractive. I replaced it with a shot of sharply defined foliage, and I think this is a lot better. I used a 50mm macro lens for the picture.