Thanks anandk, I didn't mean to frighten you.. they do have a certain beauty and I think if we're ever able to make friends with species from other worlds we might need to get over our inherent creature fear first.. cos they might look a bit different to us.

Handheld macro is indeed one part yoga, one part meditation and you need the steady hands of a neuro-surgeon to hold a steady focus at the 1-2mm range. However, spiders have a knack of being able to sit perfectly still for hours.. if it's not windy.. weather conditions have to be just right !