Personally, I find hard-shelled beetles to be some of the most difficult subjects to photograph in macro-photography. The glare and blown-out highlights you can get off the shell are very difficult to manage. Below are some photographs from Grant Park in Centerville, Ohio. These utilized a new soft-box/diffuser I custom made for my gear.
Here is a couple shots of the softbox diffuser. Note, this was prior to welding the prototype - please excuse the questionable craftsmanship.
Nikon D7000 with Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 reversed with BR-2 Reversing Ring plus two PK-3 27mm extension tubes. Hand-made mobile softbox/diffuser on a Meike MK910.
Nikon D7000 with Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 reversed with BR-2 Reversing Ring plus two PK-3 27mm extension tubes. Hand-made mobile softbox/diffuser on a Meike MK910.