Pastel Crystal Amazingosity

Well, I was taking photos, and needed to take out the Pastel Crystal for a photo op. So, with some camera issues, I put her in a rogue water dish at the cleaning station. I fixed the camera, but looked up, and she was comfortably perched in there, looking out at me.

The biggest thing I noticed was that the blue of the Chlorhexidine spray bottle brought out the blue in her eyes!

And then, of course, I took the photo. I took a few photos...

I was of course, very impressed with what she was turning out to be, as I do with many of the snakes I don't look at often.

Why don't I look at her often?

Well, although the option is there, I try really hard not to look at animals that I am considering keeping while they are on sale, so that I can convince myself that I don't need them.

This is especially true of this girl... I would love to sell her, but the bigger she gets, the more beautiful she gets, and the more interesting she is for me to keep.

So I try and ignore her.

I know....lame, right?

Hey, it works for me.. Most of the time.

But if you did care to know, yes, their eyes are blue/grey, and yes, they do grow into more colors as they age. Maybe I will compare her with her older sister again soon.

And of course, I have to say I'm pretty proud of myself that I have updated the available page with everything I have available as of right now, with updated photos and everything.

YAY ME!!!

So we start the week updated and fresh.

Bring it on, work week!

Pastel Crystal versus Crystal

I got an e-mail asking about the differences between a Pastel Crystal and a Crystal. And even with my most eloquent and flowery description, it didn't quite cut it, so I went and took pictures.

So here we go.. with more eloquent and flowery descriptions..

Above, we have a photo of the closeup of a Pastel Crystal adult head.

It is faded light grey to lavender, with blue eyes and a bright yellow and creme coloration.

Compared to the head of a regular Crystal, it stands out like a sore thumb. The head of the Crystal is deeper tones of grey and lavender, with a splash of yellow towards the neck area. Also, note the blue eyes...

 

The colors of a Crystal are a bit deeper, but not by much. It's a subtle darkness, mostly over the spine ridges.

The body tone is just a smidge lighter on the Pastel Crystal as an adult than that the base Crystal. And of course, nothing like that of a baby..

Can you imagine this turning in to that above? WOW! Pinks turn yellows, lavenders get deeper tones, and in general, they are just gorgeous.

I could stare at them forever, really... And I don't like pink.

So there you have it. Adults compared. I don't have a baby Crystal that is within the same shade tone as the Pastel, as they have at least three months age difference, and in that time, they turn into the adult colors..

Got to love Ball Pythons and their chameleon-esque changes..

Have a fantastic day, my friends!

Last Crystal Clutch of the Year

Well, this Special Mystery Clutch wasn't so much of a Mystery after the hatching.

The answer for the question?

Pastel Super Mojave was the father yet again this year.

That is totally okay, since there was only one Special animal in the entire four egg clutch. (OUCH)

But it turns out to be a Pastel Crystal, that is less of an ouch.

BUT... She's a girl.

So now I am stuck with the problem of... should I keep her or should I sell her?

She hatched out with 2.1 Mojaves as well, all very nice looking ones to boot.

But of course, in a sea of dark colors, she stands out like a beacon.

And yes, Beacon... not Bacon....

Mmmmm Bacon.

I had all intentions of selling whatever came out of this clutch to pay for various and sundry wedding items that are needed, but... I am conflicted yet again with what to do specifically with this girl.

And tomorrow, I will share the photos of color change between the years. I haven't done that in a while, and with this girl and her older sister, I feel that I need to once again.

So there you go, folks.

Have a great day!

BEL Complex combinations

BEL complexes are rather complicated. There are a few of them that create Blue Eyed Leucistics (BEL's), which is why we call them Blue Eyed Leucistic complexes. Let's visit a list that will more than likely not be complete, as people seem to be dinking with many new ones as well.

Mojave
Lesser
Butter
Het Russo
Mochas

So if you combine any of these together, they make a Blue Eyed Leucistic.

Now on top of that, you can combine any of these with any other morph to make some amazing things as well.

Hypo Mojave

And that is what these photos are up here to show. People tend to be amazed by the BEL Complexes on their own, and with good reason! They do fantastic things to the color and the pattern of Ball Pythons, and when you combine other morphs with it, it makes it even more interesting. Hypo on its own is sometimes considered boring. Add a BEL Complex, and it POPS!

Pastel Crystal

Of course the base morphs themselves are fantastic. Fantastic + more fantastic = Super Fantastic!
I love the Pastel addition to a BEL complex, as there are plenty of things that perk up with Pastel BEL complex.

Add Pastel Mojave to a Special, and you get a stunning animal, as you can see with the Pastel Crystal.

Pastel Lessers are one of my favorites in the collection just based on the fact that they have such a striking contrast. You can always count on people to love Pastel Lessers. They are just so yellow!

Pastel Lesser

So of course, I took these pictures to show off. I fully intend to get a few more photos for you all, but if you have any requests, I'd love to fulfill them! Sometimes I worry I show off the same animals all the time.

Think about it, let me know, and have a great day, my friends!

Comparisons

 There is always a question of "what does this look like in comparison to that one?"

So I decided to take some comparison shots of what I think are important, as well as some great animals with good contrast.

Example One: You know how much I love Spotty McGillicutty, and how awesome I think he is... Well, here he is compared to another (albeit younger) Bumblebee. Usually, Bumbles look better as babies than as adults. 

Who do you think looks better?

And as I have done in a previous blog, I had the Super Pewter and the Silver Bullet side by side to compare colorations, as well as general overall pattern (or in this case, lack there of). I plan on doing this again as they grow.

These two are a bit different.  On the left, is a Pastel Lesser. On the right, a Super Pastel Lesser. In general, the overall coloration is yellower in the Super, as well as with more blushing. I realize that the contrast in the Pastel Lesser is much more striking, which makes this an interesting photograph to share with you all. 

Which do you like better?

And although the colors are a tad bit darker than I would like, the Crystal and the Pastel Crystal comparison shots. The Crystal is overall darker, but more yellow. The Pastel Crystal is more peach, and with a lighter head. The difference between the two is much more prevalent now as they are a bit older as when they were just hatched. 

I look forward to sharing them growing up as well!

So there you go, my friends. 

I plan on doing a few more of these for animals that are similar. If you have any suggestions, feel free to let me know!

Have a fantastic day, my friends!

Post shed goodness

Finally, the last few clutches have shed out.. There are a few more, but these guys have captured my attention.

I LOVE THESE GUYS.

Hypos in many shades... Hypo male first, Honeybee male second, Pastel Hypo female last but not least.

I really like the Honeybee. I have never had a chance to really admire one before, so I did so very much with the camera today.

He is so awesomely frosted... I am really really liking him! Maybe his name shall be Frosty?

And a few versions of Crystals

Pastel Mojave, Pastel Crystal, and Crystal, respectively. I do plan on doing another Special blog, so stay tuned! I am doing this blog very slowly thru tethering, so photos are taking forever.. which means the Special blog will have to happen when I have more internet.

Head colors up close and personal, kinda... I love the blue eyes and the yellow face stripe. Gotta love them.

So that's all for now, but I will be getting into more interesting topics again soon.

Have a fantastic day, my friends.

Crystal Balls

So three of the Crystals shed out.

A Male, a Female and the Pastel Crystal Female.

I took the photos for comparison, as well as just for the heck of it, since I was having fun with the camera.  I need to do some photos in a better light source, but for now, this is all I got. 

I took photos of close ups of the heads...

I know one of you guys asked about the eyes. Yes, they are blue! 

The darker heads are the regular Crystals, and the light head (the one staring into your soul) is the Pastel Crystal. 

She managed to tag me while I was doing this too.. She's going to be one of my favorites.

I really love the colors on these critters, and when they get older, it should be even more interesting to see the development. 

Staring into your SOUL.

I love the peaches and yellows and greys on these animals. 

Have a fantastic day, my friends!

Crystals and Super Pewters!!! ACK!

OH MAN, this weekend has been a hatching crazy bonanza, my friends.

Let me share with you my excitement.

This clutch hatched out on Saturday...

Sterling to Pewter:

I got my Super Pewter! But she is a gal... No big deal! :)

So ended up being:

1.0 Pastel
0.1 Super Pastel
1.2 Pewters
1.0 Sterling
0.1 Super Pewter

SUPER PEWTER!!!!  (With the Sterling) Boo boo photo though..

SQUEEEEEE!!!

And... to top it all off, the Pastel Super Mojave to Special clutch hatched out completely on Sunday.

Ended up with:

2.2 Crystals
0.1 Pastel Crystal
0.1 Pastel Mojave

I'm calling the Pastel Crystal and Crystals based on the head coloration. I'm waiting for them to shed to be 100% sure, but that is what I see right now.

What do you guys think?

Sorry for the ugly pictures. I'm going to have to get some better photos soon..

WOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

I'm not sure what to do with all of this, but I am very excited for the opportunity!

I'm going to go think about things for a while...

WOOOOHOOOOO!!

Have a fantastic week, my friends!