Mike, I love your pics, but do you have a death wish??? I love the colors of the rattlesnake, unless you have a zoom, your to close!!!
I don't really think I'm too close. You have to remember, I have a digital and I reach down and take the shot rather than having to look through the viewfinder with my face nearer (with my 35 mm) I suppose if they strike they could get my fingers that surround the digital camera. But I can kinda tell when they are about to strike. Well, the first pygmy that I found did surprise me, but he came up a few inches short, thankfully. Now I think I know a little more about their temperment and how they position themselves before they're about to strike.
If I come across an Eastern I will use the zoom a little, since approximately 40% of their biting victims, if fully 'venomated', die. I don't know how the statisticians figure out which ones are fully injected, but I've read that in several places.
The snakes actually don't have all that good of range, and at 40, I'm still pretty quick