Golden Orb

It's much easier to shoot a spider when they are fricken huge.

 

In the wild these critters, are generally under the jungle canopy, which is generally low light.
But a tripod, and long exposure will not really help you out here - as the slightest breeze and the whole lot moves.

The red hourglass

It's harder than you think to photograph such a small subject.
This is a juvenile female red back spider.
The lens is less than one inch away, and focusing it extremely tight.
Thankfully there is a glass jar between me and her.