Insects...

[Birma]

I have seen many bee pictures here Richard but that is a real beauty. Just wow .

[Dr. Harout]

Richard, as Birma said: WOW

[jcoffin]

Hi Richard. Let me add one more vote for "wow" -- that's really a nice shot.

[Scooterman]

Hi Richard. Let me add one more vote for "wow" -- that's really a nice shot.

Thanks guys, I am particularly pleased with that shot.
I have used lots of different makes of cameras and found that I can finally do this sort of shot with a so called “Consumer reject camera” according to some.
I could not do it with the Canon 7D, the CAF was not good enough.
I am enjoying using my two Sony bodies the 550 and the new 580, most of my shots are “Hand held” being disabled, Spinal injury, I can’t cart loads of gear about these days.
Thanks again
Richard

[donwae12]

Here's another bee shot.

[Birma]

Very interesting angle there Donwae12 - looks like the bee is coming in to land at the bee airport The flower looks enourmous.

[Dr. Harout]

It's becoming a very nice thread...

[aster]

Hi Donwae12,

These bees are like they staged a special show for you. : )

Neat shots!

Yildiz

[Scooterman]

That "B" good

Richard

[Greg Beetham]

Great bee shots Richard and donwae12, well done.
Greg

[gio67]

[Birma]

All of the recent sunshine here has provided some opportunity to dig up this thread again. Nice hover-fly Gio67 - not sure how that one got passed by before .

A butterfly from a walk in the woods yesterday. My butterfly book says the Brimstone is the "herald of spring", although it felt more like summer yesterday . How did this butterfly get a name like Brimstone? Also saw some Orange Tips and Small Tortoiseshells, but they were super-charged by the bright sun and too fast for me.

Trench Wood Brimstone Butterfly by Birm, on Flickr

A much more patient subject .

Trench Wood Ladybird by Birm, on Flickr

Both with A700 and Tamron 60/2.

[Greg Beetham]

Great shot Richard, do your bees bob and weave around a lot? or are they a bit more steady than ours?
Yeah wow that is some millipede jcoffin.
Greg

[Scooterman]

Great shot Richard, do your bees bob and weave around a lot? or are they a bit more steady than ours?
Yeah wow that is some millipede jcoffin.
Greg

They certainly don’t hang about much over here, summer is so short normally they have to get as much food as they can and as fast as they can Gregg.
This year is a strange one so very cold last winter and a longish one then suddenly it is like summer.
There are insects about but not as many as you would expect in warm temperatures, perhaps they have also been caught out by the sudden change in the weather.

[Greg Beetham]

That's an amazing butterfly (and I love the ladybug as well) Birma, I had too look twice just to be sure what I was looking at. I would like the wings all in focus, but hey, you often have to get the shot, a shot, before they vamoose out of sight. I have a similar problem here; while I'm up on the trestles I keep a watch out for the comings and goings, birds and butterflys etc. and there is quite a collection of butterflys flitting about but they rarely seem to land (while I'm watching that is), I even had the camera in my hand after photographing a flower when a ulysses flitted through my line of sight AND landed on the miniture frangipani near the back fence (with the engine running) of course about half way there it took off and disappeared over the fence...situation normal. There was also a really neat little golden brown job with little bulls eyes on it's wings, a large black one with cream blotches, a dark one with light blue and orange blobs...similar story, all had urgent business elsewhere as soon as I thought of the camera.
Greg