Post your insects

[johnbharle]

I see we have the original heading again.

It makes a difference if you reply to a post or to the thread. As was said above, you can go advanced and customize your heading. I have changed the heading in the past to keep from feeling dull and repetitive. Of course, it seems I always take the same photo, so maybe I am dull and repetitive... :-&

[johnbharle]

Had another go at a Monarch butterfly egg.



And while I was shooting some flowers, this guy popped into view.

Those are really nice. What is the plant?

[purplehaze]

Thanks, John. The butterfly egg is nestled in among milkweed flowers. The white balance is off, I think; the flowers are actually a bit redder, but again I shot without a grey card. I think the spider is on a lamium.

[Geoff F]

Another odd looking insect - A Scorpion Fly.



But totally harmless.

[wlou]

Thanks Mary. there are so many bugs, its hard to know them all. Do you use a reference book or site?

[Vrgl]

I usually google a description along with location( state) and it comes up with pictures. I know there are books out there. Especially Peterson Guides for everything with color plates.

[Vrgl]

DSC_0321 by kutsies pics, on Flickr

Was out wandering and found this. I had to stand on my tiptoes to get it-not the best situation. But I like the bees working with the pollen on their legs.

[wlou]

Thank you Mary, its good advice. I bought a book on butterflies and I already identified a couple. This summer will be fun. Ah, all the different trails photography is tacking me!

[frankdykes]

It was a really cold day in early March; I was amazed to see any insect life at all. Needless to say nothing was moving very quickly, which was most considerate.

[frankdykes]

[IanCD]

Took a break from renovation / D-i-Y yesterday, during what was also a break in the seemingly almost constant rain we've been having, to spend half an hour in the garden...
The astrantia seemed to be popular.
Found what I think was a Sciarid fly. Focus isn't what I'd like it to be - or maybe shutter speed (1/100) a bit slow.



Then spent some time with this hover fly. I was trying to get one of it hovering... kept teasing me by flitting off then coming back and hovering while I tried to focus... just about always moving off just as I got there!





I think I'm gradually getting a bit more adept at this, though they're not razor sharp and as close / magnified as some of you seem able to get them using similar focal length lenses. More practice..! C&C welcome (and identification..!)
Ian

[Jim B.]

Tobacco Hornworm (Manduca Sexta).






Came home from vacation to find this critter dining on my tomato plants.

5DII 100L f/11 ISO 800 natural light.

[Geoff F]

Ian, with the first fly, did you use a tripod and was it windy? I prefer to use something around 1/200 to allow for any movement but 1/100 should still be OK under ideal conditions.

The angle isn't helping as the sharpest point appears to be it's small head, which leaves the biggest area out of focus.

I can't recognise that insect, although I have seen something similar somewhere; once.

The Eristalis tenax is fine.

Good sharp details there, Jim.

[IanCD]

Hi Geoff,
No tripod... haven't got into that way of shooting macro yet - and yes, it was a bit breezy.
Thanks for the ID on the Eristalis.

Jim: that's a nasty-looking beast.. so many (fake!) eyes..!
Ian

[Letrow]

I think I'm gradually getting a bit more adept at this, though they're not razor sharp and as close / magnified as some of you seem able to get them using similar focal length lenses. More practice..! C&C welcome (and identification..!)
Ian

Nice one Ian, I like it that we can still see the shape of its wings and the hoverfly itself is sharp. Interesting to see how it deploys its hind legs.

[Letrow]

Tobacco Hornworm (Manduca Sexta).






Came home from vacation to find this critter dining on my tomato plants.

5DII 100L f/11 ISO 800 natural light.

It somehow reminds me of some sort of dog. It would be an alien puppy of course, but the form of its head and that 'tail'...
Nice and sharp shots. How big are they exactly?

[IanCD]

Nice one Ian, I like it that we can still see the shape of its wings and the hoverfly itself is sharp. Interesting to see how it deploys its hind legs.

Thanks Peter, that was a lucky one..!
Apart from gradually learning macro techniques, I'm also learning how the pop-up flash works (i.e. calculates exposure / power) on the D7000... I have the sync speed set on 1/250 at the moment... not fast enough to stop them, but I wonder if that's why we can we can still make out the shape of the wings..? I spent a few hours back in April by a Berberis bush in my garden, taking a couple hundred pics of bees, but none with the wings still... they move so fast! No discernible shape even at 1/640 - hmmm, so actually maybe those thoughts on the flash sync speed are wrong...?!
Ian

[Letrow]

Scott Fairbairn has some tips on gettings the wings right. He uses speedsettings that vary from 1/640 to 1/2500 and you can see that his faster settings work better. He seems to shoot at F/8 for these photos, but you will need a flash or good sunlight to make this work.
A nice project to try out though, I might give it a go.

[Jim B.]

Peter,

This one is around 3" long.

[Geoff F]

A before and after scene today.

We have previously seen shots of Cuckoo Spit. A bubbly froth which hides a small green caterpillar like bug. Here is another example.



And this is the fully grown adult. A froghopper.