Posts Tagged bee
January 29, 2012 – Bee and Flower
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on January 29, 2012
Bee and Flower
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Umm. Wow. Been awhile, huh? Well, here’s one to hold you over until I decide to start blogging again.
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June 15, 2011 – Bee and Poppy
Posted by Dave in Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on June 15, 2011
Bee and Poppy
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=2515
Well hello there, folks. Looks like Tuesday never happened, huh? That’s too bad. This is the picture I was planning to post, before the day just kind of got away from me. Remember on Monday how I was talking about taking pictures of bugs that were flying? Yeah, turns out it’s hard.
The focus is really the hardest part. I mean, sure, you could just zoom way out and all that. But (in case you didn’t notice) I have a bit of a macro obsession. I want to get in close. I want to be able to see the little hairs on the bug’s body. I want to see the romantic bits of flowers. Actually, that’s jumping ahead a little bit. But since it’s done, I’ll go ahead and mention that: I figured the only way it would be even kind of possible is by hanging out near flowers. That is, hanging out near places where there’s a good chance they’ll be landing and/or taking off. Then you can at least try to just focus on the flower, and then be quick on the shutter when a bug flies by. There’s still a good chance that the focus will be a bit too close or far, but then you at least stand a chance. But it’s still tough, because bees like to go to where there are hundreds of flowers. Meaning, if you decide to just focus in on one in particular, you’ll probably be sitting there all day while they land on every single flower there except for the one you’re focused on. It’s annoying.
So, I compromised a bit. I didn’t get in as close as I’d like to, because then it would have been just plain impossible. I zoomed out a bit, and then I just took lots and lots of frames. And then a couple of them turned out okay. It was also annoying that the sun which I had been counting on disappeared behind the clouds as soon as I went outside. Meaning, I had to crank the ISO a bit in order to keep the shutter speeds fast enough. (That’s another problem. Those suckers are MOVING – so if you’re using anything less than like 1/1000s, you’ll get motion blur.)
So, right. It’s hard. Here ya go.
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens. 1/1250s, f/5.0, ISO 400. Focal length: duh, 90mm.
Popularity: 13%
May 18, 2011 – Bee and Flower
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on May 18, 2011
Bee and Flower
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1961
Let’s go with this one today. It’s (yet another) bee with (yet another) flower. But it’s Wednesday, and this makes me 3 for 3. I think these are lavender flowers or something? Hmm, whatever, not important. They’re nice enough to look at.
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens. 1/200s, f/5.0, ISO 400. Focal length: 90mm.
Popularity: 23%
April 5, 2011 – Bee and Flowers
Posted by Dave in Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on April 5, 2011
Bee and Flowers
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=2013
Don’t worry, I’ll inundate you guys soon with a bunch of Hawaii pictures, it’s definitely coming. In the meantime though, I’m just going to toss out a few more shots from the archive. Like this one. And no, this one isn’t from this year. I haven’t yet started going outside to take bug pictures this year, I think it’s still a bit too cold for them (the bugs, not the pictures), and besides, the flowers haven’t really started blooming yet. (Although some of the trees have…)
Obviously, I used a flash in this picture. The fact that it’s so obvious is actually one thing I don’t really like about it. The bee’s “skin” was just too reflective, so I got that crazy shine. I mean, in some ways it’s neat, because you can really see all the little grains of pollen stuck to his head, but using artificial light like that almost feels like cheating. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll get over it.
In other news, I believe the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival has started. Meaning, I’m pretty sure it officially goes from basically the beginning of to the end of April. I haven’t actually put any effort in to see if any tulips are actually blooming yet (although there are some daffodils blooming locally, so those are probably in full effect up there), but it’s probably time to start looking for a nice weekend day to head up there. If you’re a photographer, and you’re at least somewhat in the area (BC counts!) it’s totally worth checking out, you can have a lot of fun playing around with lots of different theme ideas. I’m tentatively planning on making it up there sooner or later, so maybe I’ll see you up there?
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Macro lens. 1/160s, f/16.0, ISO 100. Focal length: 90mm.
Popularity: 19%
January 7, 2011 – Bee and Flower
Posted by Dave in Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on January 7, 2011
Bee and Daisy
Friday, January 7, 2011
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1718
Wait, what?? This blog is still getting posted to? Man, I thought it was dead there for awhile. But then, BAM, just like that, a new post.
That’s right, folks, I’m getting back on the horse! The horse meaning, of course, the habit of occasionally posting pictures, maybe a few times a week if you’re lucky. I spent some time out of town over the holidays and all that, but I’m back now. Perhaps eventually I’ll even toss up a couple photos from that trip. But, not today. I haven’t even downloaded them from the camera yet, honestly. Hopefully soon, we’ll see.
In the meantime, here’s another insect and a flower. It’s true, this one is very similar to a photo I posted a long time ago. But, while it was taken at the same location (the Rose Garden in Woodland Park), it was taken about a year later, using different equipment. So it’s totally fair game. Because, you know, it’s all a game, with rules and stuff. And I hate breaking the rules.
Have a great weekend everyone! I’ll try and put up at least two posts next week, but I totally want to ease everyone back into this, so I’ll definitely take it slow.
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm macro lens, Phoenix macro ring flash. 1/160s, f/20.0, ISO 100.
Popularity: 25%
November 4, 2010 – Bee and Flowers – 300th Post!
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on November 4, 2010
Bee and Flowers
Thursday, November 4, 2010
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1960
Hey! Guess what! Here’s a hint: it says in the title. Yeah, this is the 300th Picture of the Day! (Or is it the Picture of the 300th Day?) Woooooooo!!! Crazy, right?? This blog has been going for just under 18 months now. I honestly didn’t think I’d still be sticking with it for this long. But, here we are, for whatever that’s worth.
Since you all stuck with me this far, I’ll go ahead and make a promise to continue posting the most awesome pictures you’ve ever seen paired with hilarious commentary at least until we get to post number 600. Those will be on my other blog, but I’ll keep posting stuff here too, just so you guys don’t feel left out.
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 lens. 1/200s, f/5.0, ISO 400. Focal length: 90mm.
Popularity: 21%
September 29, 2010 – Bee and Orange Daisy
Posted by Dave in Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on September 29, 2010
Bee and Orange Daisy
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=2002
Hey everyone! Happy Tuesday! Except that, umm, it’s Wednesday. Yesterday sort of didn’t really happen, at least as far as this blog is concerned. Whatever, get over it. It’s Wednesday! That’s awesome! And you get a bug picture today! Yesss!
There’s not many bugs up here in Seattle. At least, not in my neighborhood. There’s one kind of spider, and there are bees. So, that’s what I get pictures of when I go out to get bug pictures. Really, I should take some field trips to the woods specifically for bug pictures. Maybe I’ll do that at some point, and actually see some different bugs. Actually, that’s really not a bad idea. But it hasn’t happened yet. Well, it happened once, I went to Carkeek Park and actualy found some different bugs. But I mean I should do it again. As far as the flower, I keep calling these things orange daisies, but I actually don’t know if that’s what they actually are. They have a whole bunch of them planted right at the entrance to the south parking lot at the zoo here in Seattle, so I take a lot of pictures of them. Because they’re pretty. And I like to take pictures of pretty things. That’s the way this blog works.
Also, it seems like having a claw sticking out from right next to your eyeball could be useful. I’m not sure for what, but I’m sure you could figure out something to do with it. It’d be a bit creepy, sure, but man, that’d be handy for reading the newspaper and stuff. Or if you had a pair of broken sunglasses, you could totally still use them.
In other news… It’s been awhile since I’ve talked about it, so I’m going to go ahead and give another plug for Flattr.com. Flattr is based on a really cool idea: you pay a couple bucks every month, and then when you see a website or article or something you enjoy or find useful, you click the Flattr button (that looks like the one below). Basically, it’s like a Facebook Like button, except that, at the end of the month, everybody you Flattred that month gets an equal cut of your couple bucks. (Or, it all goes to charity if you don’t find anything you like in a given month..) It’s nice because it’s only a couple bucks, and it makes a big difference to small- and mid-size blogs and such that aren’t big enough to make any money from advertising (or, alternatively, don’t want to bother their readers with advertising. Hi! I’m Dave!) I’ve been doing it for a couple months now, and it’s very cool. The biggest problem I’ve found so far is that the number of websites that have Flattr buttons is still pretty small, so it can be difficult to find things to Flattr. So, if you have a site or a blog, you should absolutely sign up, and let me know! Okay, plug over, that’s the last you’ll hear about it for awhile (other than the boilerplate stuff at the bottom of every post and on the sidebar, but, whatever.)
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm Macro lens, Phoenix macro ring flash. 1/160s, f/18.0, ISO 100. I think I may have also used an extension tube or two.
Popularity: 20%
August 26, 2010 – Bee or Wasp? No! A fly!
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Macro, Picture of the Day on August 26, 2010
Fly, Genus Spilomyia
Thursday, August 26, 2010
http://www.davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1652
Anybody know if this is a bee or wasp? I think the answer would lie in what the stinger looked like, or if there even was one. Unfortunately, you can’t see it. Sigh.
UPDATE: A reader named Joan Knapp (see her blog here) pointed out that this is actually a fly, “Genus Spilomyia”. So there you go!
What do you mean that flower looks familiar? Umm, right. This may or may not have been taken at about the same time as yesterday’s picture. Actually, all three pictures I’ve posted this week came from last weekend. I think that’s actually the first time I’ve ever done that. Normally I try to spread things out so as to not saturate the blog with one subject. Plus, then I can post two pictures that are really similar but yet a little bit different months apart, and nobody says anything. Oh, wait, nobody says anything anyway. Right.
Notice how the eyeball patterns are different? Weird. Have I mentioned lately that you guys should all sign up for Flattr?
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens, cheap macro ring flash. 1/160s, f/18.0, ISO 100.
Popularity: 23%
August 16, 2010 – Spider Eating a Bee
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Macro, Picture of the Day on August 16, 2010
Spider eating a bee
Monday, August 16, 2010
http://www.davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1639
I know, I know. A lot of you really hate this kind of thing. But, this drama was happening just outside my house last night, so I figured I’d share. This guy had built a web that went clear across the little alcove over my front door, which got me right in the face when I walked outside. I suppose after he had nabbed this guy, he got a little bit cocky.
Before last night, it had been awhile since I had brought out my macro ring flash. I don’t really have a good excuse for that though. I really need to get back on it. I suppose one reason I don’t use it that much is that we just don’t have many bugs out here in Seattle. And, the bugs we do have are just the ordinary kind – flies, bees, and spiders. I’ve seen some ridiculously awesome bug pictures out there, of wild and exotic things, and we just don’t really have that stuff around. But, that’s no excuse, I know. I promise, I’ll try and get out at least a couple more times before the end of the summer.
In the meantime… Have I mentioned Flattr.com yet? (Yes. Yes I have.) You all need to check it out. I’m serious. After playing with it over the weekend, I’ve decided that the biggest issue right now is that they need to get more Flattr buttons out there. Meaning, they need more publishers to sign up to give people stuff to appreciate. So, if you’re reading this, and you have a website or a blog or even just a Flickr feed, you should totally sign up. Then, let me know (either by commenting below or sending me an email: dave (at) davefry (dot) net), and I’ll happily click away on whatever Flattr buttons I see. I’m not even going to tell you that you need to Flattr me back, that’s how magnanimous I am. Do it! Seriously! Now!
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm macro lens. 1/160s, f/22.0, ISO 100. Focal length: 90mm.
Popularity: 19%
July 21, 2010 – Bee and Daisy
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on July 21, 2010
Bee and Daisy
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
http://www.davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1611
So I always seem to gravitate towards posting some kind of macro shot, either of a bug or a flower (or, well, both..) on Fridays. Not exactly sure why I feel that way (that’s a total lie, I know exactly why, I just don’t feel like sharing), but it’s the truth. And, I know, this isn’t Friday, it’s Wednesday. But it might as well be Friday, because I’ll be out of town the next couple days, and thus I won’t be posting anything. Which means that you get to look at this little guy for the rest of the weekend.
This is the first picture I’ve posted (and among the first I took) with my new (to me) Tamron 90mm macro. So far, I’d say I’m reasonably happy with it. I had some decent results, but I also had some that were less than stellar. I’m not going to blame the lens for those just yet though, and to be fair I’ve only taken the lens out on a couple walks around the neighborhood, and it’s definitely shown some promise. Hopefully you’ll all get to see some more pics from it in the coming weeks and months and years (I know, bold statement, given that I’ve only been doing this blog for just over a year now.)
Have a great weekend!
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens. 1/250s, f/10.0, ISO 200. Focal length: 90mm (duh!).
Popularity: 19%
November 10, 2009 – Bee and Daisy
Posted by Dave in Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on November 10, 2009
Bee and Daisy
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
http://www.davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=1097
Bees and daisies. Not the first time I’ve posted a picture like this, and it absolutely won’t be the last. Not a whole lot to say about though, we’ve already covered this ground. 
Notes: Canon Eos Rebel T1i, Quantaray 70-300 mm macro lens. 1/500s, f/5.6, ISO 200. Focal length: 300mm.
Popularity: 6%
June 15, 2009 – Pollination
Posted by Dave in - Best of Dave's POTD -, Animals, Flowers, Macro, Picture of the Day on June 15, 2009
Pollination
June 15, 2009
http://davefry.net/rate/index.php?viewimage=922
Here’s a brand new one, taken Saturday morning (with my new camera, for whoever is keeping score.) This exotic-looking locale is actually right out front of my neighbor’s house. They’ve got a bunch of orange poppies (those are poppies, right?) that I keep telling myself I should take pictures of. So, on Saturday morning, I did.
While I was there, I saw a bee floating around the flowers, stopping every now and then to gather some pollen or do whatever it is they do. Taking pictures of bees is actually kind of hard, as it turns out. Those suckers are FAST. I mean, they sit on the flower for a little while, so if you want to get a picture of them just hanging out, not so hard. But to get them in flight is tough, because if you’re zoomed in at all, the time between them taking off and them being out of the camera frame is, at least in my case, less than my reaction time from seeing it take off and pressing the shutter button.
On top of that, you need to use a REALLY fast shutter speed to make them not blurry. (around 1/1000th of a second is probably good.) Which in this case also meant cranking up the ISO. Now, one of the reasons I got the new camera was it’s much better high ISO performance than my previous camera (a lot less noise), so even at ISO 800 the images look fantastic, and at 1600 it’s still pretty decent.
This isn’t the only bee-and-flower shot I’ve got, so sometime in the next few weeks, expect to see at least one more, maybe a couple, and not all of them are from this weekend either. Also, this just may become my new favorite obsession, so we’ll see how that goes.
Map: http://tinyurl.com/mvxk9x
Notes: Canon EOS Rebel T1i, Tamron 28-300 mm VC lens. Â 1/640s, f/6.3, ISO 100. Focal length: 77mm.
Popularity: 6%