It’s great to see these gentle giants back out of hibernation, happily feeding in the garden.
Backlit Bee-Eater On The Chase
I have quite a few shots from a session of shooting into the sunset yesterday evening and I’ll post a new blog entry soon, but this photo deserves it’s own post!
As a photographer, you can put yourself in the right place at the right time by careful planning, but sometimes that extra bit of luck can make all the difference.
Here is a backlit shot of a European Bee-Eater swopping in to catch a Honey Bee. In case you are wondering, it easily caught it and took it to feed a juvenile perched waiting on a nearby electricity cable.
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Are The Honey Bees Social Distancing?
I was shooting some backlit photos this morning of the Honey Bees and managed to fluke this one which looks like the Honey Bees queuing with social distancing!
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Violet Carpenter Bees Are Out Of Hibernation
This is a real sign that the thermometers are rising, it has been well over 20 degree Celsius for the last few days during the daytime and this has awoken the Violet Carpenter Bees.
These gentle giants are flying around feeding and also mating. You may think that these are dangerous due to their size, but are really docile and yes like all bees the female has a stinger, but rarely uses it. Many people think these are black, but if you look closely, you will notice the violet reflecting in the sunlight. In some countries Carpenter Bees are a pest as they damage wooden structures, however, Violet Carpenter Bees only seek out dead wood. If you have a garden or some land, leave out a rotting tree trunk or large branch which will become a nest and hibernation home for them. They are solitary bees, but this time of year you may see them mating.
Here are a few shots I snapped in the garden this morning
Honey Bee & French Lavender Backlit By The Morning Sun
I’ve been so carried away with all the activities of Springtime that I have not taken any “Artmospheric” shots lately. Yes, that’s a word I made up! So this morning I waited patiently at this French Lavender Flower that was nicely backlit by the sun with a great dark canvas provided by a distant Eucalyptus Tree that was in the shade.
I didn’t have to wait too long (thankfully for Wally’s sake who was getting bored!) until a Honey Bee turned up and managed to shoot this photo. This has kicked started me to take more “Artmospheric” shots and hope to bring you more soon!
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Barbary Nut Iris and The Bees
All around the hills in the Algarve the Barbary Nut Iris has started to flower. I’m certainly no flower expert but it’s a great sight to see the purple flowers covering the landscape.
The odd thing about the Barbary Nut Iris is that the flower has a very short life, just half a day! It opens around Noon, closes at dusk and doesn’t open again. So it’s crucial the Bees do their job of pollination.
I set the camera up and focused on one flower, I used the 500mm lens and f/4 to create a very small depth of field and waited and waited and waited…….. The Bees were landing on all the other flowers except this one, typical. Then after about 30 minutes one finally came along and even stayed in the very small focus plane.
