It’s pretty cool to photograph big, gaudy butterflies but today I photographed the smallest butterfly I’ve ever seen. I was shooting photos with my mentor Cindy D. and her husband when Cindy spotted this little guy. He seemed too small to make a good photo and they needed to leave.
Undeterred I lay on my stomach and got as close as my lens would permit me (I did not have time to switch to my macro lens and had to make do with the 18-55mm kit lens that happened to be on the camera). To give you an idea of his size, note that he is perched on a single clover flower.
I’m pretty happy with the result and hope eventually to figure out what kind of butterfly he is. For now, though, I am content to have gotten this shot.
Tiny butterfly on a clover flower
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Sometimes the smallest bugs are the most interesting.
I think that is the case very often. Having a macro lens has made me look for the small creatures.
Tough shot without a macro lens!
My only chance was to try to get on the same level and on a parallel plane and then hope for the best.
Hi, Mike, I believe you have a Dwarf Blue (Brephidium isophthalma) here. It and the Pygmy blue are the smallest of American butterflies. Well done without a macro lens!
Thanks for your help in identification. I had come to the conclusion tentatively that it was part of the blue family (I’m in a blue phase apparently–I posted today photos of two blue dragonflies and a blue damselfly). Of course I could have gotten sharper focus with my macro lens but I didn’t want to risk losing the photo by changing lenses (the macro was in the car). Plus I would probably not have been able to find the little guy again.