Beetle on chicory flower

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Beetle on chicory flower

July 21, 2013 by Mike Powell

I was out yesterday on a trip to photograph sunflowers, but couldn’t resist capturing images of insects that my fellow photographers and I discovered, like this beetle—probably a blister beetle—on a chicory flower.

In many ways this image was part of an experiment for me. I was using a camera that is new to me, a used Canon 50D that I recently purchased, and this was my test run with it. The Canon 50D is several years old and is far from the bleeding edge of technology, it’s a considerable step up from my Canon Rebel XT. I also was trying to shoot macro-like photos with a telephoto zoom, because my macro lens has been acting up and is now on its way to Canon for repair. Finally, I jumped a couple of versions of Photoshop Elements and discovered today that the interface has changed considerably between versions 9 and 11, so it was interesting trying to work on this image.

Once I get the hang of my new camera and new software, I’m hoping to improve that you’ll be able to see some improvement in the quality of my images.

Posted in Bugs, Flowers, Gardening, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography | Tagged beetle, blister beetle, Canon 55-250mm zoom lens, chicory, Maryland, McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, Montgomery County | 6 Comments

6 Responses

on July 21, 2013 at 6:46 pm | Reply Mjollnir

Superb 😀
on July 21, 2013 at 11:42 pm | Reply uthamz

Wow ! Vibrant colors !

utham
on July 22, 2013 at 7:05 am | Reply New Hampshire Gardener

I can’t see anything wrong with this shot.
- on July 22, 2013 at 7:33 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks for your positive words. Sometimes I can be hypercritical of my own effort and I forget that wildlife shooting is all about making the best of the situations you get, not about perfection.
on July 22, 2013 at 4:12 pm | Reply Another Perspective Photography

Great work…. I remember learning the name of a chicory flower last year on a blog somewhere around here…
This photo is great- you’ll get the hang of all the new buttons and settings soon- but it’s not the camera that takes the photo- it’s the PHOTOGRAPHER… maybe we’ll see some sharper images from better glass- but I’m sure they’ll retain the same quality and style to which we’ve become accustomed.
- on July 22, 2013 at 4:43 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks for your words of encouragement and rest assured that my “style” will not change.