There were lots of flowers in bloom yesterday at Green Spring Gardens, a historic county-run garden not far from where I live. One of my favorites was the Zowie Zinnia and a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) seemed to like it a lot too.
I was at the garden with my dear friend and photography mentor, Cindy Dyer, and her husband. We were all taking a break at one point and I told Cindy that I was going to return to a patch of Zowie Zinnias to see if I could get a shot of a butterfly landing on one. We both recalled a photo that she took in 2010 (check out her blog posting) when an Easter Tiger Swallowtail butterfly appeared out of nowhere and landed on one of the two Zowie Zinnias that she was focusing on with her camera on a tripod.
Imagine her surprise when a couple of minutes later I returned with this photo. She grabbed her camera and went to the patch of zinnia, but, alas, the butterflies were not as cooperative for her as they had been for me.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Impressive!
Very colourful!
Such a beauty!
Very Nice Mike! Butterflies and flower images are always Nice!
Thanks, Reed. Many insects, including dragonflies, creep out some of my friends, but butterflies seem to be a notable exception and have a universal appeal. When I add colorful flowers to the mix, I can almost guarantee that people will like a shot.
Amazing capture, Mike!
Zowie is right! I will have to look for those seeds for next year’s garden!! My young friend has two monarchs in chrysalis stage! 😉
I’ve been keeping this one in mind in case I do a zinnia post – I’ve decided to do it, may I include this in a small collection of photos?
Absolutely you may use it. I look forward to seeing the post, Liz.