It was hard to miss the bright red body and distinctive brown patches on the wings of this Carolina Saddlebags dragonfly (Tramea carolina) on Friday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Unlike many of the dragonflies that I try to photograph in flight, the Carolina Saddlebags did not follow any predictable patrolling pattern. Sometimes it would fly in the air above my head; sometimes it would zoom down and fly low over the water; and sometimes it would fly at about waist level near one of the fishing platforms at the edge of the pond.
Carolina Saddlebags are strong fliers—they are one of the dragonfly species that migrate—and I rarely see one perch, so I had lots of chances to attempt to get shots. Carolina Saddlebags are only about 2 inches (50 mm) in length, which makes it a bit of a challenge to keep one in the viewfinder as I track it through the air.
I was not able to capture any close-up shots of the flying dragonfly, but I am particularly happy with the blurred backgrounds in this images that serve as a nice contrast to the dragonfly. The dragonfly itself is sufficiently in focus that you can see the patches on the wings and other wonderful details, such as the way the dragonfly folds up its legs while flying.
As I have noted before, it is a fun challenge to try to capture images of a dragonfly in flight, a good test of both my skills and my patience.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
It is so beautiful.
Suitably impressed.
Not a bad effort Mike and I really like the backgrounds. So much easier with the species that hover for a second or two!
Thanks, Brian. This species is a bit more slow moving that some others I try to photograph, which made it marginally easier. In this case I probably needed something a bit longer than the 180mm macro lens that I was using at the time.
Great captures, Mike!
Great work, Mike! The background on your first image is really nice. A great way to spend some time!
Thanks, Ellen. Fuzzy trees and colorful foliage gave the background a cool look. In case you are curious, I was focusing manually–there was no way my autofocus would have been able to lock onto the dragonfly quickly enough.
I’m not surprised you autofocus when using the 180mm for this given it’s slow response. I am in awe that you can do it to capture these speed demons!
I may try this same technique with a longer lens and see if I can get in a bit closer. The cool thing about the 190mm is that I can switch to manual focusing without taking my eyes off of viewfinder.
Nice set, Mike. You must have a well-developed hand/eye coordination!
Thanks, Eliza. I have had a lot of practice, which has helped develop the hand to eye coordination. The first challenge is to find and then keep the dragonfly in the viewfinder. The second challenge is to get the dragonfly in focus. I am much better at meeting that first challenge than the second one, so I have a lot of shots in which the dragonfly is present, but way out of focus.
Very Nice Mike!