This bumble bee was busily filling its pollen sacs and sucking up nectar when I spotted it recently during a visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I cannot identify the plant on which the bee was feeding, but I love its beautiful colors and the blurry bokeh balls that were created in the out-of-focus areas of the plant.
As many of you know, when you move in close to a subject, the depth of field becomes really narrow, which means that only certain elements will be in sharp focus. My goal as a photographer is to try to make sure that the most critical areas, which usually include the eyes of the subject, are in focus. In this case, I was delighted that both the eye and the extended proboscis are relatively sharp.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 