Posted in Autumn, Nature, Photography, tagged autumn colors, autumn foliage, Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on October 6, 2018| 12 Comments »
Shining brightly from behind the leaves, the sun revealed their autumnal beauty.
This is completely different from my “normal” photography, but when I stumbled upon this blaze of color while exploring Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I couldn’t help but try to capture a sense of the moment.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon SX50, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Oxyura jamaicensis, Ruddy Duck, Woodbridge VA on October 5, 2018| 7 Comments »
I spotted this little Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) all by itself on Wednesday morning at the far end of Painted Turtle Pond at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. He must have been feeling a little lonely, however, and tried to strike up a conversation with the mallard decoy that is a permanent feature at this pond. The mallard remained silent.
I was trying to capture a shot of the Ruddy Duck by itself, as in the second image, but I like the eye contact in the first image so much that I decided to make it my lead photo for the posting. The shot simply makes me smile.
Have a wonderful Friday.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon SX50, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Pantala flavescens, Wandering Glider, Wandering Glider dragonfly, Woodbridge VA on October 5, 2018| 4 Comments »
Autumn is a prime season for migration. It is almost impossible to ignore the sounds of the Canada Geese as they pass overhead and thousands of other birds pass by unheard, heading south to warmer locations.
Some dragonflies migrate too and at this time of the year it is not unusual to see some of them patrolling high in the air. A good number of dragonflies spend a lot of time perching, and they tend to be easiest to photograph. Other dragonflies, like the species that migrate, spend most of their time in flight. Their stamina is amazing and your patience has to be equally amazing if you try to wait for them to land to photograph them. The alternative is to try to photograph them in flight.
Yesterday I spotted a couple of Wandering Gliders (Pantala flavescens) flying patrols over a small pond at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Wandering Gliders are the most widespread dragonflies on the planet and have an almost worldwide distribution.
I watched the Wandering Gliders for a while to see if I could figure out the patterns that they were flying. Gradually I realized that they often would pass by a certain part of the shore and hover a little and that became my target zone. With my Canon SX50 superzoom camera in hand, I visually tracked the dragonflies in the air and attempted to photograph them. Mostly I was unsuccessful, but I did get a few decent shots.
In the first shot below, the sharpest that I was able to manage, the Wandering Glider was flying above eye level, so the beautiful blue sky served as a backdrop. In the second image, the dragonfly was flying below eye level and the ripples in the water create a beautiful pattern in the background. When I consider the two images, I am torn between two competing impulses—technically the first shot is superior, but artistically the second shot appeals to me more. Fortunately, I don’t have to choose one over the other and can post both of them.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Black Saddlebags, Black Saddlebags dragonfly, Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Tramea lacerata, Woodbridge VA on October 3, 2018| 2 Comments »
I don’t know if this is a local dragonfly or was merely stopping by while migrating south, but I was happy when this Black Saddlebags dragonfly (Tramea lacerata) stopped circling a field and perched for a moment earlier this week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
This species of dragonfly is one of several migratory species and in the early autumn I tend to see more Black Saddlebags dragonflies than at any other time of the year. As you might have guessed, the dark blotches on the wings caused some scientist to imagine that they looked like saddlebags. In some cases, I scratch my head when I learn the name of a species, but in this case the name seems to fit and doesn’t require too big a stretch of the the imagination.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Fine-lined Emerald, Fine-lined Emerald dragonfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Somatochlora filosa, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on October 1, 2018| 10 Comments »
Despite seeing several Fine-lined Emerald dragonflies (Somatochlora filosa) last Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, only this one was cooperative enough to land for a moment and allow me to get some shots.
Previously I posted some photos I took of Fine-lined Emeralds in flight. I had chased and chased these elusive dragonflies, but they never seemed to stop flying. I was beginning to think that I would not get a shot of one perched when suddenly one that I was tracking dropped down into the vegetation. I approached very cautiously and spotted it clinging vertically to a narrow stem.
My heart was racing as I switched to manual focusing—the profile of the perched dragonfly was so slim that I didn’t think my auto-focus would lock on my subject. I took a couple of shots and then inched forward a little. This is part of an eternal struggle for a wildlife photographer, deciding how close you can get to a subject without disturbing it.
I was pretty happy with this image, because I was able to capture a lot of details of this cool-looking species. I recommend clicking on the image to see a higher resolution view of the dragonfly’s spectacular emerald eyes, beautiful body markings, and wonderful wings.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged autumn colors, Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Polygonia interrogationis, question mark, Question Mark butterfly, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 30, 2018| 5 Comments »
Orange and brown seem to be the perfect color combination for the autumn and this Question Mark butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis) was suitably celebrating the season this past Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, damselfly, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eastern Forktail, Eastern Forktail damselfly, Ischnura verticalis, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 29, 2018| 4 Comments »
Orange is one of the colors that I tend to associate with autumn. Some leaves are already turning orange and pumpkin decorations and displays have started to appear on my neighbors’ doorsteps.
As I was exploring Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge yesterday morning, my eyes detected some motion in the nearby grass. I leaned forward and was delighted to see this tiny damselfly decked out in the colors of Halloween—orange and black. I had no idea what species it was, but fortunately I have a really good guide for damselflies and was able to identify it as an immature female Eastern Forktail damselfly (Ischnura verticalis).
Although there are already lots of symbols for autumn, I think this tiny damselfly could be added to the list.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Canon 50D, Fine-lined Emerald, Fine-lined Emerald dragonfly, fine-lined emerald in flight, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Somatochlora filosa, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 29, 2018| 8 Comments »
I was thrilled yesterday to see that there are still Fine-lined Emerald dragonflies (Somatochlora filosa) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I was afraid that all of the recent rain had washed them away.
This particular dragonfly species is pretty uncommon, but the wildlife refuge that has become my go-to place for photography is one of the few local spots where they can be found. I think its peak period in our area is September-October, judging from my experience last year, so I was anxious to see them some more before they disappeared for the year.
It is easy to see a Fine-lined Emerald dragonfly when it is patrolling, because it often flies at knee to shoulder height. It is a whole different problem, though, to get a shot of one, because they spend most of their time in the air rather than perching. I spent quite a bit of time yesterday chasing after these dragonflies, hoping in vain to be able to catch the moment when one decided to take a break.
Finally I decided to change my approach and see if I could capture a shot of one as it flew by me. I know that it can be done, because last year I captured an in-flight image using my 150-600mm zoom lens. The lens that I had on my camera, however, was my 180mm macro lens, which meant that I had to get pretty close to the dragonfly rather than zooming in. That particular lens is slow to focus, so I decided to focus manually, which can be tricky with a moving subject. One of the downsides of the lens is it has no built-in image stabilization, so I decided to keep the camera affixed to my monopod for the sake of stability.
It took some time, but eventually I was able to capture a few shots of flying Fine-lined Emeralds that were relatively in focus, aided by the fact that these dragonflies hover a little from time to time.
I particularly like the first image because it shows both the emerald eyes and the fine lines near the tip of the abdomen that are responsible for the name of the species. It was also cool that the angle of view was unusual, given that I was looking down at the dragonfly as I took the shot. I also like the touch of brownish-orange from the out-of-focus leaves that gives the image an autumn feel.
The second shot gives a more “normal” view of a Fine-lined Emerald dragonfly as it flew by. I was happy to be able to separate it somewhat from the leafy backdrop by carefully focusing on the dragonfly. This is one of those situations when the auto-focusing system of the camera would have been challenged—the subject was pretty small in the viewfinder and the auto-focus probably would have tried to lock on the background.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, thistle, Woodbridge VA on September 28, 2018| 9 Comments »
I suspect that all of the Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) will soon be leaving our area for warmer places, so I am really trying to enjoy each and every encounter with one. I spotted this beauty feeding on some kind of thistle plant thispast weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron hopscotch, hopscotch, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 27, 2018| 5 Comments »
The muted tones of this Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) seemed to be a perfect match for the gray water and skies this past weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The heron almost seemed to be playing hopscotch as it made its way along a series of posts and then extended its wings for balance when it reached the final post.
If you closely at the water you can see a lot of floating debris, caused by runoff and tidal surges from recent heavy rains—we have had well over double the normal amount of rainfall during the month of September.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Autumn Meadowhawk, Autumn Meadowhawk dragonfly, Canon 50D, female Autumn Meadowhawk, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Sympetrum vicinum, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 26, 2018| 4 Comments »
Now that fall has officially arrived, I look forward to seeing more Autumn Meadowhawk dragonflies (Sympetrum vicinum), like this stunning female that I spotted last Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Adult males of this dragonfly species are bright red in color, but females can be either tan or red. The “spike” near the end of the abdomen makes it easy. though, to identify this one as a female.
In Northern Virginia, where I live, the Autumn Meadowhawk tends to be the latest surviving dragonflies—I have spotted them in mid-December and others have seen them in early January.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, drip dry dragonfly, Libellula needhami, Needham's Skimmer, Needham's Skimmer dragonfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, raindrops, Tamron 180mm, wet dragonfly, Woodbridge VA on September 24, 2018| 18 Comments »
I don’t expect to see dragonflies flying in the rain, so I was a little shocked to see this one in the air this past weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I captured this shot when it landed and hung vertically in the vegetation in an apparent attempt to drip dry.
I not certain of the identification of this dragonfly, but think it might be a Needham’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami), judging from the markings. Normally Needham’s Skimmers perch horizontally rather than vertically, but the unusual perching behavior might have merely been a consequence of the rainy conditions.
If you click on the image, you can see it in slightly higher resolution, including the tiny drops of water at the lower end of the abdomen (the “tail”).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in abstract, Arachnids, Art, Nature, Photography, tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, raindrops, spider web, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 23, 2018| 13 Comments »
Raindrops can enhance the beauty of many subjects, like this spider web that I photographed on Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. As I looked at the drops, they somehow brought to mind an elaborate necklace of loosely strung pearls.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon SX50, cicada, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge VA on September 23, 2018| 5 Comments »
I hear cicadas all of the time—it is hard to ignore that background buzzing noise. It is rare, however, for me to get an unobstructed view of one.
I spotted this cicada perched on a branch overhanging a pond on Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I couldn’t tell for sure if it was still alive. It was not moving, but it simply may not have detected my presence. While it was great to capture an image of this cool insect, I particularly like how the water in the background turned out—those wispy cloud-like whites were a nice bonus.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged American Kestrel, Bald Eagle, Canon SX50, eagle, Falco sparverius, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, kestrel, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge VA on September 22, 2018| 6 Comments »
Despite the light rain that was falling, I decided to go on a photo walk yesterday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Most of the smaller birds seemed to have taken shelter in the trees, but I was thrilled to catch a glimpse of a couple of raptors that were perched prominently in the open. It was an interesting contrast to spot an American Kestrel (Falco sparverius), one of the smallest raptors in our area, and a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), one of the largest.
The sky was really overcast, so there was not enough light to reveal all of the wonderful detail of these powerful birds. Still, it was nice to be able to capture some images of birds.
Before too long the number of insects will start to diminish and my blog will become increasingly populated by birds. I figure that for another month or so, though, insects will continue to be featured most often, which is good news for some viewers and bad news for others.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spiders, tagged Araneus marmoreus, Canon 50D, Marbled Orbweaver, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, spider, spiderweb, spinneret, Tamron 180mm, web, Woodbridge VA on September 14, 2018| 11 Comments »
On Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I watched with fascination as this spider (maybe a Marbled Orbweaver (Araneus marmoreus) spider) worked on her web. She seemed to have started with the spokes coming out of the middle and was adding the ribs when I photographed her.
If you look closely in the first image, you can actually see the web material coming out of one of her spinnerets, the organs in which a spider produces the different kinds of silk that make up a web. I tried to figure our her process as I observed her. It looks like she would produce a length of silk, maneuver it into place on one of the spokes with one or more of her legs, affix it in place, and then start the process over again. For the final image, I moved back a little to give you a somewhat better view of more of the web and a sense of its shape.
I have photographed spiderwebs many times before, but this was the first time that I watched one being built. My admiration for the skills and artistry of spiders continues to grow—they are simply amazing.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged adolescent Bambi, Bambi, Canon SX50, deer, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Odocoileus virginianus, white-tailed deer, Woodbridge VA on September 13, 2018| 9 Comments »
I spotted this curious little White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The deer appears to have moved out of the cute little Bambi phase and seemed more like a gawky adolescent to me (though I confess I know very little about deer development).
I like the fact that you can still see some of its white spots, which look to be a little faded.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in damselfly, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Big Bluet, Big Bluet damselfly, Canon 50D, Enallagma durum, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 12, 2018| 6 Comments »
It was cool and wet on Monday and clouds covered the entire sky, but I felt an irresistible need to return to the wild after a week in the urban confines of Brussels, Belgium. Many of the trails at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, my recent favorite shooting location, were blocked by standing water and there was not a great abundance of wildlife to be seen.
Most dragonflies prefer warm, sunny weather, so I was not surprised when I did not see many of them. I was happy, though, to see that damselflies were active and I spent quite a bit of time trying to capture images of them. They seemed more skittish than normal and the poor lighting made it tough to keep my shutter speed high enough to keep my images from being blurry.
This is one of my favorite damselfly shots of the day. I was able to isolate the subject, which I believe is a male Big Bluet (Enallagma durum) damselfly, while still including enough of the vegetation to give you a sense of the environment in which I found him.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon SX50, Danaus plexippus, mating monarchs, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge VA on September 11, 2018| 6 Comments »
Nestled gently in the leaves of a tall tree, these two Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) were mating, doing their part to perpetuate a species often considered at risk. I captured this image in late August at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and re-discovered it yesterday when I was going through my photos from the week before my recent trip to Brussels.
I love the way that the upper butterfly is discreetly hidden by the leaves, but is revealed in its shadow. I find the colors in this image to be especially beautiful. with a wonderful contrast between the warmth of the orange and the coolness of the blue. Most of all, though, I love the way that the background turned out, with its soft circles of out-of-focus highlights.
This is the kind of image that I strive to capture, one that gently draws in viewers and speaks to them softly, reminding them of the undiscovered beauty that surrounds them all of the time.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Common Buckeye, Common Buckeye butterfly, Junonia coenia, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, uncommon beauty, Woodbridge VA on September 10, 2018| 5 Comments »
The directional lighting from the back and side gave a cool and dramatically uncommon vibe to this image of a Common Buckeye butterfly (Junonia coenia) that I photographed on 31 August at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
The ground is saturated and rain continues to fall, so I am not sure that I will be out and about today with my camera. It is actually a good thing, I think, to go back and look over my photos—I sometimes get so caught up in taking new photos that I don’t stop and look over my slightly older ones. I am often pleasantly surprised to discover some jewels, like this image.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 9, 2018| 9 Comments »
The incessant rain and cooler weather since my return from Brussels make it feel like it’s already autumn. Like this Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, however, I am not quite ready to cease sipping the sweet nectar of summer.
I captured this image on 31 August, the day before my departure for my recent overseas trip. The combination of rainy weather can jet lag have so far kept me from venturing out with my camera, but I hope to do so this coming week.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Great Blue Skimmer, Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly, Libellula vibrans, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 3, 2018| 12 Comments »
It almost looks like this Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly (Libellula vibrans) was wearing cool wraparound sunglasses this past weekend when I spotted him chilling out at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. From a distance, it looks like dragonflies have smooth bodies, but when you get a good look up close, you discover that they have tiny hairs covering various parts of their bodies.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Art, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eastern Amberwing, Eastern Amberwing dragonfly, female Eastern Amberwing, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Perithemis tenera, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 2, 2018| 13 Comments »
As a nature photographer, I am used to living with compromises. Unlike some other kinds of photographers, I don’t have the luxury of waiting for perfect light or photographing only perfect subjects. I can make a few adjustments or move about a bit to improve my composition, but most of the time I deal with imperfections of one sort or another.
Every once and a while, though, I’ll take a photo that doesn’t require any substantial adjustments or even cropping–it looks just like I imagined it would. That was the case with a recent image I captured of a female Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I like the way that I captured the subject, I like the curved of the vegetation on which it is perched, and I like the background. It’s a bonus that I didn’t need to crop.
Perfection is elusive in any pursuit—this is about as close as I can come to it in my photography.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Fine-lined Emerald, Fine-lined Emerald dragonfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Somatochlora filosa, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 1, 2018| 4 Comments »
I tend to be an opportunistic photographer, content to wander about and shoot whatever I happen to find. For the last couple of weeks, though, I have been searching diligently for a particular species of dragonfly, the Fine-lined Emerald (Somatochlora filosa), and yesterday, the final day of August, I finally found one at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
What makes this dragonfly so special? In his excellent website Dragonflies of Northern Virginia, Kevin Munroe described some of the allure of this particular species— “One of Northern Virginia’s most rare dragonflies, possibly our rarest, this species is seldom seen and little known throughout its range, from New Jersey to Florida, and west to Kentucky and Texas. Most field guides describe its breeding habitat as “unknown”.”
Last year I was lucky enough to see a Fine-lined Emerald several times, but I wanted more. As befits its name, my first glimpse yesterday of the dragonfly was of its brilliant green eyes as it flew by me. Unlike some species that fly high the air, Fine-lined Emeralds often patrol at waist to eye level. I was able to follow and track the dragonfly until it perched. This species hangs vertically from vegetation when perching, so it can be tough to spot one unless you have seen it land.
I was fortunate to be able to photograph this beautiful dragonfly on several different perches until it finally disappeared from sight. Here are a couple of my favorite shots from our altogether too brief encounter yesterday.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in damselfly, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Photography, wildlife, tagged Big Bluet, Big Bluet damselfly, cannibalism, Canon 50D, Enallagma durum, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, tina turner, Woodbridge VA on August 31, 2018| 10 Comments »
When recently at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I spotted these two damselflies, which an expert identified as probable Big Bluets (Enallagma durum), I initially thought they were mating. Then I realized that the positions were all wrong and the nibbling on the neck was probably indicative of a literal hunger. Yikes.
As Tina Turner once sang, “What’s love got to do with it?”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, Uncategorized, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, co-existence, Great Blue Skimmer, Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly, Libellula needhami, Needham's Skimmer, Needham's Skimmer dragonfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, peaceful co-existence, peaceful coexistence, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on August 30, 2018| 9 Comments »
Two different colored dragonflies, a Needham’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami) and a Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans), were peacefully sharing a prime perch on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Why is it so hard for us to peacefully coexist with one another?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Humor, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eastern Pondhawk, Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly, Erythemis simplicicollis, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on August 29, 2018| 4 Comments »
Have you ever gotten into a staring contest with a dragonfly? Dragonfly eyes can have an almost hypnotic effect on you when you look directly into them..
I went eye-to-eye with this Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly (Erythemis simplicicollis) on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. She was the one to break eye contact first as she cocked her head, smiled at me, and decided the contest was over.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spiders, wildlife, tagged Arrowhead Orb Weaver, Arrowhead Orb Weaver spider, Arrowhead Orbweaver, Arrowhead Spider, Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Verrucosa arenata, Woodbridge VA on August 28, 2018| 8 Comments »
When you check out spider webs really carefully, you can often discover really cool-looking tiny spiders, like this Arrowhead Orb Weaver spider (Verrucosa arenata) that I spotted yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. If you look really closely in between its uppermost legs, you can see some of its multiple eyes looking straight at you. Information on BugGuide.net indicates that this spider is unusual because it rests in the web with its head up, not head down like most other Orb Weavers.
It’s hard to get a sense of scale when you look at this image, but I’d estimate that this little spider was less than an inch in length (25 mm). It was hanging in the air in its web at the edge of a trail when I first spotted it. I was able to move in pretty close with my macro lens—unlike many other spiders, it did not scurry away to the edge of the web. Sharpness is always an issue when shooting at at close range, but my monopod helped to steady me enough to get a relatively sharp image.
You may not like spiders, but you have to admit that this is a cool-looking spider.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Calico Pennant, Calico Pennant dragonfly, Canon SX50, Celithemis elisa, male Calico Pennant, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge VA on August 27, 2018| 10 Comments »
It is great to see that at least a few colorful Calico Pennant dragonflies (Celithemis elisa) are still around. I photographed this handsome male last Friday as he perched at water’s edge at the small pond at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Summer is slowly slipping away. Some species of dragonflies are already gone for the year and others will soon follow suit. A few species have yet to appear, so all of the news is not bad. Still, as kids return to school and the daylight hours become noticeably shorter, it’s hard not to have the feeling that the lazy days of summer are coming to a close.
Autumn is my favorite season for a number of different reasons, but I am not quite ready to give up on summer. So I’ll keep sweating and searching, seeking to capture the summer beauty that still surrounds us. Like this dragonfly, I’m still holding on.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged buck, Canon SX50, little buck, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Odocoileus virginianus, white-tailed deer, Woodbridge VA on August 26, 2018| 4 Comments »
This little buck seemed more curious than fearful when he spotted me on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. He continued to forage in a marshy area for a while before he finally disappeared from sight.
I know that we have a herd of White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on the wildlife refuge, though I see deer only on rare occasions. This little deer seemed to be alone and I was really struck by the shape of his antlers. It looks to me like they might be his first set of antlers, though I confess to knowing almost nothing about the stages of development of a deer. The shape of the antlers reminds me of photos that I have seen of several species of antelope in Africa.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, compound eyes, Great Blue Skimmer, Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly, Libellula vibrans, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, ommatidia, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on August 25, 2018| 14 Comments »
Dragonflies have amazing compound eyes that wrap around their heads. With up to 30,000 facets (ommatidia, to be technical), dragonflies have incredible vision and can even see colors beyond human visual capabilities, like UV light. For an easy to read discussion about dragonfly eyes, i.e. not overly scientific, check out this posting by “grrl Scientist” that was posted on scienceblogs.com.
I captured this close-up image of a Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly (Libellula vibrans) yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. At least once a season, I manage to get a shot like this when a cooperative dragonfly lets me get close. I captured the image below with my trusty Tamron 180mm macro lens on my Canon 50D DSLR. This lens, which has a longer focal length than most macro lenses, gives me some stand-off distance so I can get a macro shot like this without actually being on top of the subject. The only downside to the lens is that it has no built-in image stabilization, so I have to pay extra attention to remaining steady when shooting with it—I generally use a monopod to help reduce camera shake and I think it helped for this image.
The image is framed just as I saw it in my viewfinder. Most of the time I end up cropping my images as part of my normal post-processing, but in this case it looked pretty good without any cropping whatsoever.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 