Bee & Flower with 300 f/4

[RonnieA]

Primarily a sports shooter, I am new to this macro stuff and do not own a lens truly built for the job (not yet anyway). The rhodie in my front yard is in full bloom, albeit late this year, and busy with bees. Gotta say I had a difficult time catching/timing anything interesting with such a limited DOF. Played with f/4 - f/10 and this was the best of the bunch. Even though the bee is breaking the focal plane and out of focus, I still like it.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3060/2539253999_eac889b60c_o.jpg

[amandajane]

Nice shot! I like the bee too, must be hard to get one in flight :0)

[alliec]

I think youve done well here, consdering how unpredictable they are in flight.

[dpastern]

I think youve done well here, consdering how unpredictable they are in flight.

Agreed. Good shot.

Dave

[Jay Lowery]

i think its a good shot the way it is. the bee gives a sense of motion in a way.

[LordV]

Think you should stay with sports- this is too good for a non- macro shooter - excellent BIF shot

Brian V.

[Volker Boehme]

Hi,

that's bumblebee, isn't it? Great shot. Do you see the extended - well: trunk?

I like them, they're pretty cool and tolerate well being photographed.

Best regards,
Volker

[woollyback]

Great shot, love the colours in the plant.

I have a 300 and haven't managed anything near this - maybe I will try again.

Rob

[RonnieA]

Nice shot! I like the bee too, must be hard to get one in flight :0)

Very hard. I would focus on the bee while it was on the flower and then try to time its takeoff. Maybe a better technique would be to switch to manual focus and pull focus back an inch or so and then time it.

I think youve done well here, consdering how unpredictable they are in flight.

Thanks! And, yeah, those little buggers are quick.

Agreed. Good shot.

Dave

Thanks Dave!

i think its a good shot the way it is. the bee gives a sense of motion in a way.

I like it too, Jay. But would also like to get one with the bee in sharp focus as well.

Think you should stay with sports- this is too good for a non- macro shooter - excellent BIF shot

Brian V.

Gotta expand my horizons, Brian. :) I like macro shots a lot and want to improve my technique.

Hi,

that's bumblebee, isn't it? Great shot. Do you see the extended - well: trunk?

I like them, they're pretty cool and tolerate well being photographed.

Best regards,
Volker

Yeah, I believe it's a bumblebee. With the 300 f/4, I have to stay back about 4 feet to acquire focus. But even when I got closer the bees could care less. Sadly, I have yet to see a honey bee this spring.

Great shot, love the colours in the plant.

I have a 300 and haven't managed anything near this - maybe I will try again.

Rob

Thanks Rob! This is my second or third time renting the 300 f/4 and first time using it for macro-type shots. I ripped off maybe 200 shots before getting this image. Some of the others were just OK. One problem I encountered was getting a good angle on the bee so you can see more than its backside.