Dark Green Fritillary in Cornwall

These two very different Dark Green Fritillary's were taken tonight.  The dark individual above is a fresh adult and not yet aquired its' dark green underwing.

EXIF Detail: Aperture F/10.  Exposure EV0.0  ISO 1000. WB Cloudy. Shutter 1/100s. Centre weighted metering. Tripod mounted.  VR on. Lens 105mm Macro. D3x.

Brown Argus at Penhale, Cornwall

Brown Argus' were plentiful this evening.  These two posed nicely on top of the plants and allowed a nice soft background.  The weather was humid and misty which gave the light a strange cast.  The upside to this is that the exposure was perfect and required no post enhancements.

Both of these shots were taken in Aperture Priority at about five inches distance.  I had to increase the aperture to F/18.  The downside of this was just 1/40s shutter speed.  I switched the lens VR (vibration reduction) on and this coupled with the tripod enabled an in focus result.  The focus was set to manual to stop the lens hunting.

Yellow Dung Fly close up

Continuing with my "season in macro", this image is a simple dung fly.  But I liked it, mainly because it shows such detail around the eyes and legs, but also the tiny droplets of rain attached to them.  The shot was taken in the rain and seems to have added some effect to the reflection and colour.

Teneral damselfly

These two macro images were taken last week of this newly emerged adult dragonfly.  Because it has just emerged, the appearance is anaemic looking and without the full colouration of the mature adult.  Damselfly's have a curious habit of moving away from you and hiding behind the stem.  This one did just that and I caught his eyes looking at me.  I had to move to manual focus as the camera just couldn't find the tiny spec of an eye.

Brown Argus at Perransands Cornwall

These three Brown Argus were seen on Perransands last night.  The complete Perransands dune complex is one of three main areas in Cornwall to see this species. The other two areas are Upton and Gwithian Towans and the dunes around Rock and Padstow.

Brown Argus is double brooded and these individuals in mint condition are obviously of the second brood.  A visit to the same area last week showed none of this species so we guess they have just emerged.

Four-spotted Chaser at Bissoe, Cornwall

These images of Four-spotted Chaser were taken this evening in the Bissoe Valley, about five miles south of Truro.  It was roosting in some juncus grass and allowed approach to within a foot.

EXIF Detail:Aperture F/10.  ISO 250 Shutter speed 1/40s - 1/100th sec. WB Cloudy.  Tripod mounted. Lens Nikon Macro 105mm F/2.8

Common Blue Damselfly with prize

These images of a Common Blue Damselfly were taken today at Breney Common, east Cornwall.  They are all shot with a Nikon macro 105mm F/2.8 lens at approx eight to ten inches distance.

They were photographed at midday in dull light.  This was the only damselfly to oblige, mainly because it was more interested in the prey.  Within ten minutes it was devoured.

All the shots were taken at f/10 and I tried very hard to get the perfect 90 degree angle on the head and tail tip.  The depth of field is so narrow that just a few degrees out means part of the subject will be out of focus.