www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Hello all,

Hubby gave me a camera and now I'm totally hooked! I love taking photos of insects, especially butterflies and dragonflies/damselflies. I would appreciate your comments on a few photos I took. The camera I am using is a Nikon 50D, no lenses as of yet, but am considering either a Sigma 105mm or a 150mm.

Hope I identified them correctly.

Many thanks,
Anneke


Common blue, taken in Narberth, Wales, 23rd May 2008


Common blue, taken in Machen, Wales, 6th June 2008


Speckled Wood, taken in Machen, Wales, 10th June 2008


Six-spot Burnet Moths, taken in Machen, Wales, 22 July 2008

You say that you don't have any lenses, so I presume you just used the kit lens to take these, in which case for a beginner there's a lot of promise here. I would say the speckled wood is probably the most interesting as you've chosen a less than usual viewpoint. Browse the images in the competition for ideas on what looks good and what doesn't.

As for general rules:
Avoid pointing the camera down on an insect unless it is a reasonable distance from the ground. This avoids background clutter.
Focus on the insect's eyes.
Use selective focus to isolate the subject against a soft background. Av mode is most people's preferred camera setting.
Leave a decent area around the subject to avoid 'cramping' it, particularly in the direction the subject is facing.

On lenses, the Sigma 150 is preferred on these forums to the 105 because the greater working distance means there's less likelihood of spooking the insect.

Oh, and welcome to UKB.

Hi Eccles,

Thank you so much for your comments and advice. I still have a lot to learn but that's all part of the fun .

Kind regards,
Anneke