Butterfly Photography is in Prime Time -- The Mating Dance

Real happy with this photo. Our road, Old Erbie Road is lined with wildflowers now. These milkweeds drive the butterflies wild. I got this by waiting and watching. I am convinced the best way to get good butterfly pictures is to post yourself near a few pre-selected flowers and let the butterflies come to you. 

I much prefer to shoot butterflies in flight. When I get 2 at once it makes my day. This was shot 1/3,200 of a second at f 10, 400 mm, ISO 2,000, hand held. 

Commas and Question Mark Butterflies

Comma Butterfly -- Perfect Camo

Comma and Question Mark butterflies can be tough to get. Both are fast flying and seem to be timid. Most often I get them when they fly to me rather than me chasing them around. In the middle of the day they really fly around very fast.

My standard approach with butterflies is to find a great flower near many active butterflies, and then wait.  That generally does not work for these.

Question Mark Butterfly

I get these 2 when I am seeking other subjects like wildflowers. I usually get them with my 100-400 zoom all the way out. Generally you can't get very close to them.

This lens is underrated as a macro lens. I own a 180 mm macro lens and find it too short for getting close to these 2 species.  When my focus is dead on, the 100-400 mm is just as good.

Yellow Swallowtail on Wild Plum

Yellow Swallowtail on Wild Plum

This is another butterfly on a wild plum picture. I waited over an hour for this swallowtail to get in decent shooting range. I did get him tack sharp.

I think this is a pretty good picture. I would prefer for the bokeh to be simpler.

The flowers are fresh, meaning there is still plenty of pollen and the petals are in good form. The butterfly is also fresh, meaning it does not have wing damage from bird attacks and the color is not faded.

Painted Lady on Wild Plum

First Observe & Plan, Wait, Then Shoot

This is another butterfly picture on our wild plum tree. This photo is very deliberate at every level. I wanted the sweeping branch with fewer blooms, and the bokeh with branches. Of course the Painted Lady butterfly had to cooperate.

This shows a basic strategy I rely on. I will take the time to study a complex floral setting like a tree, compose the bloom where I want the butterfly to land, and even take test photos to setup the bokeh. This does take time and patience, but when it all comes together it is very satisfying. To me this picture is 3D, it has a Japanese floral arrangement feel to it, and I like the light dynamics.

When shooting flowering trees, I might stand in the same spot, and locate 3 possible flower compos that I hope to get a butterfly to land on. I can shift between them without moving much at all. Then I just wait. And wait. And even wait more.

When someone asks me how long it took to get this picture my stock answer is 2 hours plus 1/1600th of a second. Patience is the key.

Butterflies & Flowering Trees

Hummingbird Moth on Wild Plum

I mentioned butterfly photography on the blooming trees. This is an example of one picture I got today. These little guys are pretty hard to get. There was only one of them today and I got him in a pose that I like.

Think about the flowers as well as the butterfly. I think the spray of blooms, filtered light, and bokeh make this picture.

Butterfly Shooting is Very Good Now

If you visit to photograph the elk herds, you will definitely want to have a secondary target in mind.  Summer heat is back and the elk will be gone by 8 or 9AM.  My favorite second subject at this time of year are butterflies.  Early rains have created strong summer wildflower blooms. For some reason hummingbird moths are thick this year in many places.

Below is my favorite hummingbird moth picture so far. I call it "pollen puss". My standard strategy for this sort of photo is to pick a flower composition I like and just wait, often for hours. I would say this photo took me 6 hours to get.  As always, there is plenty of luck in getting a decent photo.  I chose a top lit flower in this case for an out of the ordinary compo.

5/18/12 Elk Viewing Great, Haying for Great Photos

Yellow Swallowtail on Horsemint

Elk viewing was outstanding this morning, continuing a pattern now in place for some time.  Elk calving is now just around the corner. Here and there are bull elk in early velvet, a picture that many have on their "bucket list".

Delicate ground-hugging morning fog and hay bales now offer great morning landscape photo opportunities. This won't last long as farmers will move the bales to storage, but it could run through the weekend.

If you want to see the elk, get to the Boxley Valley early, just after sunrise. Cool weather extends viewing times, but remember that very early morning viewing will get you real close to the animals. Keep in mind you should drive slowly. At first light, many elk are between the road and fences, and there will be some leisurely crossings. It is a great time to be out there.

Butterflying is now very good. Roadsides are lighting up with blooms and when the elk viewing is done, the butterflies are beginning to get active. It is a great way to combine two subjects that compliment one another perfectly during the morning hours.

5/4/12 Elk Watching Very Good -- Before 7:30AM

Morning Light, Fog & Clouds in Boxley Valley

Elk watching has shifted solidly to a summer viewing pattern. Before 7AM today I saw 4 herds grazing in Boxley Valley fields. By 7:45 they were starting to migrate to their bedding areas. This is the summer elk viewing experience.

Is it worth it to get up so early to see elk?  Absolutely yes. The elk are grazing in foggy fields. You can get photos of elk in the fog, around the edges of it, and fully emerged in the same photo. This makes ordinary field shots special if conditions are right. 

Besides seeing the elk, Boxley Valley on foggy mornings is just stunning.  If you are a photographer it is a great time to take moody landscape photos that exploit the fog as it lifts and animates the fields and buildings. Speaking personally, these are the summer landscapes that interest me besides the pooled-up river. This weather is wall-hanger weather if you can get your exposure correct. Perhaps it is a good time to learn HDR techniques to incorporate in your images. 

Hummingbird Moth at Ponca Elk Education Center

Roadside wildflowers are now blooming heavily. These are great places to get pictures of butterflies too. Make sure you pull off the road and be alert to traffic. There are many places you can prospect for roadside flowers along country roads. This is all day shooting. Butterflies like heat so you can shoot elk and landscapes early, then look for butterflies and roadside wildflowers later.

A great place for butterflies is the grounds of the Ponca Elk Education Center. There you park and be safe out of traffic. Any of the river access points are a good bet too. Remember that butterflies like to "puddle" along the edges of the river and creeks. 

The elk today were in southern pattern. Most of the elk are from the Highway 43/21 intersection and points south. There was one herd near Ponca.  I did see bulls in early velvet in another group. See the  brand new May map below. 

I have edited the wildflower list, although it is possible in some hollers a random specimen might show up of the early species, most are done. 

Shoot Elk & Fall Color, But Don't Forget Other Subjects

Fall Butterfly Photography is Great

It is easy to lose sight of every other photographic subject when you have both the elk rut and fall color dominating the photography landscape. If you are planning a photo outing to Buffalo National River there are other photo subjects.

Two you never hear about are fall wildflowers and fall butterfly shooting. The tiny purple asters on the right are a fall wildflower, but one of my favorites. I like to stalk pictures in filtered light and see what happens. Pictures of flowers in filtered light are one of favorite subjects. Add butterflies and it is even more challenging.

Note that the background drops off to blurry color called bokeh, a great creative tool. I took this picture with my trusty 100-400 zoom set for closeups at ISO 2000 underexposed 3 stops using aperture priority. This little skipper cooperated with a visit, as did a sulphur, a painted lady, a monarch, a checkerspot, and a dusky skipper.

It probably took me about 200 shots to get 5 photos worth fussing with. I think this one is the best. Dig around and see what you can find. Butterflies seem to move faster in warm weather, so fall shooting can be very good.

There are no shortage of fall flowers, and there are still plenty of butterfly species to choose from. Add these to your fall list of "things to shoot" and you will always come away with something. Since shooting under the canopy is good at any time of day, this subject complements elk and landscape shooting that are best at the ends of the day.