Beauty…
13. Jun, 2011 
12 Comments
Well we are home and I am unpacking (again), washing (does it ever end?), and basically feeding and clothing people big and small (goes without saying) and trying to enjoy the scenery (always)… I thought I would mark the relief I feel at being home in two ways…
This is the first.
I am sharing a small series of shots I took the other day while waiting for the boys to bring in some cattle – the same time I took these photos of bees and scotch thistles. I also took some willy wagtail pics (I’ll share them soon).
And while I am no wildlife photographer, I was really stoked with these photos (especially the last one)…
A dragonfly hovering low over the shallow water right at the edge of the river… now if you have ever watched dragonflies in action, you will know that they dart a lot.
Hover-hover, dart-DART!
And you often notice a little ripple on the surface of the water but it’s too fast to really SEE what they have done there…
Well, amongst the 34 almost-continuous shots I took of this dragonfly, I got THIS one…
A dragonfly drinking. (Either that or using the river as a giant bidet – I think I’ll go with the first guess!) . I googled it and discovered this passage here:
Dragonflies drink by thrusting their bodies down onto the water’s surface in a sequence of one to three splashdowns. Water is absorbed through the exoskeleton. Dew is also absorbed on cool mornings.
I was lucky enough that the shot doesn’t mind being enlarged a bit – like this:
Totally. Cool.
Did YOU know that dragonflies drank through their bottom bones?
You learn a new darned thing every day!
BB
PS Second part of homecoming shared soon. If you follow me on Twitter, you might already have a clue…
PPS Photo nerd info for this series of shots (super fast shutter and slightly underexposed):
| Exposure/Shutter speed | 0.001 sec (1/1600) |
|---|---|
| Aperture/f stop | f/5.6 |
| Focal Length/lense | 200 mm |
| ISO Speed/film speed | 400 |
| Exposure Bias/compensation | +1/3 EV |
Cool capture! and fascinating knowledge – I didn’t know that!
Wish I could have been there to see BB chasing down dragonflies. Bet that would have been fun too. Hehe. Great photos. That new Nikon is in good hands and working hard. Great closeup and very cool but weird info.
Leenie´s last [type] ..THE GRANDEST MOUNTAINS
Spectacular pictures, what patience.
Donna Gunn´s last [type] ..Graduation 2011
Wow beautiful! And i had no idea that was how dragonflies drank. Glad we don’t!
Kate´s last [type] ..Todays Marathon
These (especially that last one) could appear in National Geographic! I’m very impressed!!
Kelly´s last [type] ..Vegetable Frittata
News to me as well as fascinating information; thanks BB.
I know people who talk through…well…never mind.
debby´s last [type] ..J-DOG!!!!
That last shot is amazing! (applause all the way from Canada)
Why don’t you sell it?
A Novel Woman´s last [type] ..How to be alone
Thanks Pam… any pics from this blog are for sale! But it may make the bush calendar next year… who knows??
BB
Lovely photos and I’ve learned something new for the day.
How cool! Love how crispness of the shot. And I now have something to bamboozle my kids with at dinner tonight.
I believe your lovely dragonfly is laying eggs. Amazing pics!
http://www-building.arct.cam.ac.uk/westc/ecology/photos/EmperorDragonfly_EggLaying.jpg