Bingo!
To quote from my field guide "Common Hawker is usually alert and difficult to approach" "This is a large hawker and a fast, powerful and seemingly tireless flyer" "Males spend long periods on the wing and rarely perch"
Taking photographs of dragonflies and butterflies is often a combination of luck, patience and being in the right place at the right time. Apart from a few "record shots", this is the first half-decent photo of Common Hawker (Aeshna juncea) that I have ever taken. Walking onto Danes Moss, where they breed and where I have occasionally seen them flying in previous years, I could hardly breathe as a male immediately plonked itself down on a tree trunk barely 10 feet away from me. Going into full stalking mode I fired off shot after shot as I crept closer to finally get this close-up. Not surprisingly the insect spooked at have a lens poked up it's anal appendage, but only flew to the next tree where the photo below was taken.
One tip : The weather was ideal. It was mid-morning as insects started to move. The sun shone occasionally, which meant the temperature became just warm enough for an insect to fly when the sun was out, but not so warm that they were wizzing about all over the place.
PS : I never saw another Common Hawker all day!
Bingo!
To quote from my field guide "Common Hawker is usually alert and difficult to approach" "This is a large hawker and a fast, powerful and seemingly tireless flyer" "Males spend long periods on the wing and rarely perch"
Taking photographs of dragonflies and butterflies is often a combination of luck, patience and being in the right place at the right time. Apart from a few "record shots", this is the first half-decent photo of Common Hawker (Aeshna juncea) that I have ever taken. Walking onto Danes Moss, where they breed and where I have occasionally seen them flying in previous years, I could hardly breathe as a male immediately plonked itself down on a tree trunk barely 10 feet away from me. Going into full stalking mode I fired off shot after shot as I crept closer to finally get this close-up. Not surprisingly the insect spooked at have a lens poked up it's anal appendage, but only flew to the next tree where the photo below was taken.
One tip : The weather was ideal. It was mid-morning as insects started to move. The sun shone occasionally, which meant the temperature became just warm enough for an insect to fly when the sun was out, but not so warm that they were wizzing about all over the place.
PS : I never saw another Common Hawker all day!