Inspired by the amazing nature photography of Ge van 't Hoff (bugman 11). You can visit his stream here: www.flickr.com/photos/dutchnature/

Bluebird Estates

A teneral Damselfly I found today at Wollaton Park, not sure on species, thinking Ischnura elegans. This one was a great subject, almost looks like it was posing for a portrait.

This was a 13 image focus stack, I used my Canon 1000D and shot using JPEGS, ISO 200, aperture F/5.6 and a 1/160 shutter speed. I used a diffused flash in ETTL mode.

Zooooommmmm

Thought I'd upload one of this years Mesopsocus immunis offerings. I find lots of these cool Psocoptera at Wollaton Park during the month of June, they really are quite unusual looking insects, but I love them, they make excellent subjects.

This was an 8 image focus stack using the 1000D, I used an aperture of F/6.3, ISO 200 and a 1/160 shutter speed. I kind of liked the flash fall off with this one.

Went out this morning to hopefully get some emergence shots, probably should have got there an hour earlier, but did find a few Common Darters mid emergence. This is a female she had just made the emergence, she will now spend some time pumping those wings out and then she will rest to let everyting harden up a bit. Once the wings are functional they usually fly up somewhere high and rest.

Anyway, got loads of shots and a few stacks. This was a single shot at F/7.1 using a mixture of ambient light and flash.

Today I noticed almost a mass emergence of Common Darters, I saw 15 or so Teneral Common Darters flying up from the waters edge of the Grantham Canal. I decided to see if any were emerging from the fountain this year. Sure enough I found many exuviae around the wall of the fountain and then I found this poor individual.

I found this one this afternoon, after watching for a while I soon realised that it was a failed emergence. For whatever reason this is as far as this one got, The head had just broken through and then I guess something went wrong. So anyway I took a 22 image focus stack using my 1000D, ISO 200, aperture F/6.3 and a 1/160 shutter speed. Thought it made an interesting image.

REALLY NEED TO VIEW LARGE OR ZOOOOOMMMM

A male Common Darter in the final stages before getting ready to take flight for the first time, still holding on to its exuviae. It looks like the wings are about fully formed, they just need to dry out and harden, I think the abdomen will lengthen a bit more.

This was a single shot using natural light, the Darter was in the shade, so I really had to brace the camera against the wall to get this one with a shutter speed of 1/25 of a second, an F/9 aperture and ISO 200. Also flipped the orientation, see first of comments for actual orientation.

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A freshly emerged Common Darter portrait from Monday morning, I found plenty of these recently emerged Dragonflies on the walls around the fountain at the Memorial Park. So I tried to get a few close up portraits of these beauties. They were swaying in the wind a bit, but every so often the wind would die and I'd try for another portrait focus stack.

When focus stacking I have to shoot JPEG's with the 1000D as it doesn't cope well in RAW and tends to start buffering after 3 shots, which slows things down too much. This was a 15 image focus stack using using an F/7.1 aperture, ISO 200 and a 1/160 aperture. I used the MP-E 65mm at x2 mag and a diffused flash was used.

This is another favorite woodland flower of mine. They are very small but always seem to stand out on the forest floor making their common name very appropriate for this species.

There is a tiny Springtail at the base of the leaf in the foreground. I put a note on the tiny speck. I thought my friend Eddie the Bugman would enjoy that little fellow. ;^)

I hope everyone enjoys this image! :^)

The scientific name for this species is: Trientalis borealis.

This was a pleasant surprise today, I was wondering around Melton Country Park and spottted this guy, I do believe I have finally found a local site for White-legged Damselflies (Platycnemis pennipes), according to the BDS website this is an uncommon species and looking at the distribution map this is right at the the northern edge of its range in Leicestershire & Rutland. I saw about 4-5 individuals, but they were vastly outnumbered by Common Blue and Blue-tailed Damselflies.

I didn't manage any MP-E stacks, but I'm planning on an early rise to see if I can find any roosting. This was a single shot using my Tamron 180mm macro with an F/5.6 aperture, I liked the shallow DOF here, it was definitely playing hide and seek with me like they do :o)

I was extremely pleased to find lots of these running about at Wollaton Park. If you remember I found one last year, this is a Mesopsocus sp. These are a type of Barkfly, they are quite large as Barkfly go and these were about 3-4mm long. They are very active little things and spend their time running about, but luckily for me every so often they seem to freeze and will stay motionless for a few seconds.

This one stayed put long enough for an 18 image handheld focus stack at about 3-4x mag, I used ISO 400, aperture F/5.6 and a 1/160 shutter speed. I think these are one of the most unusual insects I find, they really are cool critters :o)

I found this little beauty today, there were quite a few Bees settling on a fence at Wilford Claypit, most of them were quite large, then I noticed this handsome little Bee, I really liked the colour and the amazing eyes. I have spent a while trying to find out what it is on the BWARS site, but have come to no definite conclusions. So if anyone can point me in the right direction with ID then I would be very grateful.

This was just a single shot at F/11, Bees are tricky to focus stack, most of them are constantly moving, the abdomen on this one was constantly moving.

Possible ID Osmia caerulescens thanks to Africa Gomez and Ed Philips and Jon. 1972 :0)

A Teneral Damselfly from the other weekend, the colour here is provided by a Rhododendron Flower. This was a 6 image focus stack, again not sure what the species is, possibly Ischnura elegans.

I spent this afternoon photographing Ruby-tailed Wasps and Jumping Spiders, so might upload one later. I was quite pleased to find a new Jumping Spider today and also a male Euophrys frontalis, also got a few stacks of a sleeping Chrysis ignita.

One from last years Common Darter emergence images, doesn't look like I will get any of these this year as they emptied the water feature where I was finding these, so that meant all those poor Darters that went to so much effort last year have gone to waste. I wouldn't like to guess how many eggs and nymphs perished after they decided to empty the water out for cleaning, no fair :o(

Anyway a Common Darter recently emerged and waiting to start expanding those wings :o)

Went to see "Guardians Of The Galaxy", it was awesome, Groot was the best LOL :O)

Sorry not been on much over the past few weeks, not been out much with the camera, poor excuse I know LOL :o)

Yes a Mesopsocus sp. sequel, these were another of my fave subjects of 2015. The title refers to their habit of running about like mad things and their rather curious looks. This is a Mesopsocus sp. these are a species of Barkfly and are quite large as Barkfly go at 3-4mm. They are also one of my favourites :o)

This was a 9 image focus stack using an aperture of F/6.3, ISO 320 and a 1/160 aperture. I used a diffused flash and the background is the sky. The Barkfly were on a wooden observation structure at Wollaton Park.

Hope everyone has a great weekend :o)

SEE COMMENTS FOR OTHER IMAGES

I found these under a fallen branch and thought they were one of the most beautiful fungal formations I have ever seen in my life. So I thought I'd share it with you, If you view large you can see water drops on the fruiting bodies.

I have absolutely no idea what these are, I presume they are fungi, do any help with ID would be appreciated :o)

ID Lachnum virgineum, Snowy Disco, thanks to STVPX :o)

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I had to upload this one as it is just a different angle on a Damselfly, but it really does illustrate the Pseudopupil effect of the compound eye. This is how Wiki explains it :-

In the compound eye of invertebrates such as insects and crustaceans, the pseudopupil appears as a dark spot which moves across the eye as the animal is rotated. This occurs because the ommatidia which one observes "head-on" (along their optical axes) absorb the incident light, while those to one side reflect it. The pseudopupil therefore reveals which ommatidia are aligned with the axis along which the observer is viewing.

So this explains why a Damselfly appears to be watching you no matter what angle you view them at. This also gives us the all important eye contact which helps with photography.

This was a handheld focus stack of 10 images at F/8, ISO125 and 1/60 second shutter speed.

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Look at the stars,

Look how they shine for you,

And everything you do,

Yeah they were all yellow,

I came along

I wrote a song for you

And all the things you do

And it was called yellow

I have started carrying coloured foams about in my kitbag, I managed to position this sheet behind my subject which was on flowering Dock, it adds a different feel to a shot, really brings out the Damselfly. This is shot in the field and not in a studio.

A 15 image stack of this splendid Collembola, this is Allacma fusca ♀ (= var. pustulata), a female form of Allacma fusca and also thought to be related to being in a pre-moult phase, resulting in the beautiful Leopard spots. This one was from 2013, I couldn't find any like this in 2014 and believe me I looked. The stack isn't perfect, there was a bit of movement and it is incomplete, but it does show some lovely details.

15 images, ISO 400, F/5.0 and 1/125, diffused flash.

Doubt I will get out with the camera this weekend, looks to be a blustery one, stay safe everyone :o)

Took a quick trip out yesterday evening to take a few Trent shots, it was a very cold misty evening which gave some rather nice lighting effects on the Suspension Bridge. There was a lot of activity around the bridge as well, I think the local rowing club were carrying out some insane torture/exercise routine, they had to run over the bridge and back again and then do push ups or squat thrusts, this went on for the 30mins or so I was there. Thought about joining in, but decided against it LOL :o)

Did this bridge used to have more lighting on it? I remember doing similar shots a few years back and I'm sure the bridge was more illuminated.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful Weekend :o)

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Check out my other insect photos:

www.flickr.com/photos/andygocher/sets/72157652302039262/

If you like this check out my top 50 shots at: www.flickr.com/photos/andygocher/sets/72157646224415497/

A portrait of one of this Summers Banded Demoiselles. I have quite a few of these potential stacks kicking around on my hard drive, so thought I'd pick one to play around with. This was a 23 image handheld focus stack, I used ISO 400, F/8 aperture and a 1/160 shutter speed, I can't wait for Spring to come again, at least the days are going to start getting longer now :o)

Hope everyone has a great run up to Christmas ;o)

I found this little one on the metal railings that surround the conservation area at Wollaton Park on Friday afternoon. I think this is a female Azure Damselfly, also due to the position of the subject and the shade from the trees I went for some flash fall off, by the time I tried to add a background she had flown off.

This was just a 6 image stack at F/8, this shows you don't always a particularly deep stack to get some nice details.

Anyway, hoping for an early rise tomorrow, there may be a slim chance of some more Damselfly portraits, but I'm hoping to find some other macro subjects and I hope there is some dew forming tonight. Hope everyone has a great Sunday :o)

I was really pleased to find this Nottinghamshire rarity on a walk on Sunday. This was also a first for me. This is Cassida vibex, a species of Tortoise Beetle. I was originally trying to photograph it on a Knapweed leaf, but it decided to fall off and land on my thumb. I managed a 5 image focus stack of this beauty. Really love the colours on this one.

According to Eakringbirds there have only been 3 records of this species in Nottinghamshire:-

www.eakringbirds.com/eakringbirds4/insectinfocuscassidavi...

I think the one sure fire macro subject this morning was the Seven-spot Ladybird, they were everywhere and all covered in lovely dew.

I'm quite looking forward to more of these early morning sessions, looking forward to finding more and more subjects as the Spring progresses. The down side is from here to June, I'm going to have to get up earlier and earlier, but then the thought of morning Odonata is really egging me on.

Gotta go into town now to source coloured backgrounds and some crocodile clips I think :o)

Ooooooh just passed the 50,000 views of my photostream, thanks to all :o)

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Really pleased to see one of these Cream-spot Ladybirds, made a pleasant change from Harleys and Seven-spots, this one lead me a merry dance, as soon as I positioned my lens then it would start moving, eventually it gave up and stayed put LOL :)

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An early morning Hoverfly, in hindsight I should have tried to add a background, but this shot displays the dramatic effect of flash fall off, this is where the light of the flash does not hit anything in the time of the exposure, to remedy this I could have used a longer exposure or used a false backdrop, other solutions increase the size of the aperture and also up the ISO.

Not sure of species here, thought it might be Syrphus sp, but not 100% :)

A Sympetrum striolatum from a while back. This one was a recently emerged individual, it seems that the ommatidia of the compound eye are much more apparent in teneral individuals, I still wonder what Dragon vision would be like, that's not just the compound eyes, you would have to factor in the 3 ocelli as well. I reckon a real case of sensory overload.

This was a natural light focus stack of a Darters noggin :o)

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Found again a Sminthurinus sp. that looks like the one I found on 26 januari 2018. Isn't she lovely. :-)

www.flickr.com/photos/78925926@N08/albums/72157712833581946

Also I have seen a look alike on the photostream from Eddy the bugman, 5 november 2013. "The middle one"

www.flickr.com/photos/odonataman/10705693235/in/photolist...

Found : Meeuwen-Gruitrode

A new Springtail for me today, this I think is Sminthurus viridis and what a pretty little thing. The only problem with this guy is what it was floating on, it was on a puddle on a cowpat, I think I must be crazy, firstly at spotting it and secondly at getting down on my hands and knee's and holding my camera over Cow poo, but I got a new species for my tick list LOL :)

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As seen on Autumnwatch Unsprung 2011 woooohoooo

This was my only real capture from Sunday's walkabout, I found this female Dicyrtomina saundersi on top of a fence post at Wilford Claypit Nature Reserve here in Nottingham. She stayed put for a 9 image focus stack, she was about 1.5mm long at a guess. I used my MP-E 65mm on my 1.4x teleconverter for this.

Dicyrtomina saundersi is a common species and can be found in many habitats, gardens, woodland etc. They can be found grazing on algae/fungi on the underside of fallen leaves, bits of wood and often can be found grazing on wooden structures such as benches, fences and wooden posts.

Just got Season 4 of Game Of Thrones so that's my evening sorted LOL :o)

I hope everyone has a wonderful week :o)

This one is another of the Hawthorn Shieldbug I found a few weekends back, with this one I was using my MP-E on a 1.4x teleconverter and it is a 21 image handheld focus stack at F/4.5. Part of the reason I love macro is the ability to see details the human eye can't normally see.

Well looks like Spring is off to a good start. I'm hoping to start seeing Damselflies in the near future, I'm banking on an early emergence this year, possibly by the end of March to early April, I will be checking the BDS sight on a regular basis :o)

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A portrait of a teneral Common Darter which was drying its wings in the sun, I was quite happy with the results from the 1000D with these stacks, although I do miss the 5D MKII as it made things so much easier. Still trying to work out what to get next with regards a new camera.

This was a 12 image focus stack using an F/7.1 aperture, ISO 200 and a 1/160 shutter speed, a diffused flash was also used. The light background was due to the light coloured stone wall it was emerging on.

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I was really pleased to find this little guy yesterday, this is a male Euophrys frontalis. Euophrys frontalis displays sexual dimorphism, the male is tiny at about 2-3mm long with distinct fringes of red/orange hair around the anterior eyes, it also has black elongated front legs which it uses for courtship display. See first of comments for a picture of the female.

This was a 4 image stack, I was lucky that it stopped for a few moments, they are very fast and active little Spiders, really great fun to watch.

A focus stack of a male Calvatomina rufescens, this is one I took last Autumn. Calvatomina rufescens is quite common in local woodland and I have found them in large numbers, they also seem to be present all year round. This one was about 1mm long, but they do get a bit bigger than this. They do resemble Dicyrtoma fusca at first sight, but under closer inspection the dark red/brown ocelli on a pale orange/red eye patch soon helps confirm their identity (Dicyrtoma fusca has black ocelli on a black eye patch).

This was a 12 image focus stack, there was some movement of the antennae and furca, but I managed to edit around most problem areas.

A lovely Azure Damselfly that posed so very well on one fine Summers Day in 2013. This shot was using a gravel path for the the background colour which contrasted well with the blue of the Damselfly.

This one was a 5 image stack using an F/10 aperture. This goes to show that you don't always need loads of images to get a focus stack. I seem to remember that this guy had a problem with one of his wings.

Not long to wait now, Spring is just around the corner :o)

A Banded Demoiselle from a while back found just after a downpour, hence the rather large droplet behind its eye. I love the blues and greens on the males, so beautiful.

I'm hoping to make a few early morning outings this coming weekend, but it is so much easier to stay in bed LOL. But, I really do need to get out to make the most of the abundance of invertebrates at this time of year, I need to do some Common Blue Damselfly portraits.

A handheld focus stack, 19 images, F/8, ISO 400 and 1/160 shutter speed :o)

Featured in Leftlion Magazine

www.leftlion.co.uk/articles.cfm/title/leftlion-magazine--...

A Teneral Ischnura elegans (I think, but don't quote me) from Wollaton Park last Summer. When Damselflies first emerge they lack their adult colours and often look a bit green/yellow/brown (This does vary with different species), after a while they gradually take on their adult appearance.

This was a 9 image focus stack, there was some lower jaw movement, but I managed to edit around that. This guy had probably only just emerged on the day I found him :o)

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This is a tribute to Fences on a Friday, taken early in the morning at first light, I loved the delicate hues of purple and the balls of bokeh, HFF everybody and have a great weekend :)

A very early rise again, it was slightly breezy and overcast up here at about 5am, unfortunately this meant no dew, but anyway I had a good look around.

I think as it was slightly warmer and the lack of dew meant a lot of macro subjects were ready to fly straight away. I eventually stumbled across this fine fellow. I used a purple holofoil for the background here, it was purely experimental, but I kind of liked the result. I've not done as many portraits this year, I think I'm getting side tracked by other things and the weather has not helped earlier in the season :o)

Hope you all have a fab Saturday :o)

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You might well remember this loving couple from last year, this is a pair of Orange Ladybirds I found at Colwick Woods on a wooden handrail. This is a different POV.

This was an ever so ambitious handheld focus stack of 34 images, as could be expected there was some movement (Mainly from the one on top), but I managed to edit around it. I used an F/6.3 aperture, ISO 400 and a 1/160 shutter speed, a diffused flash was also used as this was in the middle of woodland.

Please see comments for other images.

Whilst hunting Tiger Beetles the other day at Newstead I found a sandy patch of ground with lots of Andrena clarkella activity. These wonderful little Bees were both emerging from the ground and were also burrowing into the ground. Always amazed how the Bees know where their burrow is when they return after gathering pollen. The individuals in the main image are females, Both the images above are focus stacks using my 100mm macro lens.

The other interesting thing to note were the number of Nomada leucophthalma flying about. As soon as the sun came out they would appear. Nomada leucophthalma is a cleptoparasite on Andrena clarkella. A cleptoparasite in the case of the Cuckoo Bee typically steals food from a host Bee larvae, in the case of Nomada leucophthalma they burrow down to find the hosts larvae pollen ball, they then lay their eggs. When the Cuckoo Bee larva hatches it consumes the host larva's pollen ball, and if the female cleptoparasite has not already done so, kills and eats the host larva.

SEE COMMENTS FOR EXTRA IMAGES

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My friends are still in their Dock plant Motel, I just wonder how long before the numbers start falling off, I'm seeing very few Demoiselles now, but the Common Blue numbers are still very strong indeed.

I hope you all like this one, I especially liked the reds in the background and the way they complement this teneral female :)

A montage of the daily activities of Sminthurides aquaticus, Sminthurides aquaticus is a very common Collembola that can be found at the waters edge of most still bodies of water, ponds, lakes and slow moving streams. In this montage you can see courtship activities and grooming activities. The females are a lot larger than the males in this species, for courtship the males have specially adapted antennae which they use to link up with the females antennae, you can often see the females carrying the males around.

Males reach 0.5 mm in length whereas females grow to 1.0 mm.

See first of comments for link to rarely seen egg laying behaviour!!!!!!

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I was overjoyed to find these at a new location at Colwick Woods, I found a few, but this one was the only one that stayed put, even though she wasn't in the best position, I did my best. This is the spotty version of a female Allacma fusca, they are the same species, this is just the rarer female pustulata form. It was also interesting to note that it did seem to change colour in a few frames of the stack, but that might have been the gut moving food about just below the surface of the back.

This was a 14 image handheld focus stack at F/5.6 with the MP-E at x5 on a 1.4x teleconverter, giving a magnification of x7, this one was about 2mm long. It really was a wicked day, photographed Dragonflies in the morning and found loads of Springtails and Pseudoscorpions in the afternoon at Colwick Woods, this little lady was the real highlight though :o)

Some info from Frans :-

var. pustulata is not just another colour variant of Allacma fusca, it is in fact the female form. Allacma fusca shows sexual dimorphism. While the males are more homogeneous in colour the females are distinctly spotted, especially in the pharate phase just before moulting.

Crop and a few bits in comments :o)

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Well I took my camera with me to work and was able to get over to Wollaton Park at about 2pm where I found my very first Parent Bug final instar. I guess these can't be that common here in Notts, I mean there is no mistaking these guys with those groovy stripes and I'm sure I would have noticed one before now.

Anyway this well behaved individual allowed me to take a 24 image handheld focus stack, I used an F/8 aperture, ISO 400 and a 1/160 shutter speed. I use a diffused flash for these due to the immediate lack of light due to a woodland environment. This one was on the wooden structure by Wollaton Park lake that is supposedly a functioning bird hide LOL ;o)

Last Fence Friday of 2011, so I thought I'd give it a go, it was pouring with rain all afternoon and I was about to give up, then I saw these Ladybirds on a fence by the roadside, so thought what the heck let's get the camera wet.

It was so gloomy all the cars had their lights on so bokeh was a surefire inclusion and there were traffic lights in the background on green, bonus :0)

Hope you like, HFF everybody :0)

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Well not much about today, but did find this little guy on a tree, I think it's an early instar of Kleidocerys resedae (Birch Catkin Bug), this little one was about 1.5mm-2mm in length, but I was taken by its colourful appearance. If anyone can confirm the ID then I would be grateful.

This was taken with the MP-E 65mm at x5 magnification and diffused flash. This was a handheld focus stack of 19 images with an aperture of F/6.3, ISO 400 and a 1/160 shutter speed, all taken halfway up a tree LOL :o)

I found a few of these on my walk yesterday, they were a real nightmare to photograph and had a habit of jumping as soon as I got the camera close.

Anyway, this is Bourletiella arvalis, these are a common species of Springtail and can usually been found on grassland, this one was on a fallen branch on the grass. I liked the contrast of this golden globe against the damp dark wood :0)

This was a single shot at about x6 mag using an F/7.1 aperture. These guys were about 1mm or less in size :o)

Just a reference photo showing my usual small Collembola camera setup.

Canon 5D MKII

Canon 1.4x Teleconverter II

Canon 430 EXII Speedlite

Kenko Extension tubes 168mm from 3 sets

Canon MP-E 65mm

x2 mini ballheads

Canon OC-E3 flash connector chord

Lumiquest soft box

Note flash now attached to foot of MP-E lens by brass connector taken from a Manfrotto flash bracket.

This is the kit I used for these :-

www.flickr.com/photos/odonataman/16127340321/

A rather large Hoverfly with an enormous noggin, I mean her head was huge, massive. However, I loved the eyes and the really awesome pollen spheres on her eyes, I will upload a few full body shots later :)