Fly These Broken Wings
I’ve often seen ladybugs land and pull the tips of their flight wings up under their protective coverings. Finally caught this one at the other end of the process, deploying its flight wings. How they can be flexible enough to fold lengthwise and rigid enough to fly still confounds me.
Asian Lady Beetle, Harmonia axyridis on coneflower, in the New Hanover County Arboretum, Wilmington, North Carolina.
Tech Note: This was a 10-image focus bracket, in which the ladybug wandered around out of focus, paused at frame 8, deployed in frame 9 as the focus slice arrived, and flew toward the camera, out of the focus plane in frame 10. I dropped three non-essential images for the focus stack, and edited out the stationary ladybug in frame 8 to avoid competition with the key action in frame 9. Cloned out a damaged petal in the final stack, and adjusted the curves.
Happy Sliders Sunday!
1 Aug 2021; 09:00 CDT; Velvia with post.
1st day 252/50/8; Explore #496; later no466 on 30 Dec 2023
Fly These Broken Wings
I’ve often seen ladybugs land and pull the tips of their flight wings up under their protective coverings. Finally caught this one at the other end of the process, deploying its flight wings. How they can be flexible enough to fold lengthwise and rigid enough to fly still confounds me.
Asian Lady Beetle, Harmonia axyridis on coneflower, in the New Hanover County Arboretum, Wilmington, North Carolina.
Tech Note: This was a 10-image focus bracket, in which the ladybug wandered around out of focus, paused at frame 8, deployed in frame 9 as the focus slice arrived, and flew toward the camera, out of the focus plane in frame 10. I dropped three non-essential images for the focus stack, and edited out the stationary ladybug in frame 8 to avoid competition with the key action in frame 9. Cloned out a damaged petal in the final stack, and adjusted the curves.
Happy Sliders Sunday!
1 Aug 2021; 09:00 CDT; Velvia with post.
1st day 252/50/8; Explore #496; later no466 on 30 Dec 2023