Bugs from the Urquhart Butterfly Garden

[Archibald]

Urquhart was the scientist who discovered where Monarch Butterflies overwinter. There is a small urban park named after him in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The park has lots of bugs but very few butterflies.

Here are some bug shots from last summer at this park.

Broad Centurion Fly, Chloromyia formosa

Spittlebug I think

Looks like caterpillar poo ("frass") but is actually a tree hopper

Fly with wet eyeballs

 

[Levina]

Hey Ed. Good to see you!

Great shots as always.

 

[JohnPD]

These are great. How do you get them to sit still?

 

[Archibald]

These are great. How do you get them to sit still?

They usually don't sit still! But I use flash (diffused), which has a duration of around 1/1000 second, which freezes motion as long as there is not too much ambient light. The motion-frozen image is often not well-focused (because of the motion) so one has to take several shots which improves the chances of getting one sharp.

 

[JohnPD]

It's definitely a skill.
The last one is particularly awesome, looking straight at us. The two drops of water on its head must be minuscule!

 

[Archibald]

It's definitely a skill.
The last one is particularly awesome, looking straight at us. The two drops of water on its head must be minuscule!

Thanks! It took me a long time to fashion a rig that seemed suitable. One needs a flash, a diffuser, and some way to help direct the light from the flash to the diffuser. Once that is set up, it becomes relatively easy. No more diddling with lights and diffusers. It's almost point and shoot.

However, the bugs are always in an awkward spot requiring twisting and straining to get a good angle. An hour of bug shooting is enough for me!

 

[JohnPD]

Thanks! It took me a long time to fashion a rig that seemed suitable. One needs a flash, a diffuser, and some way to help direct the light from the flash to the diffuser. Once that is set up, it becomes relatively easy. No more diddling with lights and diffusers. It's almost point and shoot.

Sounds complicated. You're obviously dedicated.

However, the bugs are always in an awkward spot requiring twisting and straining to get a good angle. An hour of bug shooting is enough for me!

And still you get the shots. I couldn't get those in a week.