Friday, May 9th, 2025

[Dave]

TGIF folks.

Here's a shot of a bee nearing a California Popp. taken around 4:30 yesterday afternoon...

   

This bee has been busy - note the size of the orange sacks on the legs.
Have a good weekend, all.

[Rich]

That is awesome Dave! A 20 x 24 print would look good in any Dr. office or professional office! Fantastic DOF, composition and shutter speed.
I read that the BUSY as a BEE only lives 3 to 8 weeks.

[Dave]

Thank you, Rich.

I've come to believe that getting a decent photo involves: being out there with a camera as often as possible, good light, finding the patience to wait for a good shot and not messing up it up, and wise processing (in this case it needed some strong sharpening of the bee and I think I managed that without it looking over-sharpened), and cropping it well for composition.

BTW, I think my crop left me with insufficient pixels for a large print as you mentioned.

[Man From Ironbark]

That's a big load the bee is carrying. The main reason they don't live long is that they slave for the hive until their wings wear out, then they die a lonely death. Often eaten alive by ants.

It is a classic shot. One to be very pleased of the capture.

[Dave]

Thanks MFI.

[Luv2shoot]

A terrific capture.
I feel that many of my best shots happened when I GOT LUCKY!
LORELL

[Dave]

Thanks MFI and Lorell.

I agree that sometimes we get lucky, as happened with this bee and poppy photo . But being out there every day with a camera, and constantly looking for something good to photograph increases my chance of that lucky good shot.

[Rich]

Dave, you are correct!
Someone on the Wet Canvas site said or had this a a sig "The more I Practice the Luckier I get."

[Dave]

That's a favorite quote of mine.

I believe it was Hall of Fame golfer Gary Player who is credited with first expressing that.

BTW, another famous golfer, Lee Trevino, was once asked the best thing to do when threatened by dangerous lightning while on a golf course. Lee replied something like "I'd take a 1-iron and hold it as high in the air as I could, because not even God can hit a 1-iron."

A wise and funny lot, those golfers.

[Rich]

I believe that is correct. I have used the Lee Trevino quote a few times on the course!