Lying Down On The Job

I took this in my flower garden a few days ago. I like the fact that he looked like he was laying down on the flower while feasting on the pollen. Not sure what kind of bee it is. Appreciate all comments and critiques.

Specific Feedback Requested

Anything that might improve the shot.

Technical Details

I shot this with my Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 180 mm L macro lens on a monopod with gimbal head, KX-800 twin flash with diffuser at all manual settings. F-11, 1/125, ISO 160. Edited in LR and used Topaz AI Clear.

Lying Down On The Job

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Oh my gosh Shirley, this is fantastic. Sharpness and detail you’ve gotten is envious to me. Also, the colors in the flower couldn’t be better. I would agree with you, this bee definitely looks like you may have interrupted his nap. Very nice seen, captured and executed. Bravo!

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What a great way to start the day with a belly laugh!. The pose is awesome, Shirley the coordination of green/orange/yellow colors adds a lot and contrasts well with the pink petals. The details in the eye are also awesome.

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Hi Shirley,

This is a longhorn bee and a very nice photo of this one. With bee photography, it’s all about lighting to bring out all the details. Your fill flash and ambient lighting worked quite well bringing out the details. The green eye is the focal point of the image and it is nice and sharp. I like this as presented. Look up Melissodes species and that might be the genus name for this bee (hopefully, I spelled it correctly.). Well done…Jim

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Jim, you spelled it right. I looked it up and found that it is native to Texas, but I live in North Carolina where I took the shot. Sounds like he is a little off course. We have quite a few of them here in our flower garden. I was surprised to learn that they nest in the ground. I will also have to look for the male ones sleeping hanging from the stems of flowers. That sure would be a neat image. Thank you so much for the info. You are always good a providing the ID, and I do appreciate it. Nice to know what we are photographing!

There are several species that live in your state. To find the sleeping bees., get out early and scan weed stems for snoozing bees. I found them once and unfortunately left my tripod at home. So I did get some very blurry shots of 2 immobile bees. I hope that you have better luck than me😉.

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Shirley: Spectacular shot technically, artistically and whimsically. Reminds me of my kitten when he’s worn out from playing and just crashes. This ranks at or near the top for me of all your macro images. Exceptionally well done. :+1: :+1:>=))>

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Wow Shirley, this is terrific! Love the colors - everything really pops and I’m especially drawn to the green eye. Nicely composed with the purple flowers slightly showing as a base for the image and the full flower top in view. Very well done.

spectacular image!, sharp where it matters. Vibrant colors, nice oof background and composition make it an excellent image. The green eye is the heart of this image.

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Amazing photo Shirley. Thanks for posting all the equipment you used. I need to try the monopod and gimbal. The lighting and focus was dead on. It is also amazing you captured this bee in this position. Nicely done

I appreciate everyone’s kind comments on this image. Dean, I really have found for me that the monopod and gimbal head (with macro twin flash when needed) is a great help. Almost like hand held, but more steady. The gimbal head gives me freedom to aim the camera in whichever direction I need to as quickly as handheld, while the monopod is holding the weight of the camera, and very easily moved a few inches or more quickly. I feel like I am getting more shots by using it. The gimbal head I use is a cheaper and smaller one than the one I use for birding. In fact, they sell gimbal heads just for monopods now, I understand, so that might be an option for you.

I also use a monopod and gimbal head for some of my macro work especially dragonflies as they tend to repeatedly return to the same perch. I use a mongoose action head for both tripod and monopod. It’s not cheap but does a great job. I still tend to hand hold for butterflies as they flit around so much.
Again, great image Shirley. Really nice work.

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