Simplicity

I was surprised to see a caterpillar on this iris when walking exploring the prairie one day in June.  This common buckeye caterpillar is more colorful than the adult which has a more graphic design. Now to find an adult this month. 

Buckeye at Rest

This was captured using a more traditional photographic technique using a macro lens and tripod. Captured while the buckeye was resting on a prairie bush clover before sunrise at Shooting Star Prairie SNA in extreme southern Minnesota. Technical: The challenge is getting the wing completely sharp by positioning the wing parallel with the plane of the sensor.  Aperture is bracketed to get the most sharpness in the wing and the best blur in the background.

Common Buckeye

These butterflies were everywhere on a recent prairie visit. The wings were in varying stages of aging with a large number being seriously frayed.  All of the butterflies were busy feeding on golden rods and it was a photographer's feast!

Technical: This image was obtained holding a close up filter against a 10-22 mm wide angle lens at 10 mm and moving the camera in as close as possible (to about 4 inches) to the butterfly. Composition and focus were monitored using LiveView. Aperture f16, ISO 640. While using both hands to hold the lens and camera I was standing on my right leg. Who says you always need to shoot with a tripod?