Honeybee in Hyacinth patch

[Allen Sparks]

Canon 40D, Sigma 150mm macro lens plus Tamron SP Pro TC 1.4x
ISO 400, f8, 1/250s, 580 EX II speedlite (EC +2/3), hand held, manual mode

Spring has sprung in Memphis. Shot this today. That is all the room I have on top so the bee is pretty high in the frame.

[Anita Bower]

Yay! Bees at work! Not up here, yet. I'm not an insect photographer, so I don't know how to help you with that, but I'm sure others will chime in.

[Marcin Biskupek]

Hello Allen.

ARRRGHHH so sharp in flight... my dream. Gratz.

[Joe Senzatimore]

Amazing how sharp the Bee is. Just fantastic. 1/250th is slow for such a sharp capture. well executed. Might crop some off the right as I find it a bit distracting and it doesn't add anything to such a fine image.

[bhavya joshi]

Good work..Allen,
I like Sharpness, Nice timed, Looks like busy bee..:c3:

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Allen, very nice Bee In Flight shot! I wish you had stepped a little to the right to get rid of the other grape hyacinth in the BG, especially because now it intersects with your main subject.
Very cool! :c3: (I want one as well...)

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Allen. As we all know, these are difficult shots to get - and you did well with this one. It looks like this bee already has quite a load of pollen. (By the way, everything is still well covered in snow up here.) While this is nicely done, as presented, you might experiment with a tighter crop and see if you can selectively sharpen the bee just a bit more. :S3:

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Allen,
I think you nailed the focus where it needs it! I think a crop off the bottom works for me (just below the full bloom w/ white tip in center of hyacinth)......a pano in macro!!!.....then I don't mind the oof rh side as it makes a diagonal and gives the feeling of the bee flying from one bloom to the other! Very nicely done overall!

[Ken Childs]

Hi Allen,
I definitely agree with the praise by all and the suggestions made by Steve and Roman. I would also consider toning down the highlights on the abdomen. A few minor tweaks will definitely take this one over the top! :S3: