Flower With a Little Buzz

[SoCal Steve]

It's Spring time and the bugs have to get busy. I had to wait awhile for one of these little guys to light on the flower I was focused on. I clicked off about a dozen (as Kerry would say) so-so shots. The very first turned out to be about the best one. 105mm Nikkor Micro with off-camera SB-800 flash.

The image here seems a little desaturated compared to the original image on my computer monitor. Does anyone else experience this?:roll: I just had my monitor calibrated with a last weekend using a friend's new Spyder system.

[PiroStitch]

Love the DOF on the photo. Have you applied any pp to it to bump up the colours? On my screen it does look a bit desaturated. I've had that experience before when I look on the LCD it looks great, but on screen doesn't look as good. I guess the only way you can really tell is by printing it out as an actual photo.

Noticed the SB800 lighting up the bee's butt like a firefly

[KerryPierce]

Doesn't look so-so to me, Steve. That's a very nice pic. Good color, especially the reds, sharp, etc. Nicely done!

[sheepie]

...The very first turned out to be about the best one....

lol - isn't that so often the case!

I like this one - the bee is nice and sharp, and well exposed. Don't know if others would agree, but have you tried cropping some of the left side of the flower out, to make it more a portrait-orientation? I think this may give some benefit.

[sirhc55]

Steve - a nicely balanced, colourfull and well caught pic - our spring starts in September

[Killakoala]

A callistemon, in California?????? What else do we export to you guys?

The D70 seems to oversaturate reds so maybe that's something to do with the photo, which looks fine to me.

[stubbsy]

Steve (as in SoCal)

Just to amplify Steve (as in killakoala) 's comment. That's an Australian native flower in the shot called a Callistemon or bottle brush as it's common name.

There's an irony that someone in SoCal is posting a shot on an Aussie forum of an aussie native flower! BTW Nice shot.

Edit - so far as colour saturation, this postmay be of help

[mic]

Nice & Crisp Steve,

Well done, I'm glad the little Bees not flying around the other way faceing us, otherwise we would see his Bees D--k with your focusing abilities

Mic.

Colour looks nice on my monitor.

[marcus]

This is a great shot Steve, well done, love the bee. As others have mentioned it's quite amazing (for us aussies) to see a "Bottle Brush" blooming at this time of the year.
Everyone here would call them a bottle brush, is there a common name like that for them in the States?

[Soulboy]

That's a super shot. And it's the exact reason why I want my first lens to be the 105mm Macro.

[stubbsy]

This is a great shot Steve, well done, love the bee. As others have mentioned it's quite amazing (for us aussies) to see a "Bottle Brush" blooming at this time of the year.
Everyone here would call them a bottle brush, is there a common name like that for them in the States?

ummmm. Marcus I still have flowers on one of my callistemons

[SoCal Steve]

Stubbsy, Thanks for that thread. Spot on point. I'm printing it out to give it a thorough read.

A callistemon, in California?????? What else do we export to you guys?

Everything that can make life more enjoyable seems to make its way to California sooner or later. Surely we export a few things from "up-over" here in HollywoodLand that give you guys some pleasure (or at least that you can point and laugh your ass off about). I think most people here call it a bottle brush, too, but I'm a pretty dim bulb when it comes to plants. If it doesn't come it a container with a little sign, then... duh!

Seriously, the climate is so damn moderate in Southern California that it's never too hot for hot weather plants and never too cold for most cold weather plants. Northern California is about 10 degrees cooler on average. I do think it would be nice to really get to watch the seasons change sometimes though.

Thanks for the photo comments. Everything well taken, all.