LYING IN THE GRASS. (12/05/15)

It’s an ill wind that blows no good. This morning I met a lady I have seen several times whilst we are out walking our respective dogs. I e-mailed her all the awful raptor images as she is a member of some sort of nature group, has wonderful legs, a pretty, expressive face and I needed an excuse to get her contact details. I think I’m in love again. It is a Goshawk what I seen but I haven’t seen it about for a day or two. She had noticed my blog and on her farm she has some cleggs. She unzipped her jacket and hoicked up her shirt to show me the bite on her tummy to prove it. I must look old and harmless as it was a very nice tummy despite a nasty red bite mark…..she was close to getting a companion to it. I’m going down there tomorrow as I would like to get to know her better and I also want some pictures of a clegg’s eyes. I just hope I don’t get bitten as they are vicious little devils though attractive with it.

In between a couple of rain showers I nipped out to see what I could find. I settled down next to a dandelion and was trying to get some pictures of the tiny flies that feed on them. This is just over half a dandelion. I gave it a squirt from my glycerine sprayer to simulate the earlier rain.

This is another with my quarry on.

I need much more practise as this is far from sharp. The little devils don’t like the strobes and fly off or words to that effect. The sun came out for these and though it helps to focus it does make for a cluttered background. I have tried focussing with live view but I think there is a time lag, I can’t get on with it so will continue using the prismatic screen. There’s a time lag there but that’s my brain and the signal it sends to my finger.

I have read so many howtodoits on macro and those that use a tripod, cable release, mirror lock up have either frozen the subjects or need to be told to FLY OFF. There just isn’t the time to mess about. It is clean living and practise and practise some more that will eventually get me the shot I want.

  I was getting fed up with my lack of success and the attention of the dogs who were convinced that my lying on wet grass was a new sort of game and until I told them to FLY OFF were pouncing on my jacket and grabbing my Levi hems and shaking them. Then this monster flew in, you can just see it’s bum.

    It’s a Saw Fly I think. I’ll go for an ID; Dolerus spp., Hymenoptera, Tenthredinidae. Whatever that means. I always assumed that sp or spp meant that nobody knows. Little black flies are the very bugger to sort one from another.

There are the really attractive ones with black and white hooped abdomens but I couldn’t find one to show you, they are much quicker than this one. I’ll try and catch one before it has warmed up tomorrow as there are plenty about.

That’s all for today.