Tuesday, June 9, 2009

The Frustration of Butterfly Photography








I spent part of my morning chasing two butterflies around my garden. The first is the one I actually managed to photograph. It is a Gulf Fritillary and it was laying eggs on my passion vine. That mama needs to get after it and leave me some caterpillars. That passion vine is out of control and needs to be cut back. How much fun it is to let the caterpillars do it for me. The bottom picture shows that the passion vine has eaten a bicycle.
The other butterfly was a black swallowtail. Very beautiful, but she just wouldn't pose for a photo. Must be shy or something. Or maybe she's a snotty diva who is too good for my camera.
I finally succeeded in braiding garlic. I found excellent instructions on the interweb. Turns out you start with three, braid, add one, braid, add two braid, rinse repeat. Worked great. Looks like we are vampire proof for another year.
Two days to Mexico. WooHoo. Posted by Picasa

11 comments:

  1. I'm sure I look quite silly racing across the yard trying to get a pic of a butterfly. Or bug. Or any flying pretty! So I know just how you feel!
    Brenda

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  2. Love to chase butterflies--but I never seem to have a camera in my hand at the right time!

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  3. I love butterflies too. I got lucky the other day when it landed(-:
    I am waiting for a dragonfly to come by. Soon hopefully(-:

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  4. But you did get some nice pictures in the end. I took dozens of pictures when we were at the Lizard trying to get a good picture of the beautiful butterflies but all I got were lots of pictures of dry stone wall and mustard plants with the occasional butterfly wing going out of picture left or right! :-) Val

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  5. The garlic braiding sounds pretty much like french braiding hair. Your butterfly photos are pretty good - at least you can see the target!

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  6. Wish my passion vine would have lived. Oh well, I'll try it again someday.

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  7. The braided garlic is so cool. I can't wait to start pulling ours up. Hey no fair. Our tomatoes haven't even gone in the ground yet and alrady you're picking tomatoes. We're seriously behind this year I've been trying to photograph a crow that's been hanging out in our yard and it just won't hold still.

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  8. Brenda, The neigbors thinks I'm crazy. Wait, maybe I am.

    Linda, They just don't pose well.

    Cindee, good luck

    Valeri sounds familiar.

    My Little family, garlic braiding is exactly like french braiding.

    Kim and Victoria, once it gets established it is impossible to kill it.

    Curmudgeon, Love the garlic. It did great this year. When my tomatoes are all burned up in August, you will still be eating yours.

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  9. Cool garlic braid. I feel your frustration with the butterflies! When the butterfly finally stays put, the wind starts blowing the flower so the camera won't stay in focus!
    Blessings,
    Lorilee

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  10. I love butterflies too...I've had only a couple of times when I'd say my camera --or the butterfly--cooperated with me. Usually it is difficult to do the butterfly justice, or have a pic that helps you appear like a person who knows even the smallest thing about your own camera;-) Hang in there and just have fun!!

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  11. I'm with you...my "good" shots are a combination of dumb luck and all-out miracles!

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