First fruits of my wildflower "field".

[Clovishound]

Earlier this year, I planted a small section of my backyard with wildflower seeds. I was hoping to attract insects for macro photography without having to drive an hour round trip to my favorite macro spot. I think I should have prepared more ground and spread the seeds more widely to have a larger plot. Anyway some of the plants are beginning to flower and I started noticing a few insects earlier this week. I was able to get my first shots this afternoon. Unfortunately, the first few are on long, spindly stalks and the slightest bit of wind makes them rock and roll in and out of the frame. I hope to get some good shots, and if it works out well, I will expand next year.

It's not much, but sometimes first fruits are small and not that tasty, but hint of things to come.

 

[Clovishound]

I was looking at my "wildflower field" and decided that one of the species looked familiar. I picked a leaf and crushed it for the smell test.

I looked up the species list for the mix of seeds I sowed, and sure enough, Sweet Basil was in the list. They are looking tasty, and I may co-opt some for the kitchen.

 

[Marilynne]

I was looking at my "wildflower field" and decided that one of the species looked familiar. I picked a leaf and crushed it for the smell test.

View attachment 405892


I looked up the species list for the mix of seeds I sowed, and sure enough, Sweet Basil was in the list. They are looking tasty, and I may co-opt some for the kitchen.

Basil is so yummy!! I recently read an article that said to eat the flowers for some extra flavor.

 

[Needa]

I think this is a great thing to do. Had some flower to attract butterflys Should replace them.

 

[Clovishound]

This guy seems to be a frequent flyer. I also saw a native bee, and another larger species of wasp. Neither stuck around long enough to get a shot at them. There are some other flower species that look like they are going to bloom soon. They look like they may be more stable than the ones in the pictures.

I'm not happy about the lack of separation between the wasp and the flower head. Nothing to be done about that from this angle.

This one has better separation, but not as happy about the background. I also prefer the clear eye that can be seen in the above image. I hopefully will have lots of opportunity to refine things. The biggest issue I'm dealing with now is the movement of the flower stalks. It's really hard to compose and focus with this much swinging back and forth.

 

[Clovishound]

Got a few more today. I noticed more insects active in the patch, and another species started flowering. I'm thinking this may work out for macro work.

 

[Clovishound]

 

[Clovishound]

Experimenting with a new, to me, style of flash diffuser. I made one of the sconce style out of thin cardboard duct tape and an old T-shirt. I took a handful of shots this evening, and I think I like it better than the little pop up, clip on the lens style, or the small soft box style, both of which I have and use. If this works out better for me, I will either make a prettier, more durable one, or just go ahead and buy one.