Bug on a Stem

A few years ago I had a lecture that I gave several times to various groups titled "Bird on a Stick". In it I discussed three stages of bird photography as I saw them.

The first stage was "UFO" or Unidentified Flying Object. At that level, the photographer knew she had witnessed a majestic bald eagle soaring overhead but she was having a hard time convincing anyone else based on her grainy, out of focus image of a black dot against a white sky.

Her frustration might lead her to take some classes, maybe upgrade her equipment and, most importantly, practice, practice, practice. That would lead to the second stage which I called "Bird on a Stick". In that stage, the photographer was making lovely, technically correct images of identifiable birds. She was now the star of her Facebook birding group and all her non-photographer friends were telling her how great her images were. But in her heart, she knew something was still missing.

So then she started studying the photographers whose images spoke to her. She began exploring the stories behind the images and learning more and more about her subjects. At that point she discovered the third stage which I like to think of as the "Tell Me More!" stage. At that level the photographer has ceased being a mere image recorder and has begun to truly communicate something about her subject to the audience. She has sparked a reaction in the viewer that makes them want to know more about the intriguing creature they see in front of them.

I believe those stages also exist in bug photography.

In the beginning, you may be trying to capture that beautiful butterfly in your garden. But bugs have very good eyes and you may quickly discover they really don't like having cameras shoved in their faces. And bugs are fast! Just as you get set up, ready to click the shutter, off they go, never to be seen again. Photographing butterflies and bees can quickly morph into trying to capture images of all sorts of bugs, many of which are probably unidentifiable unless you study entomology in your spare time.

My first shot of a flea beetle in my yard.

So you study up, do your research, watch some podcasts and Youtube videos. That leads to buying a decent macro lens and maybe even some lighting equipment. Now you can capture those great i.d. shots, the "Bug on a Stem" images that allow you to search in your new bug book to discover that the tiny creature you are looking at is a flea beetle, Disonycha latifrons, to be exact.

A beautiful flea beetle seen from above.

But something is still missing.

Flea beetle peeking around the corner of a leaf, watching the watcher. 

So now it is time to strive for those "Tell Me More!"shots. With bugs, these types of shots seem even more critical because it is not easy to get people to stop and look in wonder at the beauty before them.  The variety in insect appearances and behaviors is mind boggling and absolutely intriguing, if only we can spark that curiosity in people to look more closely and to ask for more of the story.

That is my goal. To make people look. To introduce the individual in all his wonder and glory. To be the storyteller.