Back in September of this year, I had a magical morning in the prairie across town, along Lincoln Creek. I posted some photos from that morning in a post on September 20, but those represented just a small fraction of that morning’s crop of images. Here are a few more – various photographs of two dragonflies that were trapped in the morning dew as the sun rose. Insects stuck in dew are great because I can take as much time as I need to explore compositions without worrying about them flying away (most of the time).
The first dragonfly I spotted that morning was this gorgeous red one – its color matched the stiff sunflower it was perched on!. Here is the typical ‘bejeweled dragonfly’ shot of that individual. It’s a nice square view of the insect, with the camera perpendicular to the wings to make sure everything is in focus. Very nice. (Ho hum)Since the dragonfly wasn’t going anywhere, I took the time to try some different angles. Here’s my favorite of those.Here is a meadowhawk that was perched about 10 yards away from the first dragonfly. This side view close-up is one of the most frequent compositions I use with dragonflies. It’s just fine, but I’ve done it SOOO many times before…Here is the same dragonfly from the front. I like this a little better because it’s a more personal shot. If it looks familiar, that be because it’s only slightly different in composition from an image of the same dragonfly I included in the ‘Dragonfly Game’ post earlier this week.For this photo, I swung around so the light from the rising sun was passing through the dragonfly’s wings. I don’t mind the glare spots in the background – I think it just adds interest to the image.I think this is my favorite dragonfly shot from the day. I took quite a few photos from this angle to make sure I got one I liked. I ended up with way too many that I liked, each with the sun in a very slightly different position. That made for a lot of difficult decisions about which to keep, but as of today, this is my favorite.
Just a little note from a very old lady in suburban California to tell you how much I enjoy these pictures of bugs and plants, creatures I’ve enjoyed all my life, but are sadly mostly missing from my bedraggled garden now. Thank you! Phyllis
On Fri, Nov 8, 2019 at 10:44 AM The Prairie Ecologist wrote:
> Chris Helzer posted: ” Back in September of this year, I had a magical > morning in the prairie across town, along Lincoln Creek. I posted some > photos from that morning in a post on September 20, but those represented > just a small fraction of that morning’s crop of images. Her” >
Your little note just made my day, Phyllis! Thank you very much for writing. I’m humbled that you’re following along out in California! Very best wishes to you – Chris.
The Prairie Ecologist 
Stunning!
Beautiful, as always!!
Just a little note from a very old lady in suburban California to tell you how much I enjoy these pictures of bugs and plants, creatures I’ve enjoyed all my life, but are sadly mostly missing from my bedraggled garden now. Thank you! Phyllis
On Fri, Nov 8, 2019 at 10:44 AM The Prairie Ecologist wrote:
> Chris Helzer posted: ” Back in September of this year, I had a magical > morning in the prairie across town, along Lincoln Creek. I posted some > photos from that morning in a post on September 20, but those represented > just a small fraction of that morning’s crop of images. Her” >
Your little note just made my day, Phyllis! Thank you very much for writing. I’m humbled that you’re following along out in California! Very best wishes to you – Chris.
Always amazing to be alert for the ‘unexpected’. You took advantage of this moment. Thanks for the reminder!!