Purple emperor

Early start again today, for several reasons: there is a particular ant shot that I want but the big ants were not out today. Early morning light is great for dragon shots, if you can get the dew droplets to sparkle behind. Also, I want a dewed up damsel for the set. Dewed butterflies and moths are possible, but extremely difficult to find, I know where the dragons and damsels sleep, but have not found the butterfly night shelter yet.

Having identified the purple emperor butterfly, it has become my mission to photograph a male and capture the illusive purple wing tip coloration. It is very dependant on the angle of the light and difficult to catch. It doesn't help that this butterfly is very shy and not easy to approach.

This particular little gem would not settle with me around, but it seemed to want this area and fluttered around endlessly, so I cranked up the ISO and had a go at in flight shots, just to pass the time. I didn't think I had anything, but on this one image I caught him right on the edge of the frame. A bit of cropping and it turned into a very nice blip, showing the dazzle on the wings. A stunning creature.

Another month has come to an end. The blip monster delivered some spectacular shots with the otter, yellow carpenter bee, jeweled red dragon, flower mantis, dragons mating in flight, dragon egg laying, the potter wasp and of course the snakes. So a strong month for me and dare I hope for a stronger September! I wish you all a strong Month to come.

Dave