BEAUTY IN THE SHADE

I was out photographing bees and butterflies on the giant rosemary bush this morning. All summer long the sight of a single bee or butterfly was enough to send me scrambling for the camera. Now that almost every single blipper has uploaded a picture of a bee or a butterfly, our rosemary bush is suddenly covered by a cloud of many varieties of both.

A good friend was here, though, and I wanted to do a portrait of her but she said she was not photogenic, she was ugly, her hair was not done. I know this feeling very well so I continued with the insects. I looked up at one point and there she was in the darkness under the porch, looking the beautiful, serene person she is. Her head was lit by a single shaft of sun through a tiny skylight. Click. Just the one exposure.

I am not pleased with myself for using this stealth picture but the bees and butterflies look quite boring in comparison.