Macro Monday

Not much to share today since I haven't been out shooting, but here are a few odds and ends for Macro Monday.

Evolution of a Black Swallowtail Butterfly

Our neighbor and resident native plant/butterfly expert Betty Hall sent a new caterpillar down for our family to enjoy. After feeding on parsley for a few days, we noticed he was wandering off the plant. We knew from watching the monarchs that the time for him to find a sturdy place to attach the silk button was near. He finally settled on a sturdy parsley stalk and attached himself with two small threads. We kept close watch last evening, but he was resting and didn't move at all. This morning he began wiggling shortly after the kids left for school. One of my sons called and said I needed to pick him back up because he was ill, but there was no way I was leaving the caterpillar at this point. Fearing a visit by Child Protective Services if I didn't pick up my ailing child, I eventually gave in and gathered the little ones and my things to leave. In my haste, I left my keys inside the house and locked the door. We had to break in the basement to retrieve my keys, but guess what? I took one last peek at the caterpillar and noticed a small green crack down his back. He was forming his chrysalis! I guess this is one time I was glad to get locked out of the house. My son was eventually picked up and I got some great pictures in the end.

To Be Continued in about 9 days!

Macro Monday

I took a little birthday time-out to stop in at the Arboretum. It was very crowded due to the beautiful fall-like weather. I managed to find a few monarchs, some busy bees and even a Tawny Emporer. Not the best shot of him, but I love the patterns on his wings.

My Girls at Waveland

Some snapshots of two of my girls hanging out at Waveland State Historic Site.

Lexington Legends Ace-Ross Seaton

Click on the collage to see a larger version.

Happy Birthday & Legends Sunsets

John Paul celebrated his 6th birthday at Applebee's Park on Legends Superheroes Night. I am convinced that Applebee's Park is one of the best places to see sunsets in Lexington. We seem to get lucky and have the most amazing sunsets every time we go. Next time I'm hiking out to the bleachers to get a better view.

Hillbilly Bridge Turtles

Hey mom, guess what we found down at Hillbilly Bridge?

Pauly, Susie and friends Colton and Cayden






















Turtles!! What should we do with them?

How about a turtle race? OK-so that doesn't work so well with turtles.

I know. We'll make a turtle fighting ring! Hmmm..that doesn't work either. Not even Michael Vick can get these things to fight. ;)

Maybe we'll just let Mom take more pictures of them instead. =)

Lake Cumberland Residents

We met all kinds of local "residents" on our visit to Lake Cumberland, from dragonflies to turtles to roosters and even a fainting goat. Here is a large swallowtail butterfly I finally tracked down. It was the biggest butterfly I have ever seen. It had to be at least 4 inches and maybe even 5. It looked more like a giant moth at that size! The second shot is of the two turtles the kids found down at their homemade "Hillbilly Bridge."

ETA: Turns out the name of this butterfly is the Giant Swallowtail and I could definitely see why!

Back By Popular Demand-More Bubble Landscapes =)

The bubbles were very popular yesterday so I thought I would post a few more. Thank you for all of your nice comments over at 2Peas, flickr and elsewhere.

My inspiration came from my talented neighbor Betty Hall and her beautiful soap bubble images. I can't wait to see what happens when the Peas give this a try!

For the non-Peas, here is the original Macro Monday thread with some tips for shooting the bubble landscapes:

2Peas Macro Monday

Macro Monday-Bubble Landscapes

We go to the lake every year and I usually include a photo in my thank you note to the home owners who are kind enough to let us use their house. This year I decided to try something a little different when we found some bubbles on clearance. The first one is a reflection of the lake house in a bubble in the back yard. I especially like the last one because you can see my daughter in the reflection. If you try this use the stacking bubbles, not regular ones because they won't pop when they touch the grass. We bought our bubbles on clearance for 50 cents at Kroger.

Harvest Moon

I was too lazy to go inside to get the tripod, so these are hand held with my 50-200mm lens and a high ISO. The moon was the most gorgeous red/orange color on Wednesday. I hope to get out and shoot it tonight. It was beautiful last night, too.

You can see a hint of Jupiter down and to the left of the moon.

Macro Monday

I stopped out at Waveland State Historic Site this weekend. Unfortunately it looks like the economy has taken a toll on the upkeep. I don't remember the cemetery looking so beat up when I visited in the past. Several tombstones were broken and the headstones by the garden looked barely readable. It is a shame to lose the stories those headstones tell. I took photos of the remaining headstones, but it made me sad that they aren't being preserved and are falling to ruin. I did manage to find a few butterflies to chase after. Here is one of them.

This guy hung out on my front porch all evening and was still there in the morning. I saw another one at Waveland. Apparently this is a tiger bee fly. I love how the top almost looks like a little chipmunk face. ;)

A little summer color

Ugh. Too dark on flickr and too light on here. What is going on tonight? Oh well, here are a few from this week anyway.

"When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it's your world for the moment.

I want to give that world to someone else.
Most people in the city rush around so,
they have no time to look at a flower.
I want them to see it whether they want to or not."
- Georgia O'Keefe