Saturday 16 July 2016

Dewy Demoiselles

During the past week I have been spending time of an evening photographing Barn Owls and whilst doing this, I have noticed a good number of Banded Demoiselle along the stream which seem quite loyal to a few small clumps of reed. With the added bonus of parking next to the stream as well so no walking involved, I thought I would have an early morning session where I was hoping to get a few dewy shots of the Demoiselles, should I be able to find them. I watched the Demoiselles during the last few evenings going to roost in the reeds and felt quite confident that I would be able to find some. Normally, this species is ultra aware and often hard to approach so I hoped with an early start, that I would be able to get a few photos. After preparing the car Friday night, I was up early at 4am this morning and a few minutes later, I pulled up at the site. A quick walk to the water through the long grass provided soaking wellies which was good and I could see the reeds glistening with dew which raised hopes that I would be able to attempt a few dewy shots. I started to part the reeds and scan around, getting soaked hands in the process and after a few minutes of searching, I could see a Banded Demoiselle at rest. Because I was at an angle of 45 degrees on the bank of the stream, this was not a place that I could take photos so I carefully removed the reed and placed it in a clamp which I had already prepared nearby. I then set up the camera on the tripod and set about taking a number of photos of this stunning dragonfly. Because there was not much light early on, I used manaul mode, ISO 400, speed set to 250, f8-f13 and in camera flash. As the light got better and the sun broke through, I was able to work between manual and AV mode. I spent a good hour or so taking a number of photos from different angles trying to capture the detail of the Demoiselle and the glistening dew on it.


Banded Demoiselle (male)

I tried to take a few shots looking into the sun to give a silhouette appearance but they didn't quite work out but this may give me the excuse to make another visit and learn from my mistakes made this time. I was glad I had made the early start for it soon warmed up enough for them to become quite active, dry up and start to fly in the stream. With a few shots taken, I moved on to Marshside where from 9.30am, I spent an hour looking in the dykes near Little Grays Farm where I found 7 teneral Willow Emerald Damselfly and 2 exuviae of this species too. I suspect in the next few weeks that there numbers will build up nicely and I will hopefully monitor their numbers here. I took a few photos which I will save for a post in the next few days. All in all, a very well spent morning with the camera and some nice studying and photographic opportunities were had.



Banded Demoiselle (male)

12 comments:

  1. Oh well, fantastic shooting Marc, I love each one.

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    1. Many thanks Bob. Starting to feel a bit sleepy now!

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  2. Nice work Marc,
    Well worth getting up early for. I see the abdomen is curved in these images, is that due to them being cold ???

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    1. Thanks Warren. There is alot of movement on the abdomen. It was moving it around in some peculiar ways.

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  3. A fascinating set, Marc, with some wonderfully artistic results!

    Your superb early morning images have started me re-programming my body clock to cope with early starts. I actually did one on Thursday to try and photograph emerging Hornet Moths - the didn't emerge! I'm not put off, however!

    Keep up the good work - - - Richard

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    1. Thanks Richard. On a lot of occasions, it does not work out for some reason but with careful planning and that bit of luck, you never know what can be achieved. One thing for certain, you gotta get out there to do it!

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  4. Superb Marc. I particularly like the final image. Like Warren, I noticed that they all had curved abdomens which I have not seen on them before.

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    1. Many thanks Bob. A challenge I think I will be re-visiting.

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  5. Five masterpieces,these are my favourite Damoiselle,and you've captured these superbly.
    John.

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    1. Many thanks John. I love being out early and with challenges like this, its all worthwhile.

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  6. Beautiful beyond words ...

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