Aside from dragonflies, one of the insects that I really want to take macro photos are butterflies. In a normal outdoors environment, I couldn't get pics of them cos they would fly away too quickly. I couldn't even get close to them lol. I have taken pics of skippy butterflies before (those that were really small) but those big colorful ones I haven't yet.
My recent trip to the butterfly dome gave me the opportunity to do so. And the best part is that they don't get scared easily since they're used to humans around them so I was able to take good photos of them.
Upon looking at closeups, I realized why some are afraid of butterflies. Like eew look at those really long straws in their mouths. 😂 Looks like a needle.
I can imagine that thing grabbing my head and sucking all the nutrients from me. Except they're actually beneficial for the environment haha.
Can you see those pollen from its mouth?
They are extremely pretty with the "black and white" colors. Almost like a drawing. The butterflies in this dome tho are mostly these.
They are trying to get in one flower at the same time. Geez, there's plenty of fish in the sea dude.
One of the "other-colored" butterflies that I saw lol. There's only like 3 of them there. :D
Their wings are damaged :/ They aren't gonna regrow, so sucks for them.
Time to sucky sucky.
I was able to get close to a "resting" butterfly. I just assume it was cos it wasn't moving and wasn't bothered of me getting that close. :p
Here's a cropped version of these just so you can see the details better. They're extremely "hairy" as you can see. XD
I wish I have seen more "variety" of colors. Maybe in other butterfly domes. :D
Those are beautiful :)
I suspect it's like getting close to any wild animal:
Know where and when to find them, get there before they do, and stay still.
Don't chase or move around if they seem to be elsewhere, wait. Let them come to you.
If possible, add some incentive to visit you instead of the resources elsewhere.
Take along something that you can do without moving even your hands. Maybe an audiobook and earphones? Otherwise you'll be very bored.
This post has been manually curated by the VYB curation project
Marco presents a world of color and surprise. I have never photographed them like this, because most of the time they land on my arms, shoulders, and legs when I just sit quietly watching the scenery while I'm gardening or hiking in the woods.
Damn nice haha. I’ve never experienced a butterfly landing on me I think. You must have felt like a Disney princess🤣
Great shots! I keep dreaming about going to butterfly world here to get some pictures.
This is your sign to go! I think they’re really chill and pretty, especially when you see there’s a lot of different colors :D
This are amazing piece, I have some myself not necessarily micro shots but they're good to go too.
Yeah they’re not needed to be macro, as long as you’re happy with the shots pretty much :D
Am really happy with them you can check me post to see the one I posted earlier today and also I need guidance in Photography and on hive maybe we can link up in discord or telegram
Hi there, I saw that you have a Fujifilm X T4 and are using the 80 mm 2.8 macro. Can I ask what other lenses you have? And how do you like them? I seem to remember that you really like the camera... of course, only after I purchased the X-T5 I remembered to ask you. Yes, I'm jumping board from DSLR to mirrorless!
p.s. these are awesome close-ups. Lucky you those butterflies didn't fly away 😀
Ohh nice you had the XT5!! I heard a lot of really good reviews about it. A lot of street photographers are saying “finally” cos seems it’s really perfect for photography with its convenience (autofocus, screen, etc) and I think it’s a bit smaller than the XT4. I have the 23mm f/2, 18-55mm f/2.8, and 50mm f/1. All of them have different performance when it comes to autofocus. For example the 50mm f/1 tends to be a bit slower and does “hunting” quite a bit so perfect for slow movements or portraits that don’t need speed.
The 18-55mm seems to be less sharp compared to the other lenses when it comes to quality. I think that’s already expected for a zoom lens but for a kit lens it’s actually still great. You won’t actually notice it unless you zoom the pic and compare the shots using the other lenses haha but I just don’t use it as much since I already have the 23mm. It’s quite heavy for travel too…
My most used lens is the 23mm f/2 since it’s the smallest of what I have which is perfect for travels haha. It’s not too wide and not too zoomed in. It tends to be less sharp kinda blurry on the edges of the focused subject if you use the f/2 but nothing too worrying or annoying. Its autofocus is fast! And with the XT5 it might perform better since XT5 has better autofocus :D It’s the cheapest lens I have but ironically the most used hahaha.
Congratulations on your first mirrorless! You’ll definitely enjoy it and especially Fuji! I guess the lenses you will choose depends on your purpose for it but personally I like the 23mm f/2 cos it’s so versatile and convenient to use and carry.
Thanks for your feedback!
I only got the camera a few days ago and it came with the kit lens 18-55 f/2.8-4 lens so I am testing it with this one. But I am such a bokeh-hunter that I feel I might invest in the 16-55 f/2.8 - I really like the ability to zoom a little to get the right frame in camera (without moving my lazy butt - LOL).
Didn't I read that you use your 'macro lens' for a lot of the shots? I really like macro (like your shots above) I just don't know if the 80 mm f/2.8 is worth it for my few shots, not sure.
So, most of your travel shots are done with the 23 mm? That's interesting. I didn't really consider having a (slight) wide-angle as my go-to lens, hmm... Now the 50 f/1 sounds really interesting as a portrait lens on an APS-C format.
Guess I need to think about it and test the XT5 with the kit lens in the meantime. My next travel is mid-June so I have a little time - hahaha.
What's the difference between the 18-55 vs 16-55? They have the same aperture and not much difference in the wide lens, or did you mean the 16-80mm? Yeah it's so annoying at times to not be able to zoom haha but you'll get used to it quick. Having a zoom lens is always a good choice for anything anyway.
Hmm, I use the macro mostly on macro shots like these but in "normal" shots not that much since I already have a 50mm and 80mm is also quite far haha. But you can definitely use it non-macro. I only have a really few shots non-macro.
The 50 f/1 is a great one for that really nice bokeh but do note that it's so heavy (almost 1 kilo!) but yeah overall I really love this lens cos it's also so sharp even at f/1. I think it really just depends on what shots you like. I like a kinda-wide lens but also something I could use for an impromptu travel portrait since the 23mm is f/2. Gives out a nice bokeh as well.
Yeah the kit lens is already good enough for travel. :D What color is your Fuji?
The 18-55 has a variable aperture f/2.8-4 while the 16-55 has f/2.8 at any focal length, which is nice but again, right now I'm not sure I really need it. Especially, if I end up getting a prime, either the 50 or the 80. I'm thinking that I won't be getting anything else before my trip in June.
I got the silver real retro-looking one 😍
Yeah it might be better to get a prime one, or if possible sell the 18-55 and replace it with the 16-55. But if cost is not a problem and you can get both then why not hahaha.
Nice choice!! Mine is silver too and it’s so pretty!!😍
That's exactly the plan. But I'm not going to rush it. After all, it is why I made the switch, to decrease my camera gear. And I still have to sell all my old stuff...
Gotta have some pretty shiny stuff!!
Even though they are very beautiful creatures, I still get scared of them...
I can admire them as long as they don't fly towards me.. I'd be running.. 🥹
I like the design on this one because it's black and white.. Like you said.. It's like a drawing ~.. It sure is 😌 and nice shots 😍 very beautiful and quality
Haha yeah sometimes they land on humans🤣 I thought they would do this at the dome too but surprisingly they didn’t.
Getting close to butterflies is always a problem. I never had much luck either. But you really nailed it this time! You got some amazing shots here :)
I guess they’re not that shy in butterfly domes cos they get used to the visitors? Lol. Thank you!! Nice to hear that, especially coming from you :D
Enjoyed all of the captures. You was happy to discover a chrysalis -- I never managed to find one. (tho I encounter empty ones from time to time). !PIZZA
$PIZZA slices delivered:
@qwerrie(1/5) tipped @hiddenblade
Wow, I'm really liking these macro shots. They look so detailed and good. I didn't know that butterfly wings are semi transparent. They actually look like stained glass paintings. It's so cool.
A zebra butterfly?😂😂
Zebrafly?
Probably, they would prefer children since there are the flowers of life. You can sleep peacefully. 😁
Great butterflies.
lovely captures of the butterflies