Tagged: wings

 

 

You know that feeling after your dad bought a Ford Taurus growing up, and then it seemed like you saw Ford Tauruses everywhere?  That’s how I feel about this orange speckled insect!  Back in 2010, I took a photo of one with my iPhone, and I love the photo.  Then last year, I found another one at a local butterfly garden.  This year I’ve seen them in my yard, on a client’s landscaping, and at the same butterfly garden; maybe they’re not as rare as I thought!

I find the tiny details fascinating; the bristling hairs, the delicate arms and toes, the color coordinating eyes, and even the mouth parts.  I suppose it will never stop amazing my that so many tiny things – insects & plants – have even tinier bristles, hairs, or peach fuzz.  Details so small that we could never see them, but so important to their existence, their safety, or even hunting.

 

Nearly every year, I take at least one trip down to Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum to photograph the butterflies. The Nature Museum has a wonderful year-round habitat for the butterflies, and in the middle of winter with all of the dull colors of nature, it’s relaxing to photograph something with rich colors.

But a friend challenged me to photograph something unusual in black & white; so I chose the butterflies in my second trip to Peggy Notebaert. Can I create interesting images without depending on the vibrant colors of the plants and insects? I am very pleased with the results of my experiment.

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This was the busiest of the busy busy bees. This little worker buzzed all over gathering pollen and in the meantime, got themselves absolutely covered in pollen. Just take a look at this zoomed in version of the same photo!

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When you’re growing up, you learn “facts” that stick with you and you later learn are more “general rules”. Two that come to mind are “humans have five senses” and “moths have antenna that are fuzzy or comb-like”. Well, this is a Ailanthus Webworm Moth, and not only does it not have fuzzy antenna, but Wikipedia says that until it’s in flight, it resembles a beetle. Second grade science class was just full of lies!
(The senses of motion and balance are great examples of “other” senses.)

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Back in 2010, I photographed this type of insect with my iPhone. We were on a trip to see a friend on the south side of Chicago, and I remember the photograph because it was one of the first “good enough quality” photos with an iPhone that I’d taken.

Two weeks ago, when I took the above photograph of the same type of insect, I thought to myself “that’s odd that I haven’t see an insect like that in a very long time.” I photograph insects every year, and I wondered why I hadn’t seen such a unique insect in over ten years. According to Wikipedia, they only travel this far north some summers and are more of a southern insect.

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The NENA Butterfly Garden doesn’t just have butterflies, but like the variety of plants and flowers, there is a variety of insects as well. I always love finding these damsel flies and watching their movements.

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I’m certain that the goddess is holding something from greek or roman legend, but to me it looks like a discus or a small tire and made me chuckle.

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The shadows from the melting ice or snow rolling down the glass were the perfect addition to all of the angles in this photo.

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Santiago Calatrava’s buildings never fail to impress. They’re almost always futuristic, but often can be mistaken for an animal in some kind of animated reality. Even his art installation in Chicago has a fluid and natural motion to it.

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If you crane your neck and look UP under Calatrava’s wonderful design, the view is magnificent!

 

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Perhaps someday I will grow tired of capturing the Quadracci Pavilion at the Milwaukee Art Museum, but for now, I love visiting that building. The whites and blues and sunlight are the perfect painters of abstract patterns; I can’t wait to go back!

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Some of my favorite images over the years have been my more abstract images and the images with a strong use of negative space. The “bird’s wings” floating in the void of the blue sky was absolutely beautiful on the day of our visit, and I also enjoy the simplicity of the monochrome image.

 

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Anytime that I visit a location for a second or third time, I want to take photos that are unique to each visit. Which means that with each visit the photos get more challenging but the images get more inventive. The intersection of lines in the pavilion is full of unique images and surprises.

 

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There are always new views and angles at the Milwaukee Art Museum. The spire that supports the suspension bridge is such an understated portion of this entire building. The simplicity of those understated lines leads to the entire building’s exceptional beauty.

 

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“Red Head”

June 13th, 2023

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“To the Left”

January 30th, 2023

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“Fly By”

January 13th, 2023

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