Comments on: Busy as

By: Paul A.

Paul A. — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:07:01 +0000

I’m using this as my desktop wallpaper right now>

By: Moody Moon | Bad Astronomy | Discover Magazine

Moody Moon | Bad Astronomy | Discover Magazine — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:01:10 +0000

[...] brother-in-law is a pretty good photographer (as you may remember). He just posted this lovely picture of the waxing gibbous Moon tucked in amongst the clouds at [...]

By: Charles J. Slavis, Jr.

Charles J. Slavis, Jr. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:40:54 +0000

I wanted to pollinate , but she thought I said polident and she pulled my teeth. She left me standing there, sort of a gummy bare.

By: Charles J. Slavis, Jr.

Charles J. Slavis, Jr. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:31:54 +0000

You just think I walk around in a fog……..It’s a bigamist.

By: Charles J. Slavis, Jr.

Charles J. Slavis, Jr. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:30:32 +0000

So many women ! So little time!

By: Charles J. Slavis, Jr.

Charles J. Slavis, Jr. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:29:10 +0000

I just don’t tell them about each other.

By: harpe éolienne

harpe éolienne — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:42:26 +0000

such a lovely photo! quite hard to get those cilia in clear focus like that.

By: MadScientist

MadScientist — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 09:49:18 +0000

Oh, Beehave BA! 2 people to take the shot? It sounds like your brother in law can use an annular flash as a christmas present. *hint,hint*

By: Mike Wagner

Mike Wagner — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:01:31 +0000

Ants! (let’s see if this image link works) These little guys were the size of the letter i in my default Firefox settings.

By: Mike Wagner

Mike Wagner — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:59:07 +0000

Even when you’re right at the nest bees will give you some warnings to go away first… they head-butt you. It’s a little disconcerting to have bees flying into you repeatedly, but if you don’t get the message they’re willing to take that next step

By: Jewel

Jewel — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:02:08 +0000

That’s a beautiful photo! I would love to do some macro photography. Good stuff!

By: Chris Setter

Chris Setter — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:45:18 +0000

We had a good time photographing these bees, the hard part was that they would not hold still for much more than a second so I was constantly moving the camera trying to get focused on one of these guys while Phil tried to place the flash where I was aiming. This picture was taken with a Nikon 105mm f2.8 Micro Lens, my favorite lens out of 6 that I own. As for creepy, I meant how close in the photo is was creepy, not the bee itself. Bees are incredibly beautiful. Although the spider is also beautiful, it is actually creepy looking.

No one was stung and no bees were harmed in the making of this picture. Unless they didn’t like the flash and then they may have been mostly annoyed at us.

Brother-in-Law

By: Plutonium being from Pluto

Plutonium being from Pluto — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:17:52 +0000

The BA :

the buzz of dozens of bees was quite loud and more than a little menacing.

Bring back any flashbacks from Futurama -the Sting?

Now that was a good SF cartooon & that ep one of their very best ever. Awesome surreal dream / musical sequence & Fry’s death was very moving. IMHON.

Okay, they were meant to be killer space *wasps* but since when do wasps – killer space wasps or otherwise – produce honey?

Good photo anyhow – hope you weren’t stung.

By: Petrolonfire

Petrolonfire — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:55:44 +0000

We were bent way over into the lavender

For one second there I thought you’d written “We were bent way over in the lavatory” & had a real WTF!!! moment!

@ 9 IVAN3MAN: Or a Muslim? I gather they’re allowed up to four wives. Actually quite a few cultures practice polygamy..

By: The Science Pundit

The Science Pundit — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:22:28 +0000

Back in the days of 35mm film (I haven’t done much photography in this digital age, but one of these days I’m going to get myself a nice camera and get back into it), my favorite lens was the Macro lens.

That bee picture is really nice.

By: TechyDad

TechyDad — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:54:01 +0000

Since I got into photography, I’ve photographed a lot of bees. I don’t have the equipment to get a shot that nice, but I’ve got some closeups. (Even got one once of two bees… um, being busy.) I used to be afraid of them, but since I’ve been taking photos of them I’ve learned that bees in general are quite gentle. So long as you don’t bother them too much, they’ll leave you alone. Even if you bother them too much, they’ll often just buzz by you a few times to warn you or will attempt to fly away. They only really sting if they think their life or their hive is in danger. (They don’t, however, like being disturbed while “being busy.” I moved a leaf to get a better shot and got quite the “BUZZ” response!)

Now wasps… They’re nasty insects!

By: Kevin

Kevin — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:44:42 +0000

That’s funny about lining up your meteorites. I’ve been thinking about doing the same thing for a few weeks, but haven’t got around to it.

By: Chris P

Chris P — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:18:43 +0000

Yes, please have him photograph your meteorite collection! Always love seeing new pieces.

By: IVAN3MAN

IVAN3MAN — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:10:13 +0000

Charles J. Slavis, Jr.:

Bees were competing with my wives humming bird feeders…

Are you a Mormon who practices plural marriage?

By: Greg

Greg — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:02:20 +0000

There’s just as much beauty, weirdness and awe from a close-up picture of an insect as there as from the glorious pictures of outer space. And even more impressive and powerful is knowing that these all came from the same, undirected, undesigned, most basic source of all – the universe itself.

By: Charles J. Slavis, Jr.

Charles J. Slavis, Jr. — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:54:43 +0000

Bees were competing with my wives humming bird feeders a couple of years ago so she started placing sugar water on a paper plate absorbed by paper towels to keep their wings from getting wet. They swarmed it when ever she brought it out. I was able to feed them wearing no shirt. They were not aggressive at all. If you accidentally pinch one under your arm you might get stung in self -defense but they are peaceful if not killer bees. My wife got stung once when a bee got trapped in her shirt sleeve. I felt it was safer to go topless.

By: Joseph Smidt

Joseph Smidt — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:50:08 +0000

That is a pretty picture! I’ve always wanted to be able to do good photography. I just hope digital cameras one day make up for by in-experience.

By: Brett from Canada

Brett from Canada — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:26:33 +0000

Nice! Shame it’s labeled “creepy”, though… Bees are wonderful insects (my favorite after spiders)! And certainly not dangerous unless you do something very silly. They’re also a) absolutely vital to modern agriculture and, I think, are taken for granted by most, and b) mysteriously vanishing thanks to colony collapse disorder (although, fortunately, it sounds like there’s been some progress in that area).

By: Annalee Flower Horne

Annalee Flower Horne — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:16:35 +0000

That’s a great picture!

And timely, with Hive Overmind Magazine running that article about bees.

Personally, I’m covetous of the honey they’re making. Lavender honey? I bet it tastes awesome.

(but then, I’ve yet to taste a honey I didn’t like–only ones that are a bit boring like orange blossom and clover. I bet lavender is unboring).

By: Michelle

Michelle — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:05:29 +0000

It’s absolutely gorgeous. That guy’s got lots of talent. The colors are perfectly balanced.

I’m keeping that for painting references…