The Beeline

Beeline (noun) 1. direct, straight course.  2. To move swiftly in a direct, straight course.

One of my “quests” this summer was to capture a bee in flight.  They’re small, quick and errattic.  Hard to catch in focus. So far, none of my efforts have come close to what I would deem, “successful.”

The image above is the best I’ve managed…so far…and it was by accident. (That  happens more than I might like to admit.)

I was taking photos around a flower bed beside our house.  While I was changing camera settings, I accidentally pressed the shutter button.  A that exact moment, a bee happened to be zipping into the frame…and voilá.

If I were trying for it, I wouldn’t try in black and white, but looking at this, I really like the intensity it creates.  The bee – with his straight antennae, trailing legs and blurred wings – looks like he is on a do-or-die mission and will not be denied.

To see a larger version of this image, just click on it.

To see more bee photos, check out the Bugs & Spiders gallery.