Photo wow day!

I'm not even done editing the photos from this morning yet, and I've seen 2 that would be strong image of the month contenders, even with that red sunset and powerboat shot in the mix, or any of the other dozen or so, like the second red begonia, a back lit dahlia, and a dragonfly are all bubbling to the top of the competition.

Except I think I got image of the year this morning. I'm giving that one time to settle in on me, doing some subtle tweaks to make it the best it can bee. (hint hint)

Here's the other two, for your pleasure, plus a bonus. Keep in mind there are still a bunch of other sunflower macro shots to edit, including a sequence where I want to try focus stacking. And a lily protuberance. And some other etherial lily shots. And some gladiolus that look pretty spiffy in the morning sun after being watered.

All in all, it was an excellent morning for photography.

What's so special about this one, you ask? It's certainly not a macro shot; I was kneeling about 15 feet away. Look closer. Look between the sunflowers. Now embiggen it. This is something I didn't think was going to be possible, getting a bee's wings in focus. That is a genuine holy doodle moment.

This is a shot at about 2x, using all the extension tubes (68 mm total) on the 100 mm macro lens.

This was shot at the same time as the one above, and might even be the same bee. I hadn't noticed the ant when I took the shot. I wonder if they're aware of each other?

Can't wait to get at the other photos, but my social life is calling.