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Friday, July 10, 2009

Dragonflies!!

All dragonflies are not alike.

There are many, many kinds.

So, I set out to see if I could capture them on camera over the last few days.

I was not disappointed.

I have always loved dragonflies and watch them drift by as we fish or take a hike in the woods.

I have heard if one lands on you without you trying to catch them it is very, very good luck.

One book of "superstitions" says if you set out to catch one and catch it, you will be married within a year. (Any single women out there who try it, let me know if it works!)

Anyway, here is my collection of dragonfly pictures that I took over the last two days. Enjoy!!



There faces look like a fly's or an ant's face, don't you think?:

I have always loved these "neon" blue tiny ones, but they flit around a lot more than the larger dragonflies, therefore they are harder to photograph!:





I loved how this one's wings sparkled in the sunshine!:




They seem to like to perch on warm rocks or on the end of sticks in a pond:




Here is one sunbathing on a beautiful granite Michigan rock!:










I think this one fell asleep on the branch!:








This one was resting on the side of another beautiful rock outcropping!:








Look at the hair on this one's legs. I think she needs NAIR!:










Resting on the ever-so-popular branch! As soon as one left, another one would land on the same branch!:










This tiny blue one was asking me: "Are you done with all the photos yet? We should get paid for all this posing , you know!:









Perched for flight over the pond!:








Look at all the colors on this guy's eyes! I loved this one!:










Shimmering in the sun!:







This one's wing's looked like black lace!:






Yes, I believe it is mating season!!:

The least I could have done was given them privacy!
Hope you enjoyed looking at the different kinds and poses of one of my favorite insects: the good luck dragonfly!!
















32 comments:

SquirrelQueen said...

Great photos, dragonflies are so interesting up close. Those wings are just beautiful.

I just want to know the trick to get them to land for a few seconds. I have been trying for two weeks to get a good shot. They are all over my yard but rarely seem to land. Maybe it's because my cat like to chase them, oh well.

Judy

DJan said...

oohhh! Ooooo! Aaahhh! Wow! Magnificent! Bravo! Now can you please explain that mating photo? Who is doing what to whom?

Thank you thank you, so much for these pictures. We don't have dragonflies here, but if we did, I don't have to try to take pictures of them, because these are so incredible I wouldn't need to!

Namaste, DJan

grannyann said...

How interesting. I have never seen them so close up before. They don't have the prettiest faces but they have lovely wings and bodies.

Brian Miller said...

very cool! dragonflies are so interesting to watch! and colorful as well!

L. D. said...

You certainly have quite a variety of dragon flies. I use to do an art project with my students and we put Chinese decorations on their body shapes. I remember as a kid that we had some with curved tails. I like your photos, they as very good.

Wanda..... said...

Dragon flies are a favorite of mine too...although I don't have any where near that many different kind...just a few hang out in the tall grass in the field...

J.J. in L.A. said...

Great pics! But I have to admit that I prefer butterflies. lol!

rainfield61 said...

Oh!! You have fantastic shoots on drangonflies, and at least I can see one shows some serious action.

Tatyana@MySecretGarden said...

Great pictures!!! I can not believe that you have so many different types of them! They all are nice, but my favorite is that neon blue tiny one. I think it's because I used to watch them at the pond in the Russian countryside when I was little.
Let's trade: you send me your dragonflies, I send you my deers. Deal?!

Bernie said...

Oh I so loved these pictures of the lucky dragon fly. My grandmother who unlike me was never into jewelry use to wear a dragon fly brooch and your pictures brought back so many memories...thank you for that my friend.....:-) Hugs

Bornean Rose said...

Hello there...i think there are three photos of damselflies in your post. The blue with wings close together.

I love dragonflies and damselflies and you have a very beautiful photo collections here. Great posts.

--Rose
http://roseragai.blogspot.com

blushing rose said...

Beyond belief! You are fantastic, capturing the most intricate details. TTFN ~ Marydon

The Retired One said...

SquirrelQueen: The ones in my yard do that too...but we went by a pond in the middle of the woods and they would land a little longer on sticks and rocks, so I could take better shots there!

DJan: No dragonflies where you live? I love seeing them! yes, we really studied that mating picture too. I'd say they were 69-ing it. ha

Grannyann: Yes, their faces look like ants or a fly's face, but I do love their gossamer wings!

Brain: I know! When we go fishing, they always fly along with our boat!
I loved seeing the results of what they looked like up close and personal with my macro camera!

L.D.: Thanks so much for the nice compliment. I was so happy when I downloaded my camera's pictures and saw how clear the details of them showed up!

Wanda: yes, they tend to like to fly at the top of tall grass and hang on to the end, swaying in the breeze!

JJ: I love them both!

Rainfield: Serious action, indeed. I do my best to provide dragonfly porno. ha

Tatyana: We have a LOT of deer here too, but they don't come into our yard, even though we live on a big lake. I am glad about this because I don't want them eating my flower or vegetable gardens, either!!

Bernie: I have dragonfly earrings and a dragonfly sterling silver pin, too. I also have a Australian opal dragonfly pendant too. I think their shape is so whimsical!

Rose: I have not heard of damselflies, I will have to google them and find out more of them...we have always just called them all dragonflies...thanks for the tip!
I hope you added on as a Follower, I would love that.

Joanna Jenkins said...

Awesome!!!! I've never seen a blue dragonfly before. who knew!?!?!?!

All your photos are beautiful. Thanks for taking the time to share with us.

Have a great weekend!

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

Great pictures! I've only seen a few dragonflies in our yard and they're too busy catching bugs to pose for a picture. I think the blue one is a damselfly, something I just learned recently.

Ana-Maria said...

Pretty photography.

Far Side of Fifty said...

Wonderful Dragonflies and the Damselflies are such a beautiful blue color! You pictures are marvelous, I love their wings sparkling in the sunshine. I also went back and looked at your Eagle Photos, they are awesome! I am a bit behind on my blog reading..summer is such a busy time! :)

Roshni said...

WoW!!! I can't believe how beautiful they look!! Thanks to you, I saw their beauty magnified! Just love the golden one!! And how amazing that you got a mating photo!! You are so patient!!

Rick (Ratty) said...

I had much more success with dragonflies last year. I just got a few not so close shots of two little blue ones today. I love dragonflies too, but after what you said, I won't be trying to catch any dragonflies anytime soon. :D

Ramakrishnan said...

Hi
Greetings from Coimbatore,India.I just happened to drop by and took the liberty of viewing your post on Dragoflies.The pictures are amazing - so crystal clear & colorful. A real treat for the eyes. You are a fantastic photographer!
Have a great day.
Ram

The Retired One said...

Joanna: Thanks! I learned from my readers that the blue one is a damselfly. I will be Googling that and learning more myself!

Gardener: Thanks, another reader told me also that the blue one was a damselfly. I will look that up and learn more about them!

Ana: Thanks! I was so excited to see the results of the close ups. They are amazing creatures, aren't they?

FarSide: Thanks so much! I get so excited to see animals, birds and now the dragonfly pictures when they turn out well...I am glad others are liking them too.

Roshni: Just lucky, more than patient. ha I loved how they looked in macro too.

Ratty: You chicken, you! Go ahead and catch a dragonfly....and test the theory. ha

Ram: You are new!!! I hope you join on as a Follower and stop by my blog frequently, that would be wonderful!! thanks for your nice comments on my photos.

Lynn Kellan said...

Dang, Joan, my kid has to catch a dragonfly for a school project. We definitely have to hang out in your neck of the woods...love the blue dragonfly!

The Retired One said...

Lynn: Too bad I couldn't have mailed you one of these! ha
The blue one is a damselfly, I have just learned from my readers!

pehpot said...

You really have a hand on photography. all shots are great and very nice.. you can make a good photo book of all your shots :)

Make or Break

The Retired One said...

Pehpot: Look at your cute face in your picture! So nice!
Thanks for the lovely compliment on my photos. Haven't heard from you lately...is everything okay?

Kimberly said...

Finally started to follow my own Mom's blog! Love the pictures...You know how I feel about those dragonflies!

The Retired One said...

Kim: Yeah! I am glad you listed on as a Follower. Now I think you get notified whenever I post a new post. You may have to go on Blogspot to a list, I am not sure if you get an email to notify you.
Glad you liked the pictures!

Bhushavali said...

Wow... Excellent shots... Amazing.... Really... :)

The Retired One said...

Mitr: Thanks so much. I really enjoyed taking them.

Anjanette Young said...

I LOVE dragonflys...and turtles.

Thanks so much for sharing... Those are beautiful images... I need a camera like yours...

Kearsie said...

I played chicken this morning with a huge dragonfly.

I won, because I think it saw its impeding doom aka my big fat windshield.

P.S. Sorry I've been a bad blog friend. I feel like all I ever comment is "Joan! Great pics! Ooh, great pics! Love your pics!"

I'm bored with my own comments. Surely you are too.

The Retired One said...

MommaYoung: Yes, I love my camera...
and dragonflies. You will be happy to know that on the same trip where I got these dragonfly shots...we saw a log with NINE turtles on it too...so stay tuned....I will be showing those shots soon on the blog!

Kearsie: You have NOT been a bad blog friend. I am always glad to see you are reading the blog and leaving any comments...you can tell me you like my photos every day...I love it.! ha So glad you are still following after all these months...I love your blog too.

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REMINDER: All photographs on this blog are COPYRIGHTED.
Please do not copy any of my photographs (or narratives) without my permission! All pictures will be tracked for copyright violations.

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I retired in June 2008 and started my blog in November 2008. I worked at several jobs as a Registered Nurse prior to retirement. I LOVE being retired! Blogging has offered me a whole new venue to start writing again and to share new hobbies such as gardening, birdwatching and sharing my nature photography. If you like my blog, PLEASE click on "follow this blog". Having a lot of followers reading my blog gives me incentive to continue to do photography and to continue to write. I also LOVE comments, so I encourage you to leave me a comment after you read my posts. Thanks everyone, for taking the time to read me!!

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