Robber fly

A year ago today I posted a cockroach blip. Quite a lot of effort went into the blip, a lot of balancing on wobbly stools, switching lights on and off with my big toe and a lot of waiting around for the roaches to show. What I was not expecting was a big response from the blip community. I followed this up with a few more insect blips from around the house, again good responses. But the big thing was that a lifelong interest in bugs was rejuvenated and it fitted in perfectly with my rejuvenated passion for photography.

I mentioned in one of my comments yesterday, that I am more of a performer than a journalist, in that I respond to feedback and nothing generates feedback than an action packed insect blip, as long as it is not too gory of course. I know a few of you want to see more of the people shots and I do throw in the occasional humanoid blip, but judging from the feedback, they are just not that popular. Even the little boy fishing scored badly until it hit staff picks and even then it didn't make my top ten. So, a year on, by popular feedback demand, I am sticking with what people want to see and what I actually enjoy photographing.

The difficult part of blipping insects daily, is keeping it interesting. My regular viewers are becoming an increasingly difficult audience to please. Unless the insect is spectacular in its own right, a static image of a pretty butterfly, no matter how sharp, just doesn't cut the mustard like it used to. Please don't get me wrong, because it doesn't do it for me either. I still do collect documentary shots for my own collection, but I am always looking for something extra for blip and for future competitions.

There has to be something extra in the image, a flower, another insect, unusual angle, interesting lighting or action. The problem is that insects don't really do much apart from the three F's, Fly, Feed and Finding that bit of action for the blip is what generally makes the difference. Everyday I can be found creeping around the bushes, trees and rice paddies, searching for something different. Sometimes when I am staring for a long time, the farmer will come up and ask what I am looking at and I will show him a mantis or even an ant. They all think I am crazy but when I show them the blown up preview of an ants head, they do start to get it, issuing forth ooh's and ahh's.

Quite a good safari today, a pair of fornicating bugs, a spider chowing on a dragon, a giant golden orb weaver spider doing house repairs, a camouflaged flower mantis, a pretty damsel shot and this aggressive robber fly, chowing on a decent sized hoverfly. I have seen robber flies in the UK but this thing was huge, at first sight I thought it was a small dragonfly.

Sorry about the monologue, too much time for thinking I recon.

Dave