My cat

We all … shhhhhh… got a favorite… Feather is in my lap as I type… She chose me, long ago, and I remain hers! No one argues. There’s no jealousy. It’s a fact. I guess. Colleen giggles all the time about it. Before we met, I had never “had” a cat. …Kids grow up, they move away… A faithful cat is so “calming” in your lap in the early morning hours as I await my darling wife to awake to greet the new day. A hug from Feather is perfect until then.

Focus, composition, timing, lessons? Really? Either you get a shot, or not. When you do… so, to focus, get the eyes. After that, all follows. Ha ha, Feather? I recognize her by the white fur on her paw(s). Otherwise she is identical to Spice. But, I “belong” to Feather.

Today

I cruise my garden about once a day. Today a butterfly flew into my view as I was about to focus. Okay! Nice shot. Purely fortuitous timing. Really!

And a caterpillar! With a matching red flower. Come to think of it, I do not think I have seen a red caterpillar. Talk about shoes to match the bag…. Hey! It was a lucky day!

Technical? Well, focus is the key to all. The details of the caterpillar hair ensures your image is sharp. I try to focus on the eye of the butterfly. It’s nice if the antennae are sharp.

Caterpillars move slow. A butterfly paused on a flower is also in one spot. The butterfly did not stay long. The caterpillar burrowed under a petal. Photo op done.

It flew

…into my picture. I was on my morning cruise of the flower garden…. The butterfly flew in and then away. I got a few shots. Lucky. The butterflies are not too prone to posing for me. Thank you. it was a gift I appreciated.

Not much to say. Focus, zoom, compose a shot. There is not much time or opportunity to set anything up. You are either ready or not. Focus is the key. I try to get the head in focus. If the antenna are sharply focused the shot will succeed.

Gruesome

Spice, my cat, eats bugs. The other of my cats catch them but do not kill them. After Nutley and Tillie played, Spice took the butterfly and I never saw it again. Maybe? I have seen Spice consume more than one bug. I suppose it is instinctive behavior. Nonetheless, I prefer my cat less gruesome.

So, I photographed the saga with Nutley catching the bufferfly, Tillie playing with it, and finally Spice eating it. How do you illustrate this in one image? Last image? Well, last stage, I suppose you can’t show the bug getting swallowed. Clearly, the idea of eating bugs… but we eat cow.