All apologies to those of you in northern Europe and the States who are currently frozen over -it's 19C and sunny here in Naples, Italy (at least for a few more days).
Shooting the bee in the first two shots was like photographing a pet: I was holding onto the flower he was feeding on and he'd climb onto my hand to get to the next one. At one point I carried him from one bunch of flowers to the next
Tech specs: Canon 40D (F13, 1/250, ISO 100) + a Canon MPE-65mm macro lens (@2x to 3x) + a diffused MT-24EX macro twin flash (-2/3 FEC).
Nice few shots John. The only bees I'm seeing at the moment are at sunset as they look for their favourite roost? Might get around to posting something soon.
I like the composition of the first frame, I just don't like the way the light came out -probably could have done a better job in post.
I like the last frame best cause the critter seems to have some "attitude". Also it was the most difficult to take -although that sort of thing doesn't really matter since difficulty, like technique, doesn't really show in the final image (it's the final image, and not the way that it was shot, that counts). That species of Miner Bee likes to go "nose down" into those flowers and feed on pollen and nectar. I simply grab onto the flower with my left hand, rest the lens on that same hand to keep it steady, pre-focus on the area around the top edge of the flower, and wait for the critter to come out. The tricky part is composing and focusing the shot in the second or so that the bee pauses at the top of the flower.
Kidding--a little. Wonderful shots that make me want to give Mother Nature a KITA and say hurry up! 