Eastern Carpenter Bee Landing On Thin-Leaved Sunflower

photograph of an Eastern Carpenter Bee landing on a Thin-Leaved Sunflower

During a photo outing to shoot wildflowers I decided to take a few backlit shots.  In the process I began tracking a few Eastern Carpenter Bees as they passed by.  I was lucky enough to capture this one as it prepared to land on a thin-leaved sunflower.

I like the way backlit flowers almost glow but that’s pretty easy to predict, setup and shoot.  After all, except for the wind, the flowers aren’t really moving.  I was really pleased with the lighting of the bee in this photo.

Like most of the photos on my blog, you can click the image to open a larger version of the photo.  Check out all the pollen covering this bee.  This clearly wasn’t its first flower of the day.

Cyclist on Riverside Drive

photograph of an individual cyclist on Riverside DriveI photographed this cyclist on Riverside Drive during the Tour de Richmond in October.  Positioned across the road with a view of the river, I panned the camera with the passing cyclist to capture this image.

Cycling Along the River

photograph of cyclists riding near the James RiverRiverside Drive, in Richmond, Virginia, is one of the most scenic spots I know of for cycling.  On any given Saturday or Sunday in the summer there are far more cyclists and runners on this road than cars.  Although this stretch is flat and runs right along the James River, the road also offers several steep climbs and descents.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Happy

Photograph of a smiling woman cyclingCycling and photography are two of my favorite activities.  Both activities make me feel happy and alive.

On October 6 I visited one of the more scenic spots along the Tour de Richmond cycling route to try my hand at photographing cyclists in motion.  This photo really captures the speed and motion of cycling as I wanted to portray it.  I thought it fit in well with this week’s photo challenge because the cyclist looks really happy too!  Click on the photo to see a larger image.