Pre-Flight Maintenance

This solitary bee is trying to clean the pollen off of its antenna before moving on to the next flower, and it's common behavior among flying insects.

Tech Specs: Canon 70D (F16, 1/250, ISO 100) + a Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens (2x) + a diffused MT-24EX. This is a single, uncropped, frame taken hand held.

Technique: I'm holding on to the flower with my left index finger and thumb, and resting the lens on that same hand to keep the scene steady. As the bee moves around the flower I rotate the stem to keep it looking at the camera (helps the viewer to connect with the subject and to maximize my chances of getting a usable image). I pay attention to the area that I want to be in focus, and use my peripheral vision to compose the frame. I'm also twisting the camera in my hand, and the flower's stem, so that I can lay the flat area of acceptable focus over as much of the curves in the scene (the bee's head and the flower).