Tiger Swallowtail
Just capturing some flittering butterflies.
Just capturing some flittering butterflies.
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Canon PowerShot S2 IS
Aperture 40/10 Shutter 1/320 Focal Length 72000/1000 
Watsontown, Pennsylvania, US
May, 2016Views
328
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo in my garden.Time
It was mid-afternoon and I decided to take a walk around my gardens.Lighting
I wanted to get the light behind my back, while shining on the subject.Equipment
At the time I only had a Canon PowerShot S2 IS. I didn't have any additional lenses on the camera. I set the shot manually. I prefer to handle the settings and not rely on the camera. I took several shots with varying apertures and shutter speeds. I also shot free hand, because my subject would move around the flowers and I needed to adjust my angle quickly to get a shot.Inspiration
I love taking photos of nature, especially birds and butterflies. Whenever I have the opportunity I go to some of my favorite spots around my community, and of course, in my back yard and look for subjects that I can photograph. On this day, this Tiger Swallowtail seemed very content to just hang around my cone flowers and butterfly weed. The flowers must have held some special attraction to the butterfly on this day. Many times they will stay for only a fleeting moment and then move on.Editing
My only post-processing tool was Photoshop at the time. The original photo was pretty good out of camera, but I adjusted the colors a little to brighten the photo.In my camera bag
I used my PowerShot until it broke. Now, I have a Canon 80D, with a Tamron 18-400mm lens; and UV, Polaroid and ND 8 filters. I also have Canon EFS 55-250 IS STM and Canon 18-55 IS STM lenses. I mostly use the Tamron, because I photograph nature and you never know how close a subject might come and I can quickly change the lens to the proper distance. I also have a good tripod, although I shoot a lot of photos free hand (sometimes using trees or still objects to steady my shot). If you have more time with your subject, it is good to get some shots with a tripod, and to avoid camera shake set the drive to 2 seconds (so the shot is delayed 2 seconds before the shutter releases).Feedback
Don't worry about what equipment you have. Patience is your best friend when photographing nature. Take many shots and alter your settings, so when you go home and look at the photos you have lots to choose from. I use burst mode to get just the right shot, especially when the subject is flying. I have also learned to shoot at 1/500 or more when photographing subjects that move quickly. Then, adjust your depth of field, and last your ISO to get your shot. Don't worry about high ISO's if you have a relatively new camera. You can adjust the grain in post-processing.
