Marbled White Butterflies

January 30, 2015 • 2 Comments

Marbled White Butterflies

I had previously photographed Marble White Butterflies at Barnack Hills & Holes, but only late in the season and in full sunlight. In fact they were some of the first shots I took with my Canon 100mm EX F2.8 lens (hand held). As they were taken in full sun the butterflies had their wings open as they flitted around thistles and knapweed. But I still wanted to get some more standard portrait (wings closed), perhaps on something slightly more attractive like an orchid. So I visited Barnack again, one evening late last June.

It wasn't long before I found a Marbled White. It sat very still and allowed a couple of very close images, again hand held using the 100mm macro.

I was pleased with these initial images but they still weren't quite what I was looking for, so I spent some time looking round the reserve. Then I chanced upon exactly what I was looking for - a single butterfly, sitting on a pyramidal orchid - and it was close to the ground, at the foot of a mound, so it was less likely to be blown around in what breeze there was.

It turned out to be a (nearly) perfect butterfly. It certainly behaved perfectly, sitting dead still as I lay on the floor photographing it from all angles. The only difference in the images below is my composition, which I changed by moving my position and the camera rather than anything else. All compositions are as taken, with no cropping in the computer. Changing position also gave me subtle changes in the background. On a couple of occasions the butterfly shifted position slightly as well, to give even more variety.

I cannot speak highly enough of the 100mm macro - being able to photograph this butterfly hand held allowed me to get into positions I would have struggled to get to using a tripod.

I photographed the butterfly from both sides - the first set of images were the easiest ones to take as I could lay facing up the slight slope - a lot more comfortable. It was only part way through the shoot that I realised it has a slight nick in its wing from this side (not quite perfect after all)!!