Although photographed over a month ago, I have only just got round to processing these and thought that it would make a relatively interesting post to show them as a set as opposed to, more often than not, singling out a stand-out image.
My objective that morning was to find and photograph a dew laden dragonfly. Suitable conditions for these kind of images in the form of breathless, wet mornings don't occur too often, here, on the North Kent marshes where the, seemingly, ever-present breeze has so often put pay to many a potential morning.
Having located a good specimin and set up my tripod, my eye was caught by a scene that was looking better and better as the sun rose. I was reluctant to move my tripod which was not only in position for photographing the dragonfly when the light picked up a little but was, also, in very deep mud! I picked up my camera and composed the image and since I was shooting into the light, I was confident I would have a sufficient shutter speed, aperture combination, enabling me to hand-hold the camera while at the same time provide adequate depth of field. While shooting, I was keeping a close-eye on the dragonfly, waiting for the light, having learnt over the years never to do so much that you take your eye off the ball, or dragonfly in this case!
I couldn't decide which of the 3 I preferred most. Each having it's own mood. Which is yours?
The sun, eventually, became too bright to continue and, anyway, it was now perfect for the dragonfly.
I was determined to photograph the dragonfly in such a way that it gave the viewer the feeling of being there, thereby resisting shooting portraits which do little to stir the soul or give any clues as to the habitat in which it was photographed. Here I was, on the marshes, the ground and surrounding spider's webs, soaked with dew with the jewel like wings of the dragonfly sparkling in the morning sun. This is what I wanted to convey.
