How the heck do you...

[JodyGall]

...take pictures of butterflies!? LOL! I'm visiting my parents in FL right now and my mother is a plant enthusiast. Well, she has TONS of flowers and therefore, TONS of butterflies. There are all these beautiful monarchs, zebra longwings, and gulf flitillaries EVERYWHERE! But man, they are FAST! I went out there earlier to try and take some pictures and they just don't stay landed long enough to even remotely get close or take a picture. Is there a certain time of the day they slow down? LOL! Or what am I missing here on getting those good closeups on these beautiful things? Maybe I would have a better chance with the 70-300mm and sit back and zoom in quickly when they land? Please share your secrets!!

[private]

Look for them when its cold - hard in FL, but earlier the better. If you use the 70-300 you'll prob need a tripod.

[JodyGall]

ah ha! I knew it had to be something like that. The colder weather slows them down? Ok, I'll try again tomorrow morning and see what I can come up with. I did get a picture of one (I haven't downloaded them yet though), but I think he was injured. LOL! Cause he was on the ground and my sister actually got him on her finger so I got a REALLY good closeup of him! But he just kinda fluttered away drunkedly and was gone after that.

[Naois]

I think if you put a sugar / water mixture on your finger, they will come to you. I was at a butterfly farm this summer and the keeper there said to come back in the afternoon, around 2-3pm and they move slower then, but I was there at around 11am and took the shot attached to this post. Not great, but it was the best I could do.

[MonkeyPie]

I used a 70-300mm Sigma, fully manual on my D60, to get pictures of the butterflies where I worked when they were migrating through. Monarchs, galore!

I found the best time was early in the morning when it was far cooler - not cold yet, just very cool. I was able to get right up next to them, and zoomed in with my macro setting on, I was able to get a couple really amazing shots.

[windrider86]

Be careful how you approach them. any kind of shade will spook them. Another trick is to carry a water bottle with you. Spray them with water which will make them so they cant fly. it doesnt hurt them and as soon as thier wings dry off they go fluttering away

[daft_biker]

Originally Posted by windrider86

Be careful how you approach them. any kind of shade will spook them. Another trick is to carry a water bottle with you. Spray them with water which will make them so they cant fly. it doesnt hurt them and as soon as thier wings dry off they go fluttering away

Oi! That's cheating I like it tho

I think their eyesight is based on movement so if you move slow enough they can't see you....but whether they can see you or not is no garuntee they'll sit still long enough to photograph them!

1st thing in the morning when they are sunning themselves to warm up is the traditional time to do butterfly shots. Some species have different habits so might be easier to photograph at any time day than other species.

Keep at it....you can get really close to them! (there's on a shot on my Flickr called "butterfly eye" (I think!)which I'd show you if Flickr wasn't blocked at work)

[BEphoto]

Ive been hitting the local botanical gardens a lot lately and there have been tons of butterflys. for some reason they dont seem to be affected by my presence at all. i can just seem to walk straight up to them and shoot away. sneaking from the back side of them might be your best bet if you are trying to get the wing shots.

[daft_biker]

Originally Posted by BEphoto

Ive been hitting the local botanical gardens a lot lately and there have been tons of butterflys. for some reason they dont seem to be affected by my presence at all. i can just seem to walk straight up to them and shoot away. sneaking from the back side of them might be your best bet if you are trying to get the wing shots.

Aye, if they're somewhere where there is lots of people they might be fed up of flying away and just get on with their day!.....and shooting captive beasties is a bit easier than shooting in the wild usually so is a great way to get practice. I visit the local butterfly farm fairly regularly....it's where I got this shot:



The end of the lens was just 45mm from the subject for that shot...it didn't seem bothered by me or the flash

[rcastillo]

well, since it's in your mom's garden then you can have all the time you want.. i suggest you observe first.. see which plant / flower the butterflies frequent most.. then when you've finally chosen a plant / flower, set up a tripod with your macro lens aimed and prefocused at the exact point you want to shoot the butterfly with.. then when that bugger lands, shoot away! a remote shutter / cable shutter would do well with this type of setup too..