Insects macro

Grasshoppers, flies, bees, spiders — all within a few steps. Eye to eye with an eye larger than your thumbnail, or legs with thin black rings you'd normally never notice.

A fixed location, with one exception: the violet carpenter bee was photographed in Italy. The rest comes from the same garden or the nature reserve Geestmerambacht, mostly with the Fujinon 80mm macro. Waited for the harsh midday sun or the late afternoon light to settle the insects — that's when they stay still just long enough to get sharp.

Wind remains the biggest disruptor in macro. Not the insect, the branch.