It’s relatively easy to take photographs of flowers, sometimes it can be a little too bright & the colours don’t appear true, sometimes it’s too breezy & the flower you thought was in focus is a blur! But there’s usually a good chance of getting one decent shot.

Birds, bees & butterflies…. now they present quite a challenge! The meadow was buzzing with bees & there were a few butterflies. These led me a merry dance! Anyone watching my antics while desperately trying to take a photo would have been highly entertained. It seemed just walking alongside the grassy path disturbed the butterflies – suddenly they would pop into view then dip once more into the mass of flowers.

I felt childishly pleased with myself for actually spotting a butterfly at rest & then managing to focus in quickly enough with the camera! I also have lots of shots where I just missed the opportunity or didn’t quite focus on the exact flower.

Butterflies like ox eye daises it seems – well this one certainly did.

After a while I got accustomed to seeing butterflies suddenly rise from the flowers around me & dance around. Some perched on the path – just ahead of me & I became a little concerned that I may accidentally tread on one. But on my approach it rose & danced ahead once more. The joy of this delicate creature was infectious – it seemed to rejoice in its surroundings – enticing us to share the beauty of the meadow as it dance & fluttered around us.

I love spotting quirky, unusual things – so the next picture was something special. I’d seen a small yellow butterfly disappear into the flowers. The photo isn’t especially clear but I’m pleased with the result…

Having done a little research I think this is a moth. Moths may not be so popular as their butterfly relations, but some are very pretty & they tend to have lovely names. I think this is a yellow shell moth – the name fits its appearance! From my picture it doesn’t have that delicate look,, instead the wings look hard – you can just see wavy lines across the wing backs.

Butterfly ID This  link will take you to the Butterfly Conservation website. This is a great tool for butterfly & moth identification! I’ve personally bookmarked this to come back & visit in the future. There’s also the opportunity to join & support conservation. What a great idea!