By Bill Stokes
Kickass, the doorstop dog, often called upon to console the keeper over his shortcomings, steps up now to moderate his—the keeper’s excesses in claiming a camera coup in the area of nature photography. Having long been intimidated by photo friends who consistently produce sensational shots of scenes and sunsets and wild critters doing incredible things, the keeper offers his once-in-a-lifetime “butterfly-wasp” photo, and generously includes instructions on how other less talented photographers might attempt to replicate the image:
First, find a flower and wait next to it until a monarch butterfly lands on it. This may take hours, even days—weeks, but the secret is to be patient, even to the point of not having a job or involvement in any meaningful activity. Once the butterfly lands on the flower—it will be there for only seconds, wait for a wasp to fly in from the left, and just as some kind of confrontation is obviously about to occur between the butterfly and the wasp, click the shutter.
It is as simple as that, though waiting for the ultra active insects to assume their coordinated poses will likely be a challenge, one even greater than waiting for the monarch in the first place.
A photo judge might point to the photographer’s skill in inserting tension into the otherwise static image, and would doubtless comment on the boundless patience and artistry the photo evidences.
Eat your hearts out Jerry, Jim, Jessica, Harry, Dave and a whole bunch of other camera nuts.
