Tag Archives: Bumblebee

The Bumblebees are Back!

25 Thursday Feb 2021

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Bee, Bumblebee, Canon, Garden, Home Garden, Sloat Garden Center, Spanish Lavender

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For the past couple of weeks, the Bumblebees have been coming to search for food. This worker Bumblebee is about to land on our new plant, Spanish Lavender (Lavandula stoechas), which was purchased at the Sloat Garden Center on 3rd Ave in San Francisco. I caught this shot of the Bumblebee on this plant. A Hummingbird was checking out this plant too, but I was not fast enough to photograph him. I love this bee’s long legs hanging down as he goes towards his next snack.

I’ve been experimenting to find the right flowers to grow in my yard which will flourish and attract the hummingbirds, bees and butterflies. I’ve order some flowers online. So far I’ve been disappointed with these online plants. They did not survive well in my garden. Sloat Garden Center has a lifetime guarantee on their plants. The flowers from Sloat Garden Center have done well in my yard. Since Sloat Garden Center is local, they understand our climate and soil. Their employees are always helpful and knowledgeable to give advice about growing the plants.

I never spent so much time in my garden, until we were sheltering in place due to the pandemic. Early in 2019, I already started my garden project, but had not planned what should be planted in the spring. This year I’ve scoped out the plants to add this spring. I’m excited about the prospect of my future flowers I hope to purchase and plant, and the new creatures they will feed and attract.

We are not happy with this pandemic. But ironically, many of us have developed our passions during this pandemic period. I’ve been a photographer for most of my adult life. My gardening passion resulted from my photography passion to create a haven and environment to shoot pictures.

Focusing on nature has a calming effect on my soul. It reminds me how God is the great Creator of all. Observing the flowers and the quick flying bees, hummingbirds and butterflies is fascinating. My garden world takes me away from the pandemic world for a break.

We all need a refuge to take a break from our pandemic world. Allow photographs to take you to a calmer place.

Photos Calm our Souls.

 

 

Smelling Sweet Lavender

22 Friday Jan 2021

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Bumblebee, Canon, Garden, Grocery Outlet, Home Garden, Lavender

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I photographed this Bumblebee last summer while she was approaching to collect some nectar from our Lavender plant. We surprisingly found this great lavender plant at Grocery Outlet. We are very thankful for the hard work of Bumblebees and Honey Bees for pollinating the plants and food crops in our yard and in the world.

It was by chance we found lavender plants at Grocery Outlet one afternoon. They were healthy mature plants at a pretty reasonable price. We bought a few different plants that day from Grocery Outlet. This helped us in the beginnings of improving our backyard space. It was also about a year before this pandemic started. Little did we know how much we would need our backyard to “Shelter in Place”.

These lavender plants bloomed wonderfully in the spring and summer of last year. The smell was wonderful. I’ve always liked the smell of lavender. But I really fell in love with the smell in my backyard. It is calming and relaxing.

The Bumblebees also love the lavender. These plants attracted many bees into the yard. I did not fully realize how beneficial these plants would be. When I first bought the plants, I did not fully envision how I would be photographing these bees in my backyard. None of us would dream that we would face such a pandemic where we would be home so much.

I am looking forward to spring to enjoy the lavender flowers again. I am preparing for spring. I am trying to make myself less threatening to the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. I researching and planning what new flowers I can plant for my flying friends.

Smelling these lavender flowers reminds me how to take time to smell the flowers. I never spent time to smell any flowers. The sensation of smell does relax and provides a calming atmosphere. I am pretty good at smelling. I love tofu and can sniff to make sure the tofu is still fresh. Smelling lavender refreshes my soul and reminds me to take a moment to be thankful.

Bees also have a great sense of smell and love the lavender scent. The lavender scent draws the bees to the flowers.

During this pandemic time, find the scents that help relaxation!

Photos Relax our Souls!

Being in the Center or on the Edge

21 Thursday Jan 2021

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Bumblebee, Canon, Dwarf Sungold Sunflower, Garden, Home Garden, Honey Bee, Sunflower, Sunflowers, Sungold flower

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The Bumblebee in the first picture is having a good time on the peripheral of the Dwarf Sungold Sunflower. He is feasting on the nectar as he makes his way around the flower. The Honey bee in the second picture is planted in the center of sunflower for his sweet feast. Which bee is smarter in its position in the flower? I’m not sure if there is a sweeter part of the flower between the center and the petals.

The Honeybee do produce more honey than the Bumblebee. The Bumblebee is good at using their bigger bodies to vibrate the flowers until they release pollen. Releasing the pollen helps plants produce more fruit.

Is it better to be closer to the edge to shake things up compared to being in the center where it may be safer? In the case of the bees, it seems that each position is important.

It is usually more comfortable to play it safe. I like to look at the ocean for the view, but I do not like to spend a lot of time at beaches. When we went to Hawaii, we did visit the beach but did not lay out on the sand. When we were in Costa Rica, we chose to be in the 4 foot deep spacious swimming pool over going to the beach in the resort. In our area, recently there have been sad incidents where people have been hit by waves on the beach and disappeared into the ocean. While these incidents can be rare, I am pretty content not spending a lot of time on the beach.

Conversely, there are times it is advantageous to take a risk and try something new. In our pandemic life, we tried playing family games with participants in 3 different locations. We played 3 different online games for the first time in a Zoom meeting. It was fun to learn the games and interact with each other.

Doing this blog and sharing my photographs is something I never thought I would do. I keep learning new things as I continue to shoot and examine my pictures. I appreciate all those who take a little time to look at my blog. Taking risks continuously teaches me new lessons.

Lastly, there is a time to play it safe, and there is a time to take a risk. Both actions are important to do. I’m learning that I need to do both and learn when I should take a risk and when to play it safe.

The Bees are doing the same thing by being in the center or on the edge. It’s all good!

Photos give valuable lessons.

 

Black Wing Bumblebee Stinger

18 Monday Jan 2021

Posted by in Backyard Garden, Bumblebee, Garden, Home Garden, Lobelia Gerardii Vedrariensis

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This Bumblebee was approaching a Lobelia Gerardii Vedrarien Cardinal Flower for nectar. I photographed her at 1/8000 of a second.

The side black wing on this bee is cool. I associate black wings with a DC or Marvel super hero. Even though this bee is not attacking the flower with its antennae, it makes an interesting fantasy story with these black wings. This bumblebee has a nice mostly black body. The coloring just adds to the ominous appearance.

A few years ago, my friends and I had a blast watching Ant Man. Maybe one day someone will create “The Stinger” – a superhero who has the ability to sting and stun for protection against bad guys. He would have super wings to fly fast like a bee. It might be a little funny to see this superhero in a fuzzy black and yellow suit.

This photograph would be perfect to show off this new super hero with the greenish lighted background and bee centered approaching the flower.

A good photograph should allow us to use our imagination and take us to a fantasy world. We all want to escape our current reality. We need to use our imagination to create a better reality. We can use our imagination to be creative with our reality to find solutions.

So if we ever see a movie called “The Stinger”, remember you saw the idea in this blog post first.

Photos encourage our imagination!

 

 

 

Quick Chow Down with Meyer Lemon Nectar

16 Saturday Jan 2021

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Bumblebee, Garden, Home Garden, Meyer Lemon

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I photographed this Bumblebee recently sitting on a leaf and taking a break and feasting on some Meyer Lemon Nectar from the flower. She was also helping to pollinate the flowers. I had to be quick to shoot this picture. The bumblebee was only there for about a minute. It is interesting how the bumblebee planted herself down in this sitting position. Then she curved her body over the lemon blossom to properly positioned herself to get a good sucking of the nectar. She even had her legs hanging out on the side of the leaf. It is pretty amusing to see the bumblebee chowing down for the quick sweet snack.

This reminds me when I could enjoy chowing down at a buffet. Periodically, my buddy and I would go to a buffet for lunch to enjoy a variety of Chinese and other Asian food. I can identify with this bee’s sitting to be comfortable as she had her short feast. Even though over the years, I have modified the amount of food I eat at a buffet. I am more selective, and I do not have to try every single food in the buffet. There was a time I had to absolutely eat at buffets in Las Vegas. But now I do not feel this necessity. I do not go to Las Vegas very often. But now I prefer choosing a restaurant based on what I am craving to eat. Also since the buffet prices are higher now, this contributes to my change in preferences of restaurants. 

I do love the variety of food choices at a buffet. Eating at a buffet gave my friend and I an excuse to spend time together in the midst of our work and family. I do miss going out with friends and eating at restaurants. I have not done any outdoor dining. The temperature in my neighborhood is never too warm, so it is not as inviting to sit outside to eat.

Who knows what is the future of buffets after the pandemic? 

At least, I have been enjoying cooking and eating food at home. I can do this chow down pose in the privacy of my home to enjoy good food. Let’s see how long it will be when I can go out with my good buddy to enjoy a meal at a restaurant.

Photos show fun eating poses!

Catching Fast Wings

05 Saturday Dec 2020

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Bumblebee, Canon, Garden, Home Garden, Sloat Garden Center

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Bumblebees have super fast moving wings. I photographed at 1/8000 of a second and still could not freeze the motion of these wings! Can you imagine being that fast? It is interesting the orientation of the top wing. The bottom wing is a little blurred due to its quick movement.

This bee is also bent around the middle and his rear end is pointed down. This bee is getting ready to fly out. It was interesting how he stretched out before flying out. I never really paid attention how fuzzy Bumblebees are.

I am pretty amazed how fast the bee’s wings move. My challenge is to see if I can catch a sharp picture of the wings. Not sure if this is possible since I shot at 1/8000 of a second. It will depend if I can catch a bee who slows down a little. My bee’s wing photos show the wings mostly tucked under when they are not moving.

This pandemic has given many of us big challenges. Many challenges are from our circumstances and environment. We get stressed with the current increase of COVID cases. In California, we will be facing new stay at homes rules to follow. Many feel pandemic fever, but will have to deal with these feelings with the additional restrictions.

Since we all face this pandemic stress, I am learning I need to choose my own personal challenges. Shooting cool photographs of the bees, hummingbirds and butterflies is my challenge and goal. I am attempting to figure out a strategy for my garden photography to shoot these creature models. I purchased this perennial flowering plant at the Sloat Garden Center to help with my pollinating friends.

Choosing our own personal challenges as goals to achieve could be the answer to deal with the circumstantial challenges we face. None of us chose this pandemic life. This virus happened, and we need to live with these circumstances and consequences. But we can choose our own challenges to improve ourselves or our situations.

Photos Teach!

 

 

 

 

Feeling Round, Plump & Happy

27 Friday Nov 2020

Posted by in Back Yard Garden, Bumble Bee, Bumblebee, Cardinal Flower, Garden, Home Garden, Lobelia Gerardii Vedrariensis

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The day after Thanksgiving was a day of getting up early to catch the Black Friday specials. Shopping was the physical exercise after over indulging our Thanksgiving feasts. Family, friends and food are the 3 “F”s which are characteristic of this wonderful holiday. Unfortunately, this year we probably had less of our normal 3 “F”s, since we were warned not to gather to spread COVID.

Yesterday, we did need to cook our Thanksgiving comfort foods. We prepped our large turkey which was a little smaller than what we cook for 30-40 people. It was still large, since we provided food for my parents and brother. We normally never have any turkey leftovers, since our relatives enjoy taking home the leftovers. So if we are going to roast a turkey, we might as well enjoy the leftovers for a change.

We made our favorite side dishes of sweet potatoes with marshmallows, roasted brussel sprouts, fresh cranberry sauce and Chinese sticky rice with Chinese bacon and sausage. Surprising from Wednesday to Thursday, we finished cooking everything in time for my brother to pick up the feast, even with our big mess of spilling the overflowing turkey juice from the pan.

Normally, I would feel like the way this bee looks – round, plump and happy. Our custom has been to celebrate with about 30-40 relatives and share a Thanksgiving potluck. We have been roasting the turkey for the family. There is an overload of variety. It is a fun time of feasting and fellowship. This probably is the first time we all could not meet together. I did not eat as much since I cooked so much and was tired from the work. It was still worth it to eat my favorites.

The bee is happily flying around to gather its pollen and nectar. It enjoys the sweetness of the flowers to become healthy round and joyful. This bee is fast. I shot this photo at 1/8000 of a second. I still could catch the quickness of his wings.

I wish I could move with this speed with a round body. The bee is quick to gather pollen to bring back to his hive family.

It reminds me during this Thanksgiving time how we need to be quick to express our Gratitude to God and to those we care about. This pandemic has been teaching me to be quick to appreciate the moments in life. After Thanksgiving, it is normal for us to feel lethargic from over indulging.

Nevertheless, we need to emulate to be like the bee. Can we feel happy to feed or help those around us. When we gave the meal to my brother to bring to my parents, he expressed it was a fancy meal. It may have taken us time to prepare the meal, and we sacrificed a day to cook for our family. But it is important to show an expression of our care for our family.

Bees are constantly taking care of their hives. This bee is pretty adorable being fuzzy, round and fast.

Who do we need to take care of? Be adorable with our after-Thanksgiving roundness and figure out who you can give care to.

Photos Teach!

Bumble Bee Zeroing In on Lavender Flower

23 Friday Oct 2020

Posted by in Backyard Garden, Bumble Bee, Bumblebee, Garden, Home Garden, Lavender

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We do not usually consider bees as fuzzy creatures. Most of us think about the stinger on a bee and wanting to get away from this flying insect.

This photograph shows us the softer side of the bee with it fuzzy exterior. It reminds of a cuddly stuffed animal since this bee is round in shape. The photo also shows the bee’s wings in action and the long pair of antennae on top of the bee’s head.

This bee has a nice orange chunk of pollen collected in its pollen baskets on the hind legs. Bees are goal oriented to take care of the needs of their hive. I do not know where their hive is, but the bees are pretty regular to return to sip from my flowers.

It is important for us to also show our “fuzzy” side to other people. Do we show compassion? Do we seek to help people with their needs if it is within our capabilities or if we have the resources? Or are we too focused on our own world to be sensitive to the needs of our family, friends or other people we are in contact with.

Let’s hope the people in our lives see our fuzzy nature and not our “stinger”.

Photos Teach!

 

Flight of the Bumble Bee

24 Thursday Sep 2020

Posted by in Backyard Garden, Bumble Bee, Bumblebee, Garden, Home Garden

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I have seen Bumble Bees fly but did not know they look like a flying round teddy bears until I photographed them in mid-air. They look really cool being so round and having their short legs showing on the bottom. This Bumble Bee was flying toward my Lavender plant.

Notice the dark fragile wings of this bee. They look so thin. Yet these wings enable the bee to fly long distances and quickly. A bee can fly fast or hover over flowers to retrieve the nectar.

The bee’s fuzzy yellow top and bottom makes it stand out. We all need brightness in our lives. The black body has a little bit of a sheen in its appearance.

What can we learn from the flight of the Bumble Bee? 

The weak looking wings of the Bumble Bee are actually quite powerful to enable the bee to travel great distances.

The Bumble Bee is very small in size, but it can bring bad pain to anyone of us with it’s stinger.

It is possible for the weak things to shame the strong.

So do not underestimate individuals who seem weak?

Do not allow our pride to ignore those who appear weak. The “weak” will teach us the meaning of strength.

Find strength in our weaknesses!

Photos Teach!

Bumble Bee tip toeing on Lavender

06 Thursday Aug 2020

Posted by in Backyard Garden, Bumble Bee, Bumblebee, Garden, Home Garden, Lavender

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Since we are still sheltering in place, I spend lots more time in our garden. I position myself in our yard waiting and watching the bees, hummingbirds or butterflies enjoy the flowers. I take my big Canon camera and lens to see what interesting sights I can shoot.

I photographed this Bumble Bee in our backyard garden landing on our Lavender plant. I love the flurry of its wings in action. It’s amazing how fast the wings can go to keep the bee up in the air. It is also interesting to examine the long thin legs of the bee approaching the lavender flower to collect the pollen and nectar.

This pandemic has allowed me to spend time to tend to my garden. Before the pandemic, I did start planning out what to grow in the garden to attract birds, butterflies and bees. But the pandemic provided me a reason to go to the garden since I am not venturing out of the house except for groceries.

Even though the pandemic is a terrible occurrence in the world, it is teaching us valuable lessons.

The pandemic is teaching me about solitude in fellowship with nature. It is showing me how bees can dance on lavender and other flowers. I am learning patience as I wait and watch to capture images of the natural occurrence in nature.

Lastly, blessings are possible in all circumstances of life even in a pandemic. It is a blessing to the beauty of a bee encroaching on the pretty petals of lavender.

Photography teaches me to be patient.