Technique: It was early in the morning and this Wool Carder Bee was having a tough time getting its metabolism going. I was holding onto the stem of that flower with my left index finger and thumb, and resting the lens on that same hand to keep everything steady. The bee would occasionally move, and when it stopped I'd roll the flower's stem with my fingers to turn the critter toward the camera and look for a composition. Tech Specs: Canon 70D (F10, 1/250, ISO 100) + a Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens (over 3x) + a diffused MT-24EX. This is a single, uncropped, frame taken hand held.

Technique: I injected artificial nectar into a Lavender flower, and even though I was using bait it was still a difficult shot. Of all the bees in my yard this one is the most skittish. Tech Specs: Canon 70D (F11, 1/250, ISO 400) + a Canon EF-S 60mm macro lens + a diffused MT-24EX (flash head "A" set as the key and "B" as the fill, both on the Canon flash mount). This is a single, uncropped, frame taken hand held. Camera set to expose the natural light in the background, with E-TTL flash metering exposing the subject.

Technique: I found a spot in my Lavender bush where I could bait the bees with some artificial nectar and photograph them with the sun at my back. Fortunately the angle of the sun was high enough so that I could shadow the subject and not the background. I needed the natural light to keep the background from being black, and the flash to freeze as much motion as possible in the subject. Lots of deleted frames due to a light breeze and a less than cooperative bee. Tech Specs: Canon 80D (F11, 1/250, ISO 200 with highlight tone priority) + a Canon MP-E 65mm macro lens (1x) + a diffused MT-24EX (both flash heads on the Canon flash mount, E-TTL metering with -1 2/3 FEC). This is a single, uncropped, frame taken hand held.