I think this photo is of a lesser
house-fly. It is smaller than the common house-fly and there is a
difference to the vein pattern on the wings (Collins Complete Guide to Irish
Wildlife). A little browsing on the internet reveals that their full life-cycle is generally between 18 and 21 days! Apparently they survive longer
in cool conditions, so I am guessing the Irish ones live a bit longer!!!
In this photo, I liked the way the colour of the
eyes matched the stripes on the leaf. It can be technically challenging
to get a good photo of an insect. The required closeness to the subject
results in a shallow depth of field that can blur parts of the insect. It
is important to get the eye in focus and try keep the body of the insect on the
same plane. The angle I held the camera at caused some areas to be out of
focus, but I wanted some of the front of the head to be in the shot.
Settings used were 1/160 sec with f/8 and auto ISO gave 400. If I was to
take the shot again, I would increase the shutter speed as the little movements
of the insect can cause lack of focus and the low ISO facilitates a higher
speed. Unfortunately, this lesser house-fly flew before I could adjust
the settings. I used my Canon 100mm macro lens on a Canon R6 mirrorless
camera.
The photo was taken in Hunting Brook Garden, which
is open to the public and well worth a visit. Jimi Blake’s horticulture
qualification and love of plants has created an oasis in the Wicklow Mountains
at Lamb Hill.
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