Have you ever tried taking photos of insects and gave up because those tiny critters never stopped moving and you couldn't get a sharp shot? Then your nightmare might well be trying to capture insects while they are flying!

Insects in flight are certainly among the most challenging, but also among the most rewarding subjects you can find in insect photography. Getting the focus right and freezing the motion can be very difficult, but in exchange for all the hard work you get to see some amazing poses you never knew were possible. Did you know that some bugs fly with their legs raised above their bodies?!

Here are some great examples of these amazing artists on wings from deviantART:

Bees, Bumblebees and Wasps (Hymenoptera)

If you have never tried your luck at taking photos of insects in flight before, a bee might be a good starting point. Look for a patch of flowers which is frequently visited by bees. Watch them closely, study their behaviour - they often follow a certain pattern when they visit a flower, so you might be able to predict when the bee is going to take off again! In the meantime, enjoy these captures:







Flies (Diptera)

Hoverflies are worth a try too as they often hover in the same spot for some time. Other flies are usually trickier as their flight patterns are less predictable. Nevertheless, some deviants have succeeded at this task as well.








Dragonflies and Damselflies (Odonata)

Dragonflies are among the fastest and most skillful flyers - some can even fly backwards! Their speed and manoeuvrability make them extra hard to capture.





Butterflies (Lepidoptera)

Butterfly flight dynamics are very different from that of dragonflies. They often display a slow, fluttering and seemingly erratic type of flight but are no easier to capture.



Beetles (Coleoptera)

I had a hard time finding good photos of beetles in flight - most are during take-off.



If these photos got you interested, you'll also like Fotoopa's flying insects 2006 and Fotoopa's flying insects 2005. He has some of the greatest photos of insects in flight I've ever seen! Photographing flying insects explains the technique and geeky equipment he uses. Very interesting reading, like the rest of his homepage!

Other galleries of insects in flight outside deviantART:
Joël Heras
Jürgen Schmidt
Mick Hoult
Rolf Nagel
Some of these sites are in German or French, but don't let this stop you from enjoying the photos!

If you are interested in reading up on the theory of insect flight,
this Wikipedia article might be a good starting point.

I hope you enjoyed watching these little artists on wings as much as I do, and I'd appreciate any feedback on this feature (it's my first one).

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I thank the following deviants for contributing to this feature by allowing me to use their wonderful photos:

~70hn *boron *BugS22 ~Chareen *craftworker ~Dark-Raptor *densitometer *ernieleo *fonky-fiction =grugster *Hatch1921 ~ixian ~jmottola *justinblackphotos =kaipu ^KevLewis ~macrophotography ~Miracidium *MrStickman ~MuffYz *MySweetDarknessII ~Nattgew ~prism77 ~pxl-8 *q-118 ~RitterRunkel ~Stratixfied ~Timexo *Wivelrod