Festooning bees on SC starter strips

[tillie]

Here are two pictures of festooning bees on the SC starter strips that I put in five days ago:





Linda T in Atlanta

[Understudy]

The honeybee worker union called. They said it was break time.

I think you may be having to much fun with those bees and that camera.  :-D

Keep taking those wonderful pictures.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[abejaruco]

So beautiful!
E pluribus unum.

[Michael Bush]

And that's how bees build comb.

[BEE C]

Tillie,
Beautiful photos.  Thanks for sharing that!

steve

[Cindi]

Linda, excellent, your pics really give a great inside view of festooning bees.  One word of caution though, is to be careful that you don't disturb them too much.  I got a very strong impression from some some information I think I read on the forum that if the "festooning" process is disturbed too much, it is hard on the bees.  Basically it is in that they have to "rethink" where they were in the process of figuring out where they were with the making of the cell.  Just a little piece of information drawn from the cobwebs of my mind.

If the comment I made is incorrect, I would be grateful if someone would correct me, for my own piece of mind.  But I think that I am correct.  Have a very wonderful day.  Cindi

[annette]

Tillie,

I am looking to purchase a digital camera so I can take wonderful pictures of my bees. What kind of camera do you use?? I think your pictures are fabulous.

Thank you
Annette

[tillie]

I WAS using a Sony DSC-W5 until I dropped it today while being stung by a bee under my glove - The camera was on and fell onto its lens and now won't open, shut, or focus and of course is a loss.  So I've ordered another Sony - this time a DSC-T10 - mostly because it has higher resolution, was affordable and has an anti-shake factor.  My left hand shakes when I'm under stress and both hands sometimes do under stress and I'm frustrated with blurry pictures.  Note to self:  Keep camera on strap around neck, not wrist!

I am so NOT a photographer, and there are many better cameras on the market, but I like taking the pictures, learn a lot from what I see in the pictures, and am having a great time taking them.  The key is not to try for a great shot, but just focus and take the picture.  In the beehive, I don't take the time to plan the shots - often if you do, you miss the queen, or the small hive beetle, or the bee drinking water.  So I point and shoot and hope for the best.

The real gift of today's digital is the computer itself.  I'm the historian for the choir in which I sing, and by default have ended up taking lots of pictures.  Many are poorly composed or some element is out of focus or something, but I cut and paste madly on the computer and end up with a good record, as I do with the bees!!!!

So get a camera you are comfortable with - best if it has ability to take good close-ups - and point and shoot to your heart's content!

Linda T