I finally made the time to photograph some ladybirds from our garden, and I'm so glad I did. I didn't want the "bug on a leaf" look. I wanted to create something quite unusual, and bordering on the abstract.

I think a lot of my photos are very straight forward. Very often characterful portraits or busy action shots. So I wanted to take the opportunity to do something quite different here. Ladybirds are so photogenic, and the burst of colour really makes for an eye-catching shot.

I found a fantastic glass plant pot which wasn't in use, and it made for a perfect background, with all the red & white swirls. I was able to put it outside, and use a mixture of natural and artificial light. You can see my cobbled-together set-up below;

It was a sunny day, and direct sunlight was too harsh for the subject. So I used the hardboard to keep out the direct sunlight, and I used the torch on the left of the pot to light the subject more softly, from an interesting angle. I was using the Sigma 17-70mm lens, but any macro lens will do.

I got quite a few good photos using this technique, but I had to pick my favourites to post here, as there were far too many. Here's another from the shoot...

These photos, and most others from this website, are available in print or to licence.

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