[Updated 2006.08.29, 07:20 EDT: Added descriptions to remaining images. Added link to Bug Guide.]

Some beauty shots for my photo fans. All photos were taken this past Saturday, August 26 in Marie’s garden in Saratoga in upstate New York. The link on this post will take you to the flickr photo set of these pictures.

The following four images of insects are all cropped down from the original full frame to zoom in on the detail. I browsed and searched the photos on Bug Guide to identify the beetles.

Stiretrus anchorago, Anchor Stink Bug, on Goldenrod, front and rear views. This guy was moving rapidly over the stalks, dipping his proboscis into each individual flower. I presume he/she/it was feeding on nectar from the flowers.

Megacyllene robiniae, Locust Borer, on Goldenrod. I apologize for this one being out of focus. This guy was also moving very quickly around on the goldenrod. This was the best shot I got.

Death in the garden. Taking a cue from Bev’s Phymata post, this stationary fly caught my eye. Not to mention that none of his/her/its feet were actually resting on the plant. This was a difficult depth-of-field situation. Again, I took several different shots with the focus on different plane in the image. This one gave me the best results overall, though parts are still clearly out of focus.

The rest of these images are presented full frame and unedited.

Phlox.

Silver maple bark with lichens.

Lichen on a rock.

Black walnut leaflets. Only these leaflets at the end of the leaf had turned red. The rest of the tree was still green.