Bee on Thistle - New Forest - Copyright July 2008

When I got my macro lens, my photography went to a whole new level!  This is one of the macro shots that I’m most proud of.

I took this on a lovely sunny July day in 2008 in the New Forest, Hampshire, UK.  The thistle is a very beautiful bloom and highly prevalent in the New Forest.

Bees are a regular visitor to the thistles and this little visitor was very obliging, allowing me to take a number of shots which can be found in my flickr set New Forest July 2008.

You’ll also find a number of other fauna in the set including a beetle, hoverfly and a herd of deer.  It was definitely a good day for photography.

I love Glastonbury, not the festival, but the place and the Tor is a mystical and beautiful place that you can’t help but fall in love with. I don’t visit all that often, but when I do it is usually unplanned and good things always seem to happen when I’m there.

The picture is symbolic of the love between a father and daughter, how as the daughter grows into adulthood the relationship grows and changes.  As a child I always knew I could count on my Dad to be there for me, to keep me safe, comfort me when I was sad or in pain.  He was this amazing force and power who never seemed to be scared, lonely or afraid.  Becoming an adult, seeing some of the troubles my Dad has had to endure in his life I see things differently now, but I don’t see him as being less, more I’m amazed at how he managed to be such a rock.  Now it’s my turn to be there for him, to watch over him and be the force and power who protects him.

This shot was taken back when I first started playing with being more artistic and creative in my photography and using Photoshop as part of the creative process. The camera was my trusty little Pentax Optio S6.