Arabella Dane
October 2026 - Untitled
About the Image(s)
These milkweed bugs were taken with my canon e5 mirrorless. They were very small and i cropped them from a larger image of masses of the bugs on a milkweed pod because i was intrigued by the little green one at the bottom of the image. and the differences between the two instars. The bugguide.net folks say it is the exoskeleton of an instar. Arabella
5 comments posted
How interesting - I've never heard of an instar before! The bugs are quite sharp, and this image really tells a story of their life cycles. I would be interested to know just how small they were. The blurred background adds to the image, as does the lighting. The milkweed pod seems soft in the top third, so it might be beneficial to crop off the top some? Posted: 10/02/2026 11:56:39
good suggestion! thank you Posted: 10/02/2026 13:29:35
Thank you for sharing this information. I can see why you were intrigued by seeing these instars. I agree with a bit of cropping on the top and would love to know what lens and settings you used to capture these tiny bugs. Posted: 10/03/2026 23:36:18
Arabella, great capture! I like the color and the light. Did you use flash? Was this handheld? The milkweed appears soft but DoF is frequently a problem with macro.
I like the placement of the two orange bugs. Nice capture and good crop. Posted: 10/08/2026 10:51:53
I like the placement of the two orange bugs. Nice capture and good crop. Posted: 10/08/2026 10:51:53
I was using my canon r5 with the 70-200 lens handheld. I thought the little greenish guy at the bottom was an alien being but the bugguide.net people set me straight that it is the exoskeleton!! Imagine trying to get your legs outta those casings. Posted: 10/09/2026 20:21:33