Sherry Icardi
July 2025 - Sharing Air Space
About the Image(s)
Just a little Pond Slider and a butterfly sharing the air in the Tortugeuro, Costa Rica last March. I loved this shot and ended up with several as the butterfly flew above and across the turtle. It was almost like it was just wishing it a sunny day! We were on a boat in the Tortugero National Park. But were able to stop to allow some reasonable photos. there was also a few birds that everyone else was focused on, but t6his image made me smile and keep on clicking. Hope you enjoy it and remember to stop and smell the roses!
Taken with my Sony a1 and 300f2.8 lens - along with the 2.0 teleconverter
1/1250 sec
f 5.6
ISO 640
9 comments posted
Love the interaction between the two. The turtle does seem to be watching the butterfly. Your focus, DOF, and other settings all are spot on. Very nice photo. Only think I might do is crop off the blurry bottom edge. Posted: 07/10/2025 13:22:02
Let's see what everyone else thinks. Is there a particular reason you felt it should be cropped off? I did not like the bottom right of the image, but loved the water on the left side....which is why I left it in. But I did consider that option.
As for turtle following the butterfly....you are correct in that it "looks" like he is following, I just caught it at the right moment. It continues to fly to the right and the turtle's head stays in the same position :-) Posted: 07/11/2025 15:56:41
As for turtle following the butterfly....you are correct in that it "looks" like he is following, I just caught it at the right moment. It continues to fly to the right and the turtle's head stays in the same position :-) Posted: 07/11/2025 15:56:41
Only my preference for deleting dark, blurry bits. I thought about the water too, but decided it wasn't great enough to leave in the muddy log. I realize the turtle wasn't really watching the butterfly, but liked the idea that it was. Posted: 07/11/2025 16:33:40
So did I which is one of the details about this image that I really like! Posted: 07/15/2025 16:31:35
I like the image as is. I like the angle at which you took the photograph. The underside of the turtle is well exposed. The subjects are sharp and you had the perfect timing! Posted: 07/14/2025 15:04:37
Great shot to catch this moment in nature!
I'd lean toward cropping away the blurry bottom of the rock, not just to get rid of the blur, but It also increases the relative size of the butterfly in the photo.
But it's also nice as it is..., Posted: 07/15/2025 02:31:28
I'd lean toward cropping away the blurry bottom of the rock, not just to get rid of the blur, but It also increases the relative size of the butterfly in the photo.
But it's also nice as it is..., Posted: 07/15/2025 02:31:28
OK everyone ...I think what you are interpreting as blurred and or muddy is because I shot it at 5.6. This was taken a fair distance from the rock and I chose 5.6 to assure I could get the butterfly and turtle in focus, without worrying about the foreground. So I would have had to bump it up to f6.3 to get that in focus as well. But everyone seems concerned about it so I will give it a try cropped. Posted: 07/15/2025 16:41:09
Absolutely love this shot, Sherry. You captured the moment perfectly. The sharp focus and detail on your primary subject is captivating. I don't find the bottom of the photo distracting at all. In fact, I agree with you that the water on the bottom left and right helps provide context and implied depth to the scene. That's more important from my point of view. Posted: 07/21/2025 20:20:49
I love the story of a sweet interaction, even if it might have been coincidental! Sharp focus and your subjects pop. I see where you could increase the subjects size by cropping but I don't mind the blur in the foreground and like the water element. Posted: 07/21/2025 20:58:02