By Ted Grussing
… since I sold Mariah about a month ago, I knew that the continuing stream of new aerial shots were coming to an end and I wondered what would be taking up the slack. The morning that Mariah left, I headed down to Red Rock Crossing with a friend and was sitting in a patch of foxtail shooting a few tiny Arizona Primrose flowers when Ed flew her overhead on the way down to Nogales; I found that I really enjoyed just sitting in that patch trying to figure out a way to get a unique shot of them, and I did. Friday morning I headed down to the ponds with another friend to shoot wildlife which I thoroughly enjoy and then we went over to the Wetlands and I found myself shooting dragon flies … and it is an incredible challenge to shoot them.
For the most part it was the challenge of just getting decent shots of them and of course my thing is action shooting and I was able to get a few of them. When they decide to fly they are gone and the reaction time to depress the shutter is usually too slow to get them … even when you are holding a focus on them and have your finger on the shutter button. Getting a focus when they are flying is nearly impossible. I got this shot of one that had just taken off upwards and backwards from the rushes in the lower part of the image.
What these creatures do with their wings is amazing and they can have them all going independently in different directions at the same time. Next thing is to learn something about these insects that I have totally ignored all of my life. To begin with they have been around for over 300 million years and they are absolutely deadly predators. They feed on other insects that annoy us, like gnats and mosquitoes. They are born underwater and can stay in the larval stage underwater for years before emerging as the dragon fly that we know. Underwater they are voracious predators also. Their kill rate when hunting is about 95% … vision is nearly 360 degrees and they can lock on a target and make necessary adjustments to their flight path so as to make the intercept … so much more to learn and thanks to a friend who likes to shoot insects I am becoming hooked on them too. Lots to learn and just take a look at this guy that makes your time outdoors near lakes or wherever a little more pleasant because he is killing and eating insects that like to feed on you … they do not attack humans.
Another beautiful week underway … we are coming off the holiday we celebrate as the beginning of our great nation. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”.
We are fortunate … have a beautiful day and keep breathing. Make someone’s day a little brighter … smile and say hi as you pass them.
Ted
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The easiest way to reach Mr. Grussing is by email: ted@tedgrussing.com
In addition to sales of photographs already taken Ted does special shoots for patrons on request and also does air-to-air photography for those who want photographs of their airplanes in flight. All special photographic sessions are billed on an hourly basis.
Ted also does one-on-one workshops for those interested in learning the techniques he uses. By special arrangement Ted will do one-on-one aerial photography workshops which will include actual photo sessions in the air.
More about Ted Grussing …