I’ve not participated much in the forum recently, many will know why. But I’ve looked in from time to time and I thought the “revival” of this section was a nice thing.
I thought about all my photos that have excited me recently, but have settled for now on this shot because it is one I am currently enjoying anew, as a wallpaper on my new Apple MacBook Pro. Apple screens are among the best and this shot really pops. It’s a P3 image but the forum seems to convert to sRGB which steals a little of the oomph.
f/8, 1/750, 300mm, ISO400.
It is a Red Damselfly perched on a seed head. Part of what I love about the photo is it looks like an isolated scene, but I know the setting to be quite the opposite. It is in a wetland area where the overwhelming feature, to the eye, is fine, tall grasses.
The small wetland is part of the Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne wildlife ecosanctuary. I am very lucky to live 20 minutes’ drive away from this world class facility. It is a fully fenced (8.6 km of fence!) sanctuary in a city suburb and they have a 500 year plan to return the area to pre-human state! (Notwithstanding pathways, I guess). New Zealand endemic wildlife is unique but has suffered horribly due to European species introduction. Sanctuaries like this begin by eliminating introduced pests and then try to keep them out. Zealandia has been very successful in this.
I go for the beautiful birds, many rare, but it is also home to threatened plants, reptiles, frogs, invertebrates, and some fish.
