ZEN AND THE ART OF BUTTERFLY PHOTOGRAPHY by Keni Lee January 1998

Butterfly, as you flutter by dancing with such speed Please, my friend, stop and pose, thus fulfilling my photographic need Butterfly, oh Butterfly… Grace me as you flutter by…. Butterfly photography is both a science and an art. The science, as with all photography, is in knowing one’s equipment, film and subject, as well as understanding the dynamics of light. The art is allowing one’s self to “become one” with the subject. The great Zen masters say that intuition and introspection are the keys to enlightenment, and that enlightenment is the most profound state of life that is possible. One attains this through awareness and consciousness. Within that, the paradox of “less is more”, or slowing down to notice and become aware, arises and lends its wisdom to my personal approach to butterfly photography. Before you start thinking that this is an article for a self-help magazine, let me explain. Many times in the past I have found myself frustrated because my winged friends would not cooperate with my photographic needs. Either they were no where to be found or they flitted about in such a manic state that they were virtually impossible to catch on film. Furthermore, many times I found my self chasing them from one side of my yard to the other ( usually taking a “short-cut” through my house and tracking in dirt, much to the chagrin of my housekeeper), only to come up empty handed as they usually eluded me….It began to feel like a butterfly conspiracy!!! Interestingly enough, this was also parallel to how I seemed to be running my life: Rushing from one thing, or person, to another, feeling unfulfilled, and in the end, frustrated. So when I began to turn down the volume in my life (about seven years ago), I also began to become more aware of my surroundings. One these awareness’ included a new awareness of butterflies. As I became more interested in them not as just photographic subjects but also “Life Teachers”, I also was improving my own spiritual path and my photographic skills. The end result was a wonderful convergence. I began to become less consumed with the outcome and more focused on the process….Less was becoming more. My whole approach to butterfly photography began to change. It often seemed as if the butterflies began to come to me instead of me chasing them. I began to observe their beauty and their behavioral patterns. Sometimes I’d have my camera and sometimes not. Whether or not I got the photograph was not as important as before. I found myself enjoying the process and gaining more information about butterfly behavior. I also began to read more about butterflies’ habits. I researched information about the kinds of plants they are drawn to, both as nectar food and as host plants for their larvae. I began to plant such plants in my yard and also became more aware of the whereabouts of these plants in my day-to day travels. Similarly, I also noticed an increase in the number of butterfly sightings I was having and I wondered “Were there more butterflies showing up in my life or was I just becoming more aware?”….Probably the latter. Some of the butterfly attracting plants in my yard now include milkweed, porterweed, cassia, pentas, lantana, firebush, salvia, plumbago, passion vine and golden dewdrop. The milkweed is both a nectar plant and a larvae plant for the monarchs. The passion vine attracts both the gulf fritillary and the zebra longwing for their larvae, while the gulf fritillaries are attracted to the lantana and the porterweed for nectar. The zebra longwings are more attracted to my firebush and porterweed for their nectar, but only those that are somewhat shaded. The sulfurs also like the firebush for nectar, while being drawn to the cassia for their larvae. The cassius blues are drawn more to the plumbago for nectar, as well as using for their larvae. The several different varieties of swallowtails I see are drawn to most all of these plants for their nectar and I’ve their larvae on both my fennel plants and my Dutchman’s pipevine. All-in-all, it is not uncommon for me to see four or five different species of butterflies at any given time in my yard. Also, I use no pesticides or fertilizers as the butterflies seem to stay away from these non-organic substances ( I also don’t believe in the use of these just as part of my own personal ethics). My house is now a huge blind, with the various butterfly-attracting plants outside my windows and throughout my yard. I have become a butterfly spy (it seems a bit voyeuristic, but they don’t seem to mind). I also, quite accidentally, ended up inviting some hummingbirds into my yard via these same plants. I have yet to capture them on film, but perhaps that will occur in my next level of enlightenment. I now watch the butterflies for enjoyment, as well as being better prepared to photograph them….I find myself being blessed as the recipient of these wonderful gifts! With my new found knowledge of the butterfly attracting plants I am also able to “stake-out” other possible sights to photograph. When I see one these plants, or other butterfly attracting plants that I know of, I make a note to myself to check it out when I have my camera. I gotten some great shots by just increasing my awareness and doing some planning. My camera of choice is a Nikon N90s with a power drive. I usually use a Nikon 105mm macro lens with a Tamron 2x teleconverter for butterfly photography. Sometimes my 3T close-up filter is a good choice, but it gets to be a bit to much glass and I’ve lost some sharpness with it at times. I often use my Stroboframe mounted Nikon SB-26 flash, usually compensated at -.7, and have had some stunning results, even at high noon on a bright, sunny day. The Stroboframe allows me to provide differing angles of flash which often results in more depth. My films of choice are Fuji Velvia and Kodak E100VS, depending on the light situation. I use the Kodak most of the time but do use the Velvia when I have enough light. I find that here in Florida the butterflies seem to be more active in late morning and early afternoon, and perhaps being a bit slower in the early morning. I never use a tripod as it is much too cumbersome for a butterfly’s movement and action. I do use my Bogen 3221w tripod and the 3030 head when I shoot caterpillars. I usually use the autoexposure program on my camera, but recently I’ve gotten good results shooting on aperture priority and cranking the lens wide open at f2.8. Most of the time, with the help of my MF-16 multi-control back, I also auto-bracket three or five shots at either +.7, normal and -.7, or +1.0, +.5, normal, -.5, and -1.0. I always utilize the built-in spot metering and I usually shoot with the close-up vari-program. The choice of using auto-focus or manual focus varies. If the butterfly is large and slower, like the monarch, I like using the manual focus because I know I’ll have time to adequately focus. However, if the butterfly is smaller and quicker, like the gulf fritillary, I’ll usually use the autofocus because it has a higher possibility of getting the shot. The exception to this is if I’m shooting a very small and very hyper butterfly, like the cassius blue, then I go back to manual focus because the auto-focus has difficulty keeping up with these little guys. The spot-focusing feature is also an added asset, as it helps to focus in more precisely and efficiently. Butterfly photography has brought me some wonderful gifts, and some amazing photographs. One of gifts has been that of patience. I have learned to be patient and enjoy my surroundings as I await the best photo opportunity. Often times, if I’m patient and “don’t push the river”, I find that butterflies will often return to the same or similar spot and I catch the shot. Other times I’ve captured some midair shots by simply staying with the image, even if the butterfly begins to take-off. My old tendency, which still kicks up, was to jerk my camera when the butterfly would begin to move…..Needless to say, this new attitude of butterfly photography beats the old method of chasing them all over my neighborhood, and the results speak for themselves. In summary I can say that butterfly photography has taught me to appreciate life more. I often see the butterfly lay it’s eggs on a host plant, followed shortly thereafter by small caterpillars. As these caterpillars grow and devour the host plants, I often see them wandering off to become the chrysalis. Occasionally I’m there to see them burst forth from their cocoons into their new dimension of flying, only to return to the host plant and begin the process all over again. I know of no greater gift than to witness this amazing transformation of life, and to capture so much of it on film….Yes, that is my story and I’m stickin’ to it… Butterfly, as you flutter by with such beauty and grace Please, my friend, look into the camera so I may photograph your face Butterfly, oh Butterfly… Teach me Life as you flutter by