Macroglossum stellatarum (Humming bird hawk moth)

Macroglossum stellatarum (Common name: Humming bird hawk moth)

We noticed this moth in Cephallonia, in August 2008. We were both shooting it, trying to get a good photo of it, which was just not possible. The moth is extremely fast and does not stay still for a second; the photos were just not acceptable. It took two hours in the hot mid-day sun and a bit of luck next day (we found the same moth in the gardens of the monastery of Aghios Gerasimos, harvesting a flower) to come up with some close up photos of it.

Photos by Marina Parha and George J. Reclos
 
Shooting Data:

1. Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: Tamron 180 mm f/3.5 Macro
Sensitivity: ISO 200
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/640 sec - f/6.3, Manual mode
Flash: no flash
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS3, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.

2. Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Nikkor AF 80-200mm f/2.8 ED D
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/640 sec - f/8, Aperture priority, -0.67EV
Flash: no flash
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS3, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.

3. Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Nikkor AF 80-200mm f/2.8 ED D
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/500 sec - f/8, Aperture priority, -0.67EV
Flash: no flash
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS3, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.

4. Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: Tamron 180 mm f/3.5 Macro
Sensitivity: ISO 200
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/640 sec - f/6.3, Manual mode
Flash: no flash
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS3, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.

5. Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: Tamron 180 mm f/3.5 Macro
Sensitivity: ISO 200
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/800 sec - f/7.1, Manual mode
Flash: no flash
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS3, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.