{"id":135177,"date":"2024-09-30T02:46:50","date_gmt":"2024-09-30T07:46:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=135177"},"modified":"2024-09-29T19:04:56","modified_gmt":"2024-09-30T00:04:56","slug":"focusing-on-eastern-carpenter-bees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/09\/30\/focusing-on-eastern-carpenter-bees\/","title":{"rendered":"Focusing On Eastern Carpenter Bees"},"content":{"rendered":"

If I hadn\u2019t been focused on photographing insects two days ago, I wouldn\u2019t be able to share these photos of female and male Eastern Carpenter Bees. I’m glad I did.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Eastern Carpenter Bee in flight \u2013 Canon R7, handheld, f9 1\/400, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I took forty-six photos of this male Eastern Carpenter Bee<\/span><\/a> in flight, hoping to get a few sharp images of him flying close to some blooming flowers.<\/p>\n

Out of those forty-six photos, there may have been only four or five that weren’t sharp enough to meet my standards.<\/p>\n

I love photographing handheld and on foot again! My ‘keeper rate’ has really shot up.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale (L) and female (R) Eastern Carpenter Bees \u2013 Canon R7, handheld, f9 1\/500, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

This image shows the same male carpenter bee in flight next to a female who was nectaring on blooming sedum blossoms. I initially thought they were different species of carpenter bees because they look different.<\/p>\n

I used iNaturalist<\/span><\/a> to identify the male, which helped me realize they were the same species of carpenter bee.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale and female Eastern Carpenter Bees side by side \u2013 Canon R7, handheld, f9 1\/500, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Photographing the male bee approaching the female on the flowering sedum was challenging.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t use the animal eye focus feature of the Canon R7 because it kept locking onto the black spots on the bees\u2019 backs.<\/p>\n

But once again, my keeper rate was high, and I loved these two images of the female and male bees.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Eastern Carpenter Bee on blooming sedum \u2013 Canon R7, handheld, f9 1\/400, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Getting close to the carpenter bees didn\u2019t worry me, even though I\u2019m highly allergic to many insect bites and stings. The male Eastern Carpenter Bees can\u2019t sting because they don\u2019t have a stinger. The females usually don\u2019t sting unless handled roughly, and I don\u2019t plan on ever handling them.<\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t given up photographing birds. They\u2019ll always be my favorite subject, and I\u2019m still photographing them. But when other subjects in nature present themselves, I\u2019m going to focus on them too.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my insect and spider images.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If I hadn\u2019t been focused on photographing insects two days ago, I wouldn\u2019t be able to share these photos of female and male Eastern Carpenter Bees.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":135159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,15786,13951],"tags":[4004,970,2464,6513,6098,6557,7353,15794,15795,15792,4620,4070,4052,6518,13931,1799,4062,15760,8018,15793,13966],"class_list":["post-135177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-eastern-carpenter-bees","category-sebastian-county","tag-adult","tag-autumn","tag-bee","tag-bees","tag-blooming","tag-blooms","tag-blossoms","tag-carpenter-bee","tag-carpenter-bees","tag-eastern-carpenter-bee","tag-fall","tag-female","tag-flight","tag-flowering","tag-garden","tag-insects","tag-male","tag-sedum","tag-urban","tag-xylocopa-virginica","tag-yard"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eastern-carpenter-bees-sebastian-county-arkansas-mia-mcpherson-8058.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-zah","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":92845,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/08\/02\/blooming-common-mullein-images\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":0},"title":"Blooming Common Mullein Images","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Two days ago in between taking Willow Flycatcher photos\u00a0 in the Wasatch Mountains I took blooming Common Mullein images because they were nearby.","rel":"","context":"In "Hunt's Bumble Bees"","block_context":{"text":"Hunt's Bumble Bees","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/wildlife\/hunts-bumble-bees\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Common Mullein and two bumble bees, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-mullein-bumble-bees-and-ant-mia-mcpherson-1689.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-mullein-bumble-bees-and-ant-mia-mcpherson-1689.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-mullein-bumble-bees-and-ant-mia-mcpherson-1689.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-mullein-bumble-bees-and-ant-mia-mcpherson-1689.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":94403,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/09\/03\/western-honey-bee-and-common-mullein-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":1},"title":"Western Honey Bee And Common Mullein Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 3, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Both Common Mullein and the Western Honey Bee are introduced, non-native species yet I can't resist photographing them when given the opportunity.","rel":"","context":"In "Honey Bees"","block_context":{"text":"Honey Bees","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/wildlife\/honey-bees\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Western Honey Bee gathering pollen from a Common Mullein, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/western-honeybee-mullein-mia-mcpherson-6423.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/western-honeybee-mullein-mia-mcpherson-6423.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/western-honeybee-mullein-mia-mcpherson-6423.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/western-honeybee-mullein-mia-mcpherson-6423.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":151172,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/08\/01\/summer-eastern-tiger-swallowtail-butterfly-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":2},"title":"Summer Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Today I'm sharing two photos of an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly taken yesterday in Arkansas. The butterfly was very cooperative.","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly in Arkansas, Sebastian County","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-tiger-swallowtail-male-mia-mcpherson-4988.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-tiger-swallowtail-male-mia-mcpherson-4988.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-tiger-swallowtail-male-mia-mcpherson-4988.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-tiger-swallowtail-male-mia-mcpherson-4988.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":151199,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/08\/03\/common-hibiscus-and-bumble-bee\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":3},"title":"Common Hibiscus And Bumble Bee","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 3, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"While at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge yesterday morning, I photographed this Common Hibiscus bloom with a bumble bee during one of my walks.","rel":"","context":"In "Common Hibiscus"","block_context":{"text":"Common Hibiscus","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/trees-shrubs-and-flowers\/shrubs\/common-hibiscus\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Common Hibiscus and feeding bumble bee, Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge, Oklahoma","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-hibuscus-and-bumble-bee-mia-mcpherson-5539.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-hibuscus-and-bumble-bee-mia-mcpherson-5539.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-hibuscus-and-bumble-bee-mia-mcpherson-5539.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/common-hibuscus-and-bumble-bee-mia-mcpherson-5539.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":72945,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/08\/21\/common-sunflower-great-basin-bumble-bee-and-long-horned-bee-at-bear-river-mbr\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":4},"title":"Common Sunflower, Great Basin Bumble Bee And Long-horned Bee At Bear River MBR","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 21, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"When I photographed this Common Sunflower I noticed the Great Basin Bumble Bee right away then I saw the other bee and what appears to be two midges on the upper left quadrant of the flower petals.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Common Sunflower, Great Basin Bumble Bee and Long-horned Bee, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/great-basin-bumble-bee-long-horned-bee-sunflower-mia-mcpherson-5563.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/great-basin-bumble-bee-long-horned-bee-sunflower-mia-mcpherson-5563.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/great-basin-bumble-bee-long-horned-bee-sunflower-mia-mcpherson-5563.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/great-basin-bumble-bee-long-horned-bee-sunflower-mia-mcpherson-5563.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":134870,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/09\/22\/eastern-harvestman-on-blooming-sedum-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":135177,"position":5},"title":"Eastern Harvestman On Blooming Sedum Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 22, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Believe it or not, I'd never photographed any Daddy Long Legs before. I was happy to take photos of an Eastern Harvestman on a blooming sedum two evenings ago.","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Eastern Harvestman on a flowering sedum, Sebastian County, Arkansas","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eastern-harvestman-daddy-long-legs-mia-mcpherson-3056.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eastern-harvestman-daddy-long-legs-mia-mcpherson-3056.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eastern-harvestman-daddy-long-legs-mia-mcpherson-3056.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eastern-harvestman-daddy-long-legs-mia-mcpherson-3056.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135177"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135177\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}