The sunflowers in the Mast Farm Inn organic gardens are beginning to bloom. This is one of the first and at the time I was shooting it, a bumblebee chose to stop by for a visit. I really like this photo. Though it was a bit breezy outside which generally makes for difficult macro shots, the stiff stalk of the sunflower withstood the wind. The bee was also very cooperative. The golden hues remind me of honey and the mute lighting of the day adds a slight painterly effect to the photo. I did use the Nikon D70 for this, but used my Nikon 105mm macro lens. I operated the camera in aperature priority mode and the white balance was set to 'overcast'. So far, my biggest irritation with the D70 is the aperature stop down button is in an awkward place...or maybe my hands are too small.
