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Macro Photography in the garden

Vistaphotography Posted on by
Black Swallowtail caterpillar
Black Swallowtail caterpillar

Macro Photography
I wish I could say that this guy… gal? Well, I suppose if we waited a few weeks (2-4), we’d know which one. I wish I could say that he was in my garden, but he was in a conservation garden over in Marblehead. I found seven of them in the garden, but when I came back a few days later, there were only six, then zero. (more on that later)

If you are interested in Butterflies and Caterpillars, check my Benable listing with habitat kits, books, and videos.

Either the survival of the fittest rule is playing a part, or one has wandered off to get into his chrysalis and proceed to the next stage, “the Black Swallowtail butterfly”.

Female Black Swallowtail laying her eggs

At first, I thought it might be a Monarch caterpillar, but while similar in coloration, the Monarch doesn’t have the yellowish spots that run the length of the caterpillar’s body.

monarch caterpillar on milkweed

I shot my first shots with just a 24-105 lens, and it did ok at getting a good look at them, but I still had to crop in to see them close up.

Unlike the Monarch, which only feeds on the milkweed plant, the swallowtail has a wide-ranging preference for host plants. You can find them on Fennel, dill, carrot top, or, as in these pictures, common rue.

A warning about Rue

Don’t “Rue” the day you climb into their leafy greens to get a close shot. (You know I had to say that) But I will admit I didn’t know this when I got my tripod and my camera right in close with their habitat.

Rue is not poison ivy BUT! It can make you itch if you are sensitive. If you get an allergic reaction from just looking at poison ivy. Then I would stay away from rue.

is fueling up on lilac nectar—one of spring’s sweetest scenes. 🖤💛 From a tiny green caterpillar munching parsley to this graceful beauty with yellow-spotted wings and shimmering blue accents, its transformation is pure magic. ✨🦋 Have you spotted one yet this season? #BlackSwallowtail #ButterflyInBloom #PollinatorGarden #SpringButterfly #NatureCloseUp #ButterflyLifeCycle #PapilioPolyxenes #LilacSeason The butterfly in the image is a Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes), a striking and widespread North American species. It features mostly black wings with rows of yellow spots along the edges, and iridescent blue on the hindwings—particularly vivid in females. The body is black with yellow markings, and the undersides of the wings (not visible in this photo) typically show orange eyespots and additional patterning. The butterfly is perched on what appears to be a lilac bloom, a favorite nectar source in spring gardens. In its caterpillar stage, the Black Swallowtail is equally distinctive. It starts off spiny and dark but matures into a smooth, green caterpillar with black bands and yellow dots. It is often found feeding on plants in the carrot family, such as parsley, dill, and fennel.
is fueling up on lilac nectar—one of spring’s sweetest scenes. 🖤💛 From a tiny green caterpillar munching parsley to this graceful beauty with yellow-spotted wings and shimmering blue accents, its transformation is pure magic. ✨🦋 Have you spotted one yet this season? #BlackSwallowtail #ButterflyInBloom #PollinatorGarden #SpringButterfly #NatureCloseUp #ButterflyLifeCycle #PapilioPolyxenes #LilacSeason The butterfly in the image is a Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes), a striking and widespread North American species. It features mostly black wings with rows of yellow spots along the edges, and iridescent blue on the hindwings—particularly vivid in females. The body is black with yellow markings, and the undersides of the wings (not visible in this photo) typically show orange eyespots and additional patterning. The butterfly is perched on what appears to be a lilac bloom, a favorite nectar source in spring gardens. In its caterpillar stage, the Black Swallowtail is equally distinctive. It starts off spiny and dark but matures into a smooth, green caterpillar with black bands and yellow dots. It is often found feeding on plants in the carrot family, such as parsley, dill, and fennel.
is fueling up on lilac nectar—one of spring’s sweetest scenes. 🖤💛 From a tiny green caterpillar munching parsley to this graceful beauty with yellow-spotted wings and shimmering blue accents, its transformation is pure magic. ✨🦋 Have you spotted one yet this season? #BlackSwallowtail #ButterflyInBloom #PollinatorGarden #SpringButterfly #NatureCloseUp #ButterflyLifeCycle #PapilioPolyxenes #LilacSeason The butterfly in the image is a Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes), a striking and widespread North American species. It features mostly black wings with rows of yellow spots along the edges, and iridescent blue on the hindwings—particularly vivid in females. The body is black with yellow markings, and the undersides of the wings (not visible in this photo) typically show orange eyespots and additional patterning. The butterfly is perched on what appears to be a lilac bloom, a favorite nectar source in spring gardens. In its caterpillar stage, the Black Swallowtail is equally distinctive. It starts off spiny and dark but matures into a smooth, green caterpillar with black bands and yellow dots. It is often found feeding on plants in the carrot family, such as parsley, dill, and fennel.
This stunning Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes)
Often called a "parsley worm," this caterpillar is a familiar sight in herb gardens, where it feeds on parsley, dill, fennel, and other members of the carrot family. It's currently preparing for the next phase of its transformation—pupation into a chrysalis—before emerging as a beautiful butterfly.
This image captures a Black Swallowtail caterpillar (Papilio polyxenes) in one of its later instars. The caterpillar is strikingly colorful, with a bright green body marked by bold black bands and rows of yellow-orange spots—warning signs to potential predators that it may be toxic or distasteful.

Macro shooting Tips

In general, we want to get frame-filling images, and this usually calls for a dedicated macro lens. The minimum distance I can get with my standard lens is about 15 inches. And because it will zoom, it will allow me to not have to switch lenses.

I shot these with a 70mm Sigma macro lens, but I traded that for a 100mm f2.8 IS Canon macro lens.

There isn’t much cropping on these shots. Most of the images are at 100%. I tried to hand-hold my camera but quickly realized I needed my tripod.

There is a problem with this, trying to get your camera in close without disturbing their habitat…

Depth of Field (DOF)

Watch your DOF because macro lenses will easily magnify the “lack” of DOF. Real simply DOF or Depth of Field means exactly that, what depth into the image is in focus.

The larvae of American swallowtails are attracted to the oils of plants such as dill, parsley, celery, and carrots. These plants produce specific chemicals that repel insects that try to eat them. American swallowtail larvae are resistant to these chemicals, so when they feed on the plants, the chemicals make them bad-tasting to bird predators. Black Swallowtails are a fairly common but very pretty butterfly with a wingspan of about a 2.5 to 4 inches wide. They are easy to attract to host plants to lay eggs, and the caterpillars are easy to raise also. When Black Swallowtail caterpillars are ready to pupate they tend to wander quite a distance from the plant they were eating.
F2.8 DOF
The larvae of American swallowtails are attracted to the oils of plants such as dill, parsley, celery, and carrots. These plants produce specific chemicals that repel insects that try to eat them. American swallowtail larvae are resistant to these chemicals, so when they feed on the plants, the chemicals make them bad-tasting to bird predators. Black Swallowtails are a fairly common but very pretty butterfly with a wingspan of about a 2.5 to 4 inches wide. They are easy to attract to host plants to lay eggs, and the caterpillars are easy to raise also. When Black Swallowtail caterpillars are ready to pupate they tend to wander quite a distance from the plant they were eating.
F8.0 DOF
The larvae of American swallowtails are attracted to the oils of plants such as dill, parsley, celery, and carrots. These plants produce specific chemicals that repel insects that try to eat them. American swallowtail larvae are resistant to these chemicals, so when they feed on the plants, the chemicals make them bad-tasting to bird predators. Black Swallowtails are a fairly common but very pretty butterfly with a wingspan of about a 2.5 to 4 inches wide. They are easy to attract to host plants to lay eggs, and the caterpillars are easy to raise also. When Black Swallowtail caterpillars are ready to pupate they tend to wander quite a distance from the plant they were eating.
F22 DOF

A lower number for your F-stop means that what is in focus is very limited. and the viewers focus is limited in this case to just the head of the caterpillar. The larger the F-stop, the greater the depth as seen here in the three images.

If you want the whole body in focus, then try to keep the body parallel to the lens. If you place the camera so that you are capturing the caterpillar’s head with the tail off in the distance.

Medium DOF: ISO 500, 70mm (fixed), F11, 1/250th Sec.

In this picture, the head is closest to the lens and the tail is furthest away. Even if I had used an F22 F-stop, it would not have resulted in the full caterpillar being in focus. I included the camera settings under the caterpillar’s image.

So keep the subject aspect to the camera in mind so you can control the DOF and focus correctly on the subject.

Mannerisms of the Caterpillar

As you can see with a couple of the pictures, the caterpillar has spun a belly band after anchoring its toes to the branch. With just those two points to anchor him, he will proceed to go into his/her chrysalis phase. (Sorry, no chrysalis pics because a few days later I went back and they were all gone…) 🙁

I hope that someone came by and took them home to raise “safely” in a butterfly enclosure. This is an affiliate link to my Amazon pg on butterfly kits.

Jeff “Foliage” Folger  

Jeff “Foliage” Folger is a New England-based photographer specializing in autumn colors and scenic landscapes. You can find his work on Fine Art America or follow his latest adventures on Bluesky and Instagram..You can also find him on Facebook

ParsleyWorm #BlackSwallowtail #ButterflyCaterpillar #PapilioPolyxenes #CaterpillarCloseUp #PollinatorGarden #ButterflyLifeCycle #GardenWildlife #NatureMacro #FromCaterpillarToButterfly #GreenCaterpillar #InsectLove #GardenDiscovery #HerbGardenVisitor #MetamorphosisMagic #BackyardEcology

Comments

Macro Photography in the garden — 2 Comments

  1. Very interesting. I never noticed the yellow dot difference on the caterpillars. I have a friend in SAN Diego who has a monarch sanctuary in her back garden. It’s fascinating to observe. Your macro shots are excellent.

    • thanks Donna, As my dads caretaker I spent a lot of time around the house and in the garden… Macro photography kept me sane…

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