A cop pair of Pacific Clubtail dragonflies, Phanogomphus kurilis on Cox Creek, in Albany, Oregon, USA. It is fantastic luck to have a cop pair of any Gomphid species land close enough to approach and photograph without spooking them. Sometimes you only get a few shots and there is no way to de-clutter the surroundings, so your goal should be to get the subjects just as sharp as is possible with your optics. The Nikon D700 is a dream camera for dragonflies in the field and coupled with the 200mm Micro-Nikkor lens at the range of magnifications I work at, no combination has superior sharpness at F32!

A cop pair of #PacificClubtail #dragonflies, #Phanogomphus-kurilis on Cox Creek, #Albany,Oregon,USA.

#Odonata #Insects #Anisoptera #Gomphidae #Invertebrate #Entomology #SteveValleyPhotography #photography #SciArt #NikonD700 #200mmMicro-Nikkor #BugPics #DragonflyPhotography #Macro #Science

A portrait of a male Pacific Clubtail dragonfly, Phanogomphus kurilis on Cox Creek, Albany, Oregon, USA. Territorial males have a series of prominent perches along the narrow stream that allow them to see rivals or females that enter the territory. Focus stacks were shot with a Nikon D810 w/50mm Rodenstock Rodagon mounted on Nikon PB-4 Bellows. A very wary species, but very photogenic! This is the only known population in the Albany vicinity since the population at Freeway Lakes was eliminated by an invasive aquatic weed, Water Primrose, which choked the nymph habitat with mud.

A male #PacificClubtail #dragonfly #Phanogomphus-kurilis on Cox Creek, #Albany,Oregon,USA

#Odonata #Insects #Anisoptera #Gomphidae #Clubtail #Invertebrate #Entomology #FocusStacking #NikonD810 #ZereneStacker #BugPics #DragonflyPhotography #Science #SteveValleyPhotography #photography #SciArt #Art

A male Pacific Clubtail dragonfly, Phanogomphus kurilis on Cox Creek, Albany, Oregon, USA. Territorial males have a series of prominent perches along the narrow stream that allow them to see rivals or females that enter the territory. Shot with a Nikon D700 w/200mm Micro-Nikkor. A very wary species, but very photogenic! This is the only known population in the Albany vicinity since the population at Freeway Lakes was eliminated by an invasive aquatic weed, Water Primrose, which choked the nymph habitat with mud.

A male #PacificClubtail #dragonfly, #Phanogomphus-kurilis on Cox Creek, #Albany,Oregon,USA.

#Odonata #Insect #Anisoptera #Gomphidae #Invertebrate #Anisoptera #Gomphidae #Entomology #SteveValleyPhotography #photography #SciArt #NikonD700 #200mmMicro-Nikkor #BugPics #DragonflyPhotography #Science