https://www.beelover.net/ Macro photography of native and solitary bees by Adli Wahid, Australia en-au Adli Wahid https://www.beelover.net/stories/2026-anba-conference-photo-competition/ Mon, 14 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/stories/2026-anba-conference-photo-competition/ I submitted a few photos to the 2026 ANBA Conference Photo Competition . Based on past experience entering competitions, I wasn’t really expecting much. However, I was quite happy to learn that one of my photos received 2nd place in the People’s Choice category. You can see the photo of the Hylaeus nubilosus in the 2025 Gallery . https://www.beelover.net/stories/australian-native-bee-2026-family-planner/ Mon, 15 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/stories/australian-native-bee-2026-family-planner/ Last year, I contributed two photographs to the Australian Native Bee 2026 Planner and Calendar. This was the second time my photos had been included in the project. The planner is produced by Lisa Warman, who is also a member of the Bee Aware of Your Native Bees Facebook group. I find it both beautiful and educational, with plenty of useful information about Australian native bees. I’m happy to have contributed to the project again and to see my photographs used in something that helps more people learn about native bees. https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2024/ Sat, 13 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2024/ Bee Studio I’m very fortunate to have the male banded Amegilla roosting (read: sleeping) in the garden. What this means is that I have more time to set up the shot, including using leaves of different colours as backgrounds. My favourite shots are the Ceratina australensis (small carpenter bee), which is also nesting in the backyard, and the Megachile (Coelioxys) sp. https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2025/ Sat, 13 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2025/ The Usual Suspects It’s more or less the usual suspects this year, but I think this is the first time I’ve got to photograph the different carpenter bee species — including the smallest of them all, Ceratina australensis. I also got lucky finding a neon cuckoo bee roosting in the backyard. https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2026/ Sat, 13 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2026/ https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2022/ Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2022/ The New Place 2022 was a special year for two reasons: I was back to doing international travel for work, and we moved to a new house. So the photos in this collection were taken from two different locations — or suburbs. I bought another manual focus lens, the Lester A. Dine 105mm f/2.8 (also known as the dentist lens), and ended up using it more than the Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/4. The main reason? The Lester Dine gives me 1:1 magnification without needing an extension tube. https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2023/ Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2023/ Colours of Life I planted portulaca flowers because they’re drought tolerant. Turns out they make a pretty colourful studio for the Lasioglossum (Homalictus) sp. My bee hotels were also getting different types of Megachile sp. Another happy moment: seeing my Dianella flower for the first time since I planted them. They’ve been pulling in more native bees especially the Lipotriches sp., which has been great to watch. I ended up with another vintage macro lens, the Panagor PMC Auto Macro 90mm f/2.8. It is slightly lighter than the Lester Dine, and seems to be able to give me good results. https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2021/ Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2021/ New Discovery 2021 was the year things slowly came together — photographically speaking, that is. I got more comfortable with the gear and started experimenting with getting more than 1:1 magnification using the Raynox DCR-250 and the reverse lens technique. I also messed around a lot with flash and diffusers. Lots of hits and misses, but there were plenty of a-ha moments. A couple of highlights from the year. For the first time, I finally got to photograph male Amegilla sp. roosting at night. I also discovered a nesting site for the Lasioglossum (Homalictus) sp. right next to the house. https://www.beelover.net/articles/derivative-work/ Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/articles/derivative-work/ Beelover photos used by artists https://www.beelover.net/articles/references/ Sun, 07 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/articles/references/ My reading references https://www.beelover.net/articles/my-gear/ Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/articles/my-gear/ Close-up Photography Gear https://www.beelover.net/articles/photographing-bees-tips-and-techniques/ Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/articles/photographing-bees-tips-and-techniques/ Personal tips for photographing bees https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2019/ Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2019/ Photos from 2019 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2020/ Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/galleries/2020/ The Lockdown Era Here are some photos I took in 2020, the year of the Covid-19 pandemic and global lockdowns. Thankfully, I had a backyard to escape to. This is what I wrote for an article on photography during 2020 for The Lovepost: The lockdown initially slowed down my photography activities, but that did not last long. While I couldn’t go out and about on the streets, I found an amazing, colourful world that I hadn’t noticed before right in my backyard. https://www.beelover.net/stories/bee-kisses/ Sun, 24 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/stories/bee-kisses/ Yesterday I posted a photo of a Lipotriches bee buzz-pollinating my tomatoes in the Bee Aware of Your Native Bees Facebook group. Dr Megan Halcroft picked up the photo and shared something really enlightening with the group. Here’s what she said — turns out the marks a bee leaves on a flower after buzz-pollinating it have a name of their own: a “bee kiss”. https://www.beelover.net/stories/powerful-pollinators-guide-seq-edition/ Thu, 07 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/stories/powerful-pollinators-guide-seq-edition/ In March this year (2023), I got a message from Dr Rachelle Wilson asking if I’d be interested in sharing a bee photo for a project she was working on. The project turned out to be a planting guide to support bees and other pollinators in South East Queensland. I shared two photos, and one was accepted — a Lasioglossum sp. pollinating an eggplant. Then in August, I got another email saying the guide was ready — you can download it here . It’s produced by the Wheen Bee Foundation , who have similar planting guides for other regions around Australia. https://www.beelover.net/stories/cross-pollinator-march-2023/ Sun, 14 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/stories/cross-pollinator-march-2023/ I have been a member of the Australian Native Bee Association (ANBA) for several years. It is great to be part of a community that cares about Australian native bees and brings together enthusiasts, beekeepers and experts. ANBA’s local branches, including the Brisbane branch, regularly organise talks and other activities. I once gave a presentation at one of these events about photographing bees. Members also receive The Cross Pollinator, ANBA’s regular newsletter and invited to contribute content - i.e. articles, photos etc. For the March 2023, edition I shared a photo of the Teddy Bear bee (Amegilla sp.). https://www.beelover.net/about/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/about/ My interest in bee photography began after I photographed my first blue-banded bee in 2019. That experience led me to discover the beautiful world of native and solitary bees. BeeLover.net is where I share photos of the bees I observe, along with field notes and articles about close-up photography. I also post some of my observations on iNaturalist and Instagram. I’m not a bee researcher, and I understand from experts that it can be difficult to make a reliable identification from photographs alone. I normally ask for help from members of the Bee Aware of Your Native Bees Facebook group or the community on iNaturalist. https://www.beelover.net/licensing/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.beelover.net/licensing/ All photographs on this site are © Adli Wahid. All rights reserved. Personal and educational use — You may share individual photos for non-commercial purposes with clear attribution (photographer name + link to this site). Academic and research use — Researchers wishing to use photographs in papers, theses, or scientific publications are welcome to do so with proper attribution. Please get in touch before publication so I can provide a higher-resolution file if needed.