Swallowtail Butterfly Photos

With my new camera this year that actually allows me to take some decent close-up photos, I've been fascinated with capturing images of the bumblebees which I adore. Here are a few of my recent favs (as always, click on the image for a larger view):

The bees love the globe thistle (Echinops banaticus) even more than I do (which is a lot):

A couple of days ago, a swallowtail butterly flitted into the garden, and didn't seem to mind me chasing him around with the camera as he visited my many plantings of Echinacea purpurea (Purple coneflower):




True to its name, the Buddleia davidii (Butterfly bush) is attractive to the Swallowtail butterfly (although the smaller white Cabbage butterfly doesn't seem to give it much attention):