e-Photograbee!

Tag: nature

  • Happy Pollinator Week 2026

    June 22-28, 2026 is Pollinator Week, and I darn near missed it! (I was a bit wrecked after the Solstice Market, to be honest.) But here we are.

    A very colorful square graphic sharing that it's Pollinator week. A photo shows a hoverfly resting on a bright yellow and red Gaillardia flower at the bottom. Photograbee.com logo on the side. Text: "YouDO know not all pollinators are bees right? RIGHT? ;)" Learn more from these guys! And a right arrow pointing to a circle logo for Pollinator.org.
    Pollinator Week 2026

    And, while bees are sort of my jam, I love all of nature and her amazing beauty and bounty. Including all of her other pollinators, of which there are MANY.

    Not only are there over 30,000 species of bees around the world (of which around 24,000 are now named I believe), there are many thousands of other bugs that also pollinate flowers, including several flies, mosquitoes and beetles, among others.

    Birds and bats ALSO pollinate flowers. And I’m betting there are even more critters I’m missing.

    Find out more here at Pollinator.org.

  • The sleeping bees are coming to eBay and more! 11/1/25

    The sleeping bees are coming to eBay and more! 11/1/25

    I’m going to start listing the Sleeping Bees duo of cards I just shared in my last post on eBay starting November 1st too! (I was just working out shipping details.)

    ETA 6/23/26: I just finally managed to get some video uploaded and working in the blog, so I’m adding it in below! And I plan to refresh things on eBay soon too. (I’ve neglected them in favor of craft markets, for better or worse.) Now back to the original post…

    Their origin story is so hilarious! I dragged myself to my community garden on July 16th, 2025 (it was around 97 degrees F that day – too hot for me and the garden) to water my poor thirsty plot, and slid over to the Gaillardia (red and yellow blanket flower) patch as per usual. But I only had my phone camera on me, as it was so hot. (I live in the same range as butter: when it melts, I melt.)

    Anyway, that’s when I encountered the FIRST image below, where no less than six longhorn bees were snoozing sweetly away in a perfect circle around the center of a single Gaillardia flower blossom, swaying peacefully in the breeze. Totally unbothered. Bums up. Shown here:

    Photo of a notecard made with a photo of six longhorn bees sleeping neatly and sweetly away around the center of a red and yellow Gaillardia flower.
    Sleeping sweetly July 16th

    I snapped several shots and took a little video to prove this was NOT Photoshop nor AI! (I rarely use either, honestly.) Here’s a small snip:

    Dreamy sleepy bees

    So I swore I’d return the next day with my Nikon Z50 to see if I got as lucky again. Well, the laugh was on me! Because there was not one single bee sleeping sweetly away in any fresh fully open Gaillardia blossoms like the day before – oh no. That would be too easy, Jan. You had your chance yesterday!

    No – they were all clustered up twerking while clinging to the tattered petals of a bedraggled, spent (mature) Gaillardia blossom, also swaying gently in the breeze, looking like a biker gang after a bender! LOL! Here you go:

    Ahh… I laughed so hard! That’ll teach me – ALWAYS have your camera on you, silly! But, if you don’t, the best camera (as always) is whatever you have on hand at the time the image presents itself. (Yay for quick reflexes.) Here’s that image I’m calling “The After Party”:

    Photo of a large notecard with a photo of a gang of longhorn bees dangling from the tattered petals of a bedraggled Gaillardia flower. Looking like they were on a bender.
    The After Party 7/17.

    Ahhh… people love both images separately for different reasons I’m finding. As well as the pair together, for the contrast. (I have all three sizes available now.)

    Update: Get them from me live at markets, else on eBay for now 4/23/26.

    PS I’m lining up multiple holiday markets, but not all are confirmed yet. Some may get confirmed at the last minute so stay tuned on my socials (see links below) for late-breaking updates. (I try to keep this up to date, but don’t always succeed.) Cheers.

    Jan and the Sleepy Bees October 29th, 2025.

  • Why the limited catalog?

    Why the limited catalog?

    So I know you, Jan, and you’ve taken thousands of shots since you picked up your first DSLR (your beloved trusty old Nikon D60) in 2008. I KNOW you have many more cool images up your sleeve. Why the limited catalog here?

    Photo showing a green-hued hummingbird feeding from a deep red lucifer crocosmia flower in the sun.

    Well, first off, dear follower, you’re absolutely right, I have thousands of other images. But, barely 1% of those are worth sharing. And yes, I constantly take more, every chance I get. However, yes, that leaves at least 100 worth sharing. So why don’t I show them all here yet?

    Because, if someone buys a set of my cards, and then gets back in touch and says “Could I get another 4-pack of the one with the flowers and bees?” – uhm, well, I’d need help figuring out exactly WHICH flower, and WHICH bees, as I have so many! (Pro-tip: you can see lots of my most recent shots on my social media accounts, especially X and BlueSky. Links down below.)

    So. To make my aging life easier, I’ve established a limited catalog here to start. BUT… I am steadily expanding it as time and energy permit. (I just added a new fourth category – SUNDRY – this weekend!) But again, this way, if anyone wants more of one or another image, they can peek on my website, and say “B1 please“. (This literally just happened the other day.) Boom! Easy! Done!

    This keeps things more manageable for both of us. Enjoy! And don’t forget to leave me feedback on eBay – thank you!! xo – Jan

  • What else is there?

    Don’t look now, but I just hatched a brand new bouncing baby category: SUNDRY.

    You know, for all those “various and sundry” odds and ends that don’t neatly fit into any other category! You know, like birds, squirrels and fall foliage.

    Semi close-up crisp shot of a cute common Oregon brown finch looking proudly at the camera as if in defiance. Despite some crumbs on its beak.
    Proud finch

    I know, I know, I could cook up more categories, but this works for me – for now. Most of what I have fits into Flowers, Bees and Scenics. But, we’ll see how this goes.

    Anyway, go take a peek and see what’s cooking in my new category.

    Jan Aug 11, 2025

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