The Dragonfly often symbolizes change and transformation, adaptability in life, joy and lightness, and inspires you to look deeper into your emotions and let your true colors shine.

As I welcomed my friends who were arriving to stay for the weekend, we spotted a beautiful golden dragonfly flit around the garden before alighting on a bamboo stick that was supporting some of my veggies. I quickly ran inside to grab my camera, hoping it would stay long enough for me to capture a few photos. I wasn’t disappointed, and ended up being able to walk all around it, getting photos from various angles to capture its wings, legs, and face.

This was the first photograph I have gotten of a dragonfly, and it is going to be added to my Garden Critter collection — which has bees, lady bugs, fuzzy wuzzies, and more. In addition to being fun to see up-close, I use these photographs as references and inspiration for my illustrations and coloring book pages. 

Gardens are a way for us to cultivate life, to grow something and brighten our home, and I love that mine also provides me with an endless array of photography subjects.

Camera Notes

Camera: Pentax K-3, with Pentax 18-135mm lens.

Settings: The lighting was bright, so I was able to have a fast shutter speed and low ISO, as well as a medium depth of field. I was fully zoomed in to 135mm. My settings were 5.6 f/stop, ISO 100, and shutter speed of 1/200 – 1/400.

Photo Processing: For these photos, I did minimal processing, only making a few exposure adjustments using Curves in Photoshop to bring out the brightness and contrast.

Location: My Garden, near Mt. Tabor Park, Portland, OR

*Note: All photos are edited to be small and low quality for web viewing, which unfortunately causes pixelating and decrease in quality. 

About the Author & Artist

Hello, my name is Mackenzie and I am a multipassionate fusion creative. I love animals, the great outdoors, and creating long lasting, deep connections with the people in my life. It is my goal in life to spread love and laughter, and to help brighten the world one moment at a time. My art, photography, writing, and creative projects bring me great joy to create, curate, and share.

If you have a story to tell, want to start a business, or simply want some new photos taken or new art in your life, please get in touch, I would love to work with you.