Damselflies can’t smile – but their wide-open mandibles make them appear to be grinning broadly or even sticking out their tongue, says Benjamin Salb, who photographed one of the insects, pictured above, at a pond in his local park in Gaithersburg, Maryland, last year.

It is among Salb’s winning and commended entries in the Royal Entomological Society’s 2024 Photography Competition. Another commended image is shown below. Captured by Tyler Redford, it shows a violet leaf beetle (Chrysolina sturmi) clinging to grass stalks. Redford had been searching for spiders, but was struck by the beetle’s “insane” iridescent tones.

Taking eye-catching pictures of insects requires lots of patience, luck and muscle memory, says Salb. He aims to photograph them during warmer months in the pre-dawn hours, when they are less active. Multiple shots are taken at different focal lengths and then combined to increase the depth of field in the final product, which is often a result of dozens of images.

The picture of the damselfly – exact species unknown – is one of Salb’s favourites because it features the insect’s symmetrical pseudopupils: the dark ovals that appear on the compound eyes, which are made up of many lenses.

“I love photographing damselflies because they’re capable and fierce predators with an almost cartoonish look when seen close-up,” says Salb. “I find them to be good subjects to share with kids – and adults – to get them more interested in the small world around us.”

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