Amongst the petals

Flower Crab Spiders do not actively hunt for prey nor do they build webs to catch prey, instead they sit on a flower and wait for an unsuspecting pollinating insect to land on the flower. These spiders have a fairly unique ability to match their surroundings by changing colour however they often appear white. As seen in this photo of a female waiting patiently for a pollinator to land in her vicinity. Mature female spiders can catch prey much larger than herself and she relies on her strength and venom to subdue her prey. This photo was taken in my garden, whilst looking for macro photography subjects, in Worcester Park, Surrey, England. These spiders are common in gardens and exploit the flower beds for an easy location to catch a meal. This specimen was found lurking in bright red roses and the contrast of its brilliant white body helps to illuminate the subject and draws the viewers attention. This female is waiting perfectly still until the opportunity arises and I spotted her waiting in the exact spot for hours. The spider was located deep in the large flower, near the centre, hiding amongst the characteristic folds of a Rose. I framed the subject centre of the image looking straight into the lens to draw in the viewer and perhaps demonstrate the view a pollinator could have as its flies towards the flower for some pollen.In order to get this level of detail this image comprises of 58 focus bracketed images stacked together, as the magnification needed for this small spider leads to a very small focus plane. I also wanted to capture the rose in focus too so I extended the focus bracket past the spider to capture the environment that the Spider ambushes its prey in.