If you want to get extremely close to insects, you may have to convince them to stop moving somehow.

Sadly I have yet to come across tranquilliser darts for bumblebees (if you know of any, post a comment!), so killing them is the only way to persuade them to sit still.

Is it OK to kill insects to photograph them?

It sounds terribly barbaric, but it isn’t, really: If you make one of these jars correctly, you can kill insects quickly and painlessly. If you feel bad about it afterwards, you can always bury it in a tiny grave and sing it a song – make sure you get photos first, though!

Entomologists (that’s really just a posh word for people who collect insects) have perfected the art of killing insects as humanely as possible, by using a ‘killing jar’. To make a rudimentary killing jar, use a reasonably large jar with a tightly closing lid.

Cut out a circle of an old t-shirt or other thick cotton material, and make sure it fits snugly on the bottom of the jar. You’ll want a few layers of cotton. To this jar, add enough ethyl acetate (you can buy this from lab suppliers and hobby stores – be careful not to breathe it in yourself though, it’s nasty stuff!) to saturate the cotton, but no more. Put your insects in the jar, and leave them for a few minutes to kill them.

Wanna learn more? Check out killing jars on Wikipedia, or this article on the University of Illinois website!

For approximately ten billion more tips (and photos!) like this, check out my book – it’s on sale in exactly a month, but you can pre-order it today!

Do you enjoy a smattering of random photography links? Well, squire, I welcome thee to join me on Twitter - Follow @Photocritic