Painted lady butterflies tolerate approaches with macro lenses relatively well. That’s why I have repeatedly tried to photograph the faces of these butterflies. Previous successful attempts (see here for example) yielded fascinating images. I continued this experiment during my last painted lady photo session.
I take my extreme macro photos without tripod. However, I use a sturdy bamboo stick as an improvised monopod, against which I press my camera. When taking photos, I cannot see details of butterfly faces. I see them for the first time when I inspect my more or less random shots at a monitor.
The flowers from which the butterfly drinks are Verbena bonariensis, the purpletop vervain. Painted lady butterflies like their nectar very much.