"The bites hurt like a motherf****r"
Some holiday memories come back through photographs. Others come back when you remember just how much an ant bite can hurt.
I’ve just finished editing this close-up from Sri Lanka, and those jaws brought back a particularly memorable encounter.
During our trip, we stayed at an Amaya resort with a special family connection: my brother-in-law, an architect in Sri Lanka, designed and built it. Experiencing a place he had helped bring into being made the stay all the more meaningful. We had the time of our lives there.
Then I dropped my iPhone in the grass.
Searching for a missing phone should be a fairly uneventful activity. In my case, it involved ant bites and a rapid reassessment of how much trouble something that small could cause.
The bites hurt like a motherfucker.
There really isn’t a more honest way to describe it.
The ant in this photograph appears to be an Asian weaver ant, although I can’t be certain of the identification—or whether the same species was responsible for my painful search party. Weaver ants have powerful jaws and can apply formic acid when they bite, which helps explain their painful reputation. Weaver ant facts.
Looking at this image, I have a renewed appreciation for the business end of an ant. The long legs and antennae cut across the frame, while the jaws give this tiny creature an imposing presence. In black and white, the textures and shapes become the whole story.
That’s part of what I love about photographing small subjects: the chance to look closely at something I might otherwise hurry past. Although, after my experience in the grass, hurrying past has its attractions too.
Sri Lanka gave us a wonderful stay, a connection to my brother-in-law’s work, and memories I’ll always treasure.
The ants made sure I remembered them as well.
