Superb shots my friend. You're having fun with that lens for sure! Interestingly enough, my first macro shots were of bees on flowers too. It was on a photowalk with a photo instructor in Luxembourg city. He let me borrow his macro lens.

I'd expose a stop higher or, if you're shooting RAW, increase the exposure by a stop or two . Macro's tough though, really tough. That narrow depth of field makes focussing tricky!

Nice to see your enjoying it and I liked your write-up too. Very creative!