I like the shot Mike and you are you own best judge when you assess it-- you wrote your own critique and I agree--you said it all!

I agree with your analysis completely, Mike. If the bee were absolutely in focus, it would be great.

  Your composition is well done and the placement of all parts are good. As a nature photographer it does not bother me about the flower center not in pure focus. B/G with soft focus and color helps with the color of the flower and bee. I think this photo is well done.

As you said, the composition is good;  It is amazing that the bee is that sharp at 1/45 of a sec.;  Your suggestion of using a flash and shoot at f16 is a good one.
 

Your own critique is right on to me.  The color and composition are good.

My interest in photography began when I was a pre-teen, taking photos of the family pet with a Kodak Brownie camera and processing the film under the basement stairs in a homemade darkroom.

As a teenager, I progressed to an Argus C3 35 mm. camera. Most of my shots were of friends, and close-up work of my uncle’s gold pocket watch.

In my early twenties, while in the Army, I was shooting with a Pentax SLR. While stationed stateside, I entered an Army photo contest that netted my first win. As luck would have it, I was transferred to Germany and, during the next two years, I traveled around Europe taking color and black and white photos. Although I still have many of those prints, negatives and slides, they have lost their crispness.

In the ensuing years, work and family matters took up most of my time, so my photography was mainly done on vacations. However, my interest in photography was rekindled when I purchased a Kodak 3 megapixel digital camera. This exciting new technology with editing software drew me back into being serious about taking quality photographs. Then Nikon introduced the D70 and interchangeable lens at a reasonable price, and I was hooked.