Camera Talk

Here in southern Arizona, near the Huachuca Mountains, we have about 50 different species of hummingbirds. Recently, I've been attempting to learn how to photograph them. I took 112 photos last night and culled them down to six, which I then cropped and adjusted a bit.













Briefly, I set the D700 on a tripod 12-15 ft from the feeder, and pre-focused the 70-300mm lens (set at 300mm, AF and VR off). I attached the wireless remote release (only about a $20 item). Camera settings were ISO 1100, f/11, aperture priority. Resulting shutter speed was about 1/2000 sec.

I poured myself a nice drink and sat on the patio about 20 ft from the camera. I sipped and snapped. The hummingbirds did not seem to be concerned about the camera clicking, even though I had forgotten to lock the mirror up.

Hope that you enjoy these.

Best regards,
Dennis

These are fantastic, Dennis! And I jealous of the variety of hummers you get there.

Good job, Dennis. I went home one time, and my Mom said something about not seeing any hummers around for a long time. I went out the front door a few minutes later, and while standing on the porch, saw this little black dot heading straight for me. It was a hummingbird, and it stopped about two feet from my face, and hovered for twenty seconds. I went back inside and told Mom she just wasn't looking in the right direction.

PF

Dennis,
Those pictures of Hummingbirds are just terrific; I've looked at all of them 5 or 6 times. I've heard about the greater variety of HB species in the West, but I think I've only seen one other species besides the Ruby Throated one which we see here in Minnesota. Your technique isolates the birds against the sky so well and the depth of field is great. I hope that you'll post more photos along this line again.

Bill Delehanty

Awesome pictures, Dennis. It takes a lot of eye and preparation to capture these images. Thanks for sharing!

These are wonderful! Is the guy with the purple spot on his breast a Lucifer Hummingbird? We have lots of hummers here, but they are all Ruby Throats.

Thank you all for your very kind comments. It makes me think that I should mix alcohol and photography more frequently.

The problem with keying the hummingbirds (according to my wife, who is a good birder) is that right now we are seeing a lot of immature birds. She's looked at my photos, handed me a beginner's guide, and wished me luck. Best I can do is the following:
#1 Black chinned female
#2 Same
#3 Foreground: Black chinned male
#4 Black chinned male (some have the purple lower half of throat)
#5 Immature Anna's hummingbird male
#6 Black chinned female

I'll keep trying for more varieties. Thanks for viewing.

Dennis

I love hummingbirds, and sadly we don't see them too often where I live. These are great shots!

And obviously, alcohol and photography mix very well!