Giving It A Run...

[New England Moments]

I haven't shot Hummers but guessing hmmmmmmmmm, maybe ten times in my life lol...just to Fast,  and after shooting Birds for awhile , I even put some of them on my list of no more attempts... 

Anyway, after some luck last week on this shot




  I was bitten by the bug to try more...

  I was mostly trying to shoot them perched, not easy to find...
  So I then went to the AIR as they approached the feeder...

 

  Butttttttt ya know what, It didn't feel natural to me , I mean seriously, how many photogs can catch a hummer mid air lol... It just had the feel of a tight landscape shot , that was tight to hide uwanteds..  (( FEEDER  ))

  This is what I don't want feeder included... definitely not natural to me anyway..

   
 



   So Today,  again trying to improve shooting the hummers, I also tried a trick...
   Here's today's, I don't know how I feel about them yet, but , I'm not giving up yet either lol..

   I got a bit carried away sharpening I think,,, so something to work on... i'm getting there lol..



   


   and here is the Dirty Trick...

   



    Ok don't throw rocks lol....  I leave with another...  this one was a bit dark , so its one of those I went for a Save on... looks more Arty than a Photo probably... 
    On this one the Flower was Wired to a tree branch  near the feeder , flower and feeder same distance from lens hoping to keep Bird and Flower in same focal length on even plane...



   

   


   

[gfitzgerald]

Nice indeed Tom.  Any recommends for color of flower as I have many different colored Zinnias.  I suspect you have studied about this.   

[New England Moments]

Nice indeed Tom.  Any recommends for color of flower as I have many different colored Zinnias.  I suspect you have studied about this.   

 Not really , but figured the one on the feeder pretty much matched the color they were sipping from...  After I put the Flower up , they hit on it in about 5 mins,  I figured it would take awhile?   The one in the tree was dying of age so I didn't feel bad about picking it lol...

 I think , the hardest thing for me is the light on these guys , ( other that oversharpening which I did here lol )...  The feeder being under the tree is dark usually, and the BG Sky Bright...  So i'm really messing with exposures right now....  I'll get these speedsters before the summer is over lol...   

 I tell ya , I can only sit down and shoot AT THEM lol, for about 2o min sessions... It just drives me crazy...  I think we have just over a Dozen Hummers right now with three feeders...   The one in the Photos uses 2 cups water and 1/2 cup Sugar, and believe it or not , they can drain it in a day....

[gfitzgerald]

Nice indeed Tom.  Any recommends for color of flower as I have many different colored Zinnias.  I suspect you have studied about this.   

 Not really , but figured the one on the feeder pretty much matched the color they were sipping from...  After I put the Flower up , they hit on it in about 5 mins,  I figured it would take awhile?   The one in the tree was dying of age so I didn't feel bad about picking it lol...

 I think , the hardest thing for me is the light on these guys , ( other that oversharpening which I did here lol )...  The feeder being under the tree is dark usually, and the BG Sky Bright...  So i'm really messing with exposures right now....  I'll get these speedsters before the summer is over lol...   

 I tell ya , I can only sit down and shoot AT THEM lol, for about 2o min sessions... It just drives me crazy...  I think we have just over a Dozen Hummers right now with three feeders...   The one in the Photos uses 2 cups water and 1/2 cup Sugar, and believe it or not , they can drain it in a day....

The sitting and waiting plus the fact of trying to get on them and get a sharp photo is kinda rough.  Then the constant exposure changes caused by the lighting from the sun moving over in it's track.  I hardly ever get them in enough sun for a good natural exp and the 300mm needs light and certainly at f8.  I did go out and take some today  as I had one making a nice perch on a Crape Myrtle limb about 4ft from the feeder.  I know it prob used that limb for two hrs.  I still have everything I took on Monday when coming back from NC to do and now the hummer shots.

[pixL]

Thanks for the talk-thru.

[BigSkyKatie]

I love your dirty trick.  Good plan!

[shirlm]

Beautiful shots.  I love your patience and dirty tricks. 

[lafingdog]

Great tricks, thank for posting them!

[bubblesbeer]

i really like shot no 2 i think you have got just the right amount of blurr in the wings but eveything else is nice and crisp for me this is perfect

[Pixelguru]

Tom, I'm torn between enjoying the magic and poetry of these images and my desire to hear about and understand how you achieved them.  It's almost like learning the secrets of the magician.  Somehow the "magic trick" loses a bit of its magic if you know the secret.  I hope you understand the spirit in which I make that statement.  I sort of cringe when you tell me that "the flower was wired to a tree branch near the feeder" and yet, part of me wants to know what went on behind the curtain.      Fascinating stuff.