This photo is a perfect example of why I typically fire off quick bursts of many shots of my subjects rather than just one or two.
1/4000, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Yesterday morning I paid another visit to the favorite perch (a vertical serviceberry stem in the mountains) of the male Broad-tailed Hummingbird that I posted a few photos of several weeks ago. He used to spend most of his time here watching for intruders and chasing them off but in the half hour+ I spent there yesterday he only showed up twice for a total of about a minute on the perch.
But yesterday he threw in a new twist that I appreciated. In the past he nearly always had his back to me so he could look down into the bottom of the valley in the background and watch for approaching intruders. But both times yesterday he faced to my left which gave me a nice side view and good light on most of the bird.
It’s frustrating because in order to get his flashy gorget to light up fully he has to be facing me directly but when he does that his eyes are mostly hidden and his bill seems to disappear when it’s pointed straight at me. This one shot out of dozens was at the perfect head angle to get most of the rose-red iridescent colors of his gorget to show and still have a good look at his eye and the side of his face. As a bonus he was performing a quick but beautiful wing and tail stretch when it happened.
This is why I take lots of photos of my subjects instead of just firing off one or two when I get a nice pose. I know several bird photographers who are much more cautious and discriminating with their shutter finger but typically they’d have missed this shot because it happened so fast.
I didn’t even know I captured this fortunate combination until I got home and looked at my photos on the big screen.
Ron
Note: As per usual there was a down side to the angle of this pose. I’m sure that flared tail would have been beautiful if we were seeing it more from behind but at this angle we only get a hint of what could have been. But I’ll take those gorget colors any day of the week.
Spectacular shot Ron!
Charlotte
Thanks, Charlotte.
So many colors, or should I say iredescenses? I’m not sure there are names for all the hues.
There probably isn’t, Lyle.
What an absolutely glorious splash of colour. It is still dark here, but this hummer gives me hope for a colourful day to come (albeit one without a single hummingbird).
I hope your wish for a colorful day comes through, EC.
Beautiful pose, nice stretch and colors.
Thanks, April.
Ron, a beautiful photo of this guy. He looks a little grumpy to me and his gorget looks like a beard. We’re still seeing Hummers at our feeder and they seem to be a bit competitive. They go so fast that I’m not sure who is chasing who away from the feeder. Hummers are my favorite bird. Thank you, Ron
“A bit competitive”. Now there’s an understatement, Alice!
Hummers are my favorite bird. This weekend I re-watched two Nature series about them and they are amazing creatures. I have had black chins at my feeders in what I think is the regular numbers.I know of one nest in and oak tree in my neighbor’s yard. Can’t see it for the leaves but saw it last winter and it is the second one we have had here..
Betty, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an active hummingbird nest.
Keep that trigger finger pressed down. He gave you a perfect pose and you did not fail to take advantage of it. To my eye that is a perfect photo in every way.
Thanks very much, Everett. Glad you like it.
Lovely photo! This bird looks so much like the Ruby Throats we get…the gorget seems to be the same color. The iridescence is the prize worth waiting for.😍 I also like that touch or orange on those tail feathers. It is always nice to check those photos on the computer…I’ve been surprised more than once. I have two that frequent my feeder and are now heading into my flower beds as their favorites are beginning to bloom. Their numbers have diminished over the past few years…I could actually sit on my front porch and have at least 8-12 of them come to the feeders but no more. I’m waiting for my Cardinal flowers to bloom; I usually get an influx of them at that time; out in the country I know they prefer natural sources to sugar water.
Kathy, I’m seeing fairly good numbers of hummers in the mountains but part of that is probably because I know how to find them better than I used to. They’re so darned small that they’re very easy to miss.
Can you let this birder in on your secret about how to find them better in wild settings?
Pam, for me two things work best as I’m driving very slowly along mostly dirt roads in mountain canyons looking for birds.
Listen for them. I often hear hummers before I see them, including the sound of their wings.
Look for them perched at the top of vertical twigs sticking out of bushes (just like the one in this photo). The males in particular like to perch in places like that when they’re defending their territory and they’re so small they’re very hard to spot unless you’re deliberately watching for them on conspicuous perches like that.
I often wonder how many of them I pass by within a few feet without spotting them.
Thanks so much. I will apply that knowledge in the field, starting today, 7/7/19. Hopefully, I will be able to confirm more hummer distribution in southern Wisconsin.
May not everything you’d like in a photo of the hummer BUT – I LUV it! 🙂 All the colors, the stretch, and a look that says “and who are you?!” 🙂 Different mix of birds this year as far as numbers of each species. Think the winter played hell with much of it besides, perhaps, long term trends. An unusual occurrence the other day was a flock of water fowl of some sorts way high in V formation heading N at the moment and they weren’t “honkers”. Pretty later for that type of behavior.
It’s been a weird year for weather all around. Here it is July already and this high desert is more green than I’ve ever seen it this time of year. But fire season is almost here (there have been several small ones already) so I suspect we’ll have to pay the piper. Thanks, Judy.
The late hard freeze here also means few berries here for birds. It’s “green” here for July also……
What a shot. So many of the Hummer’s colors show up, and he blends in with the stem. Beautiful!
“So many of the Hummer’s colors show up”
Yes, that’s another thing I like about this shot, Jean. I got about as much iridescence over his entire body to show up as possible. Ol’ Murphy stayed off of my shoulder this time… 🙂
Beautiful shot! Have the same problem with Ruby-throate.
However, we’ve noticed around here that for some reason hummingbird activity has diminished considerably. We are concerned because not only have hummers been scarce, but we have seen very few butterflies which is extremely unusual for this time of year.
Dick, I’m seeing many reports of seriously diminished nesting activities of birds, including an almost complete lack of nesting in several high arctic species. It’s highly disturbing.