I think I must read it…
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My wife has been wanting pictures of the hummingbirds but the little buggers are skittish. I tried setting up the camera and a long shutter release but the birds are hip to my wife sitting some distance away. I have a wireless trigger but there is some sort of interference nearby that messes with it.
I just bought a trigger that works with bluetooth. You set up the phone to monitor the area for motion and then the phone triggers the camera. A bit of a learning curve to dial in the sensitivity and shutter delay but I’ll get there. It also has several different ways to trigger so I have a new toy to play with.
Plus you have to use manual focus which is hard for these tired eyes so I have to trust the camera. Tonight we try for hummingbirds if I can get the very expensive lens back from my daughter. I can also use the fancy flash if I can remember how to use the wireless triggers.
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Very cool stuff here!
When I was taking pictures of my old hummingbird feeder, I used to place the camera a good distance away from the birds and sit in a chair very quietly. I used a shutter cable to get a little further away and hoped the birds didn’t mind me. Fortunately I managed to gain their trust after a while.
Later I started doing more daring things, like hanging one of those cheap Chinese ringlights near the feeder in order to light up the feathers and enhance their iridescent effect. As I lived in an apartment, I didn’t like to use the flash so as not to disturb the neighbors.
A little after these experiences, I started to hang the sugary water fountain in the patio and took advantage of the morning hours to photograph with the sunlight right over the birds.
I used the camera in manual mode, except for the focus. I focused on the feeder first, then I turned off the autofocus, set a small aperture, a high ISO and a high speed to “freeze” the hummingbirds’ flight. I used to sit there for one or two hours. I had my cap e a bottle of cold water or tea. I sipped my beverage while I waited for the birds to come.
The neighbors must have thought I was, at the very least, eccentric. But as time passed, they began to admire the birds that buzzed through the garden.
I once read that photographers usually use remote flashes placed right by the feeders and use it to get bright pictures.
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She is very cute. But now she is getting older I think she turned into a unruly teenager.
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This is why my wife hates asking me to take a picture. She’s happy with blurry camera phone photos, I prefer making a federal case. For me getting there and playing with equipment is most of the fun. She was excited when I showed her how it works and the possibilities.
I also have a great wife that let’s me buy cool toys. That trigger was 120 bucks. She also said I could get a new mirrorless but I have a bunch of money in lenses that aren’t compatible. Now I’m trying to convince myself.
Fortunately our hummingbirds show up at the same time every evening.
That’s a good article. Taping the feeder holes to get the bird in the right spot is the best tip.
I don’t think I’ll get national geographic quality but I’m going to have fun trying.
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So do I.
Nobody understand our crazy hobbies. Sigh.
Same here. They started to arrive as the sun rise over the horizon and usually left after the dusk.
I like your pictures.
I have the same opinion. I get very satisfied with my pictures. As long as I’m having fun, I keep taking my photos.
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As I was typing that post above my wife said “quick, get the camera, momma is feeding baby”.
I missed the feeding but momma left baby in our shrub while she gathered up bugs.
And old guy decided the new baskets were for him.
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Okay, it was hard playing with the the motion trigger so I set it all up and my wife, who has way more patience than me, sat out there for close to two hours firing the shutter manually from a distance.
I love the bluetooth shutter release.
Normally about this time of day the sun dances on the feeder but today it was very cloudy so I started with no flash then onboard flash then a speed light. The speed light is going to work the best but I need to under expose next time and I will put a reflector to light from the side as well. I’m also going to rig a movable stand for the feeder from a sturdy light stand so I can get it with the right amount of sun using a reflector instead of flash.
Not bad for a first time. The last one is with the speed light, a very old SB600. The lens was an older but very capable Nikon 50mm f/1.4 set at 2.8.
It was very fun setting up and watching my wife get excited to be the one taking the pictures.
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Parabéns! Congratulations!
The photos turned out really good. Looks like you got at least two different species of hummingbirds drinking at your nectar bar.
The little fellow with the red collar is very beautiful.
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The last picture looks like that blue Avatar Guy.
I bet this cat now hates humans.
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That is beautifully weird, in all the good ways!
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WTF is that on your nose?
Where is the rest of that pigeon?
Seriously tho, who would not want to be reincarnated as a dog?
ETA Forgot who, literally.
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I’d really like to see kitten schools happen, because from my experience, many folks don’t realize how traumatizing it can be for kittens when their owners think they can just treat them the same as puppies.
Cats don’t think like dogs. Period.
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