After having met with fellow photographer Steve Immel, reading a number of Blurb postings featuring the photographic knowledge of Dan Milnor, and pondering methods for putting my photography out into the greater world during the past month, I had a blog formulated in my head for today.  However, when I turned the calendar to September, it hit me that the equivalent of nature's "best by" date was coming for the hummingbirds, which would soon be headed south for the winter season.  I had to get out and shoot them in a serious way.

While living in Taos County, our place was basically the only game in town for sugar water and flowers.  We hung 4 one quart feeders of sugar water, and during the height of the season, it disappeared during a 24 hour period.  Meaning, we had between 60-500 hummingbirds.  Our best bet was between 350 and 400 birds.  I fell in love with these amazing flying machines, and have taken thousands of photographs of them over 25 years, but was reticent to photograph them here because I had trouble locating them.  Not this year.  They had officially found the Zauschneria or hummingbird trumpet in both red/coral and light salmon colors.  Beginning on 31 August, I moved a chair close enough so that I could photograph them with my Nikon D800 with 70-200 lens.  It was isometric work since the system weighs 5.5 pounds (and it pretty much must be hand-held in order to follow the action.)  

Hatchet lighting can be the bane of a phootgrapher's existence, or it can work to her or his advantage, as is the case in several of the images below. The six that follow demonstrate what hatchet light or light and shadow can do for hummingbird photography.  All of the photographs included in today's blog were shot were natural light - no fill or flash of any sort.  The birds are female or possibly young male rufous hummingbirds.  One little lady actually grew longer tail-feathers during the week I was photographing her.      

Birds - hummingbirds - 1 2026 Birds - hummingbirds - 3 2026

I liked the way the rufous here was in shadow with the bright red/coral tips in sunlight.  

Birds - hummingbirds - 4 2026

Another flower they love is the agastache or hummingbird mint, which to me, smells like bubblegum.  The lime green, nearly blinding color in the sunlight is stunning.

Birds - hummingbirds - 5 2026

Birds - hummingbirds - 14 2026
 

Birds - hummingbirds - 7 2026

I know people reading this have different sizes of viewing options, but if you have a large computer screen, you will be able to see not only the pollen on the Zauschneria flower but some pollen grains on her breast feathers.  They look like little white specs.  

Birds - hummingbirds - 18 2026

And hummingbirds actually have to rest from time to time between feeding and guarding their territory.

Birds - hummingbirds - 19 2026

I could go on but will leave you with two more images taken in the last group yesterday, after I reclaimed my mojo.  

Birds - hummingbirds - 23 2026 Birds - hummingbirds - 30 2026

Thanks to Kay C., Pater, TTT, Victoria, Catherine, Steve, Marilyn G., Jean & Sam, Gustavo and Ingrid for commenting on last week's blog.

I hope as the light begins to change and we head toward the autumnal equinox, you are able to utilize it to your best photographic advantage, or simply enjoy the world around you. 

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image©