Posts in Category: hummingbird
Costa Rica! Violet
Violet Saberwing: Mirador y Soda Cinchona, Costa Rica, December 2023 — The largest of the Central American hummingbirds, common in the foothills and at mid-elevations in the mountains of most of Central America, skipping Guatemala and Nicaragua. This bird, from Costa Rica, is a sub-species of the nominate, common to all of Costa Rica and Western Panama at the right elevations. A stunning bird, as this intimate portrait, taken in the rain, shows. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Green-crowned Brilliants drying
Green-crowned Brilliant Hummingbirds: Mirador y Soda Cinchona, Costa Rica, December 2023 — It was raining lightly much of the time we were in Cinchona at the Soda, so the hummers were bathing and fluff drying their feathers…providing interesting looks at these otherwise very elegant birds. This is a male and a female Green-crowned Brilliant. We saw the females at other places and at other elevations, but we only found males at Soda Cinchona. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Green-crowned Brilliant
Green-crowned Brilliant Hummingbird: Mirador y Soda Cinchona, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Circling back to the first full day of our Costa Rican adventure now, and working our way through day by day — In all his finery! In my opinion, one of the most beautiful hummingbirds…all in subtle shades of brilliant green with that little bright blue chin patch. We had lunch (a first for me) while watching the birds at Mirador y Soda Cinchona…which is certainly one of my favorite stops in Costa Rica. And the food was almost as good as the birds! Never enough light, but still. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! In one end and out the other
Lesser Violet-ear Hummingbird: Batsu Gardens, San Geraldo de Dota, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Just for a smile. Stuff happens. This Lesser Violet-ear was sipping from a suspended flower and reached the saturation point. This is more common than you might think when hummingbirds drink sugar water. OM Systems OM-1 with the ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 570mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight modifications. Processed in Photomator and “photo enhancer and unblur” (great app, terrible title).
Costa Rica! Bird of the day
Lesser Violet-ear Hummingbird: Batsu Gardens, San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica — It was raining off and on and quite dark when we got to Batsu Gardens high above the Savegre River, but the hummingbirds came to flowers placed for them and doused with sugar water. This is a Lesser Violet-ear (and no, there is no greater violet-ear)…one of the common hummingbirds of the foothills and cloud forest of Central America. This is a natural light shot…not a multi-flash setup. I was very pleased with the results from the OM-1 in the low light we had to work with. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 570mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Bird of the day…
White-necked Jacobin Hummingbird, Dave and Dave’s Costa Rican Nature Reserve, La Vegin, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Male White-necked Jacobin Hummingbird in full display flight, guarding one of the Heliconia flowers at Dave and Dave’s this morning. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 506mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds-in-flight modifications. Processed in Photomator and Apple Photos.
Maine! Rimlighted Hummer
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, September 2023 — It seems like the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were with us late this year…a week ago we still had them coming to the feeder. I think they all slipped down the coast ahead of Lee. We have not seen one in several days. These are from a week ago one morning while I as practicing my flute and watching the feeder action just as the sun was coming up over the trees in the back yard. I like the light on the wings…or in the wings. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds-in-flight modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and assembled in FrameMagic. ISO 12800 @ f6.3 @ 1/2000th.
Maine! Ruby-throat again
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, August 2023 — Of course, while working the feeder for gorget shots of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird, I got lots of shots where the gorget is not lighted. In this one you an see a few spots of incandescents, but mostly it is a study in the other plumage details. 🙂 OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm zoom. Program mode with my custom birds modifications and the minimum shutter speed bumped up. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. ISO 3200 @ f6.3 @ 1/1250th.
Maine! Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, August 2023 — I spent a few hours sitting in a chair in the kitchen, just inside the open deck door, with my camera on a monopod…or eventually on my travel tripod…attempting, mostly, to catch the gorget of the male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that are coming to our feeder. Of course I took photos of any and all comers to the deck feeders as they allowed me to. All in all a productive afternoon. Which is good, since two days of steady rain, and then rain on and off yesterday, have kept me from going further afield for photos. I might get out to a few spots this Sunday morning as there is no rain in the forecast. This was taken with only natural light without direct sun. Pretty good okay, if I do say so myself. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. ISO 2000 @ f6.3 @ 1/640th.
Maine! — Ruby-throats
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds: York County, Maine, USA, August 2023 — we have unprecedented numbers of hummingbirds coming to our feeder this week. We have at least one male, one sub-adult male, and half a dozen “female/immature” types — often up to 4 around the feeder at the same time. The male and what I assume is an immature male are both attempting to guard the feeder from perches in the Maple tree above the deck. These shots were not in the best of light…early, on a rainy day, but they were all taken standing in our open deck door within 30 minutes of each other. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. Females at ISO 12800 @ f6.3 @ 1/640th, males at ISO 5000 and 4000 @ f6.3 @ 1/640th.