Perched Broad-tailed Hummingbird male in a mountain canyon – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/800, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
Note: At about 7:09 am this morning the house, my desk, everything around me started to shake. We had a 5.7 earthquake and are still feeling aftershocks. I’m okay. I have power.
It won’t be long before I hear the buzzing wings, chips and chitters of Broad-tailed Hummingbirds in the mountains of northern Utah and I am very much looking forward to their return.
Last year I was able to fine tune my approach to photographing Broad-tailed Hummingbirds by locating what appeared to be their favorite perches near flowering shrubs and plants where they watched over and defended their feeding territories. I’m hoping to put the knowledge I gained last year to good use again this year. Since the flowering shrubs and plants only bloom for limited periods I also learned to identify which shrubs and plants bloom during which periods of the growing season and where to locate them in the areas I frequent the most.
I prefer photographing hummingbirds in the wild where I find them feeding, preening, fighting, defending their territories, resting and hopefully one day, nesting. When I lived in Virginia I had hummingbirds that nested in my yard high up in the trees that surrounded my garden but back then I didn’t have the proper gear to photograph for bird photography.
I photographed this perched male Broad-tailed Hummingbird last year after I heard the sounds of hummingbird wings buzzing near a Wax Currant Bush. It was a thrill to be able to take photos of this male, several other males, and a few female hummingbirds as they went about their lives. I was especially happy that the currant bush was in a location where the angle of the sun lit up the colorful throats of the males quite often.
I took so many images of the Broad-tailed Hummingbirds that morning in May that I still haven’t finished going through them. Life gets busy and I am way behind on culling.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my Broad-tailed Hummingbird photos plus facts and information about this species.
One of your best shots!
When we lived in the mountains of New Mexico we loved the chirping of their wings.
Dapper little chap!
Glad you’re OK!
Glad you are ok.
And love, love, love everything about this photo.
The colors in this shot are exquisite. With the plant life mirroring the little guy. Great catch!
Thanks for the photo and narrative on Hummers….my favorite bird.
Hummers, a favorite
Sounds like an excellent strategy or getting images of the hummingbirds in their natural environment. I am going to try to adopt your strategy. I know some places where I saw hummingbirds last year, but I need to visit more often and note when the flowers are in bloom, favorite perches, etc. Good luck with your spots this year.