Take a break from lusting...

[Uncle Frank]

A suggestion for better mental health. Forget about what you don't have for a while, and use whatever's in your kit
to take a picture of something pretty.

Here's the way I started my day on the left coast .

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[dmwphoto]

all right!!!!!!!!!!!!
By the way, that is good advice. in order to take good pictures, one has to start by actually taking some pictures. you did gud!

 

[Brew]

OK what lens did you use to take that?? I have to get me one of those :twisted:

Nice shot. I helped out a hummer this morning. Seems it flew into our building and was dazed on the front concrete. I picked the little guy up and put him in a tree just in case something was around lurking. Took a look later on and he was gone, and I didn't have my camera darn it.

 

[Chris101]

Oh Frank, that looks GREAT!

You've still got your old bag o' tricks I see.

 

[Uncle Frank]

OK what lens did you use to take that?? I have to get me one of those :twisted:

Hehehe. I used something you already have a better version of .

I helped out a hummer this morning. Seems it flew into our building and was dazed on the front concrete. I picked the little guy up and put him in a tree just in case something was around lurking. Took a look later on and he was gone, and I didn't have my camera darn it.

Compliments on the rescue! But there's no excuse for not having your camera :evil:.

 

[yahtzee]

A suggestion for better mental health. Forget about what you don't have for a while, and use whatever's in your kit
to take a picture of something pretty.

Here's the way I started my day on the left coast .

Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)

that is unreal...great shot.

 

[heiko]

Frank, you're so right!

It's a darn good picture. Would love to get the full secrets to this shot (flash, metering, etc.).

On the other hand, if everybody would be contempt with what he has, all the BH's of the world would go broke, and Nikon and others probably too.

Regards,

 

[DiverX]

This is just perfect! :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[Uncle Frank]

It's a darn good picture. Would love to get the full secrets to this shot (flash, metering, etc.).

Glad you liked the picture, Heiko. The "secrets" are well known by now, but I'll list the key ones, in order of importance.

1. Get to know your subject: The key is understanding their behaviors. Here's a good website on hummingbirds to start you off on the right path.

http://hummingbirds.net

2. Sugar + Water! If you provide food, you'll have a regular parade of hummers visiting your feeder, and you can refine your technique to fit your own gear and style.

3. Long lens. Hummers generally won't feed if you're too close to the feeder. You need to stand 6 to 10 feet away at a minimum. Since they're so tiny (aobut 3 1/2 inches from tip to tip), you need a focal length of at least 200mm to get a good result after cropping.

4. Flash with manual capability. Hummers are pretty dark, and since they're very small, they won't reflect enough light to turn off your flash in ttl mode. Try a setting of 1/4 power, and adjust after checking the histogram. The flash is also used to "freeze" the hummer, not the shutter.

As for metering, I shoot them in manual mode, selecting an aperture/shutter combo based on experience.

Hope this helps.

 

[heiko]

Thanks Frank - this is really helpful. I'm still pretty much at the beginning of the learning curve, and I must admit that I have nearly no experience with birds.

It so happens that I have some of these (or similar) birds visiting my garden from time to time, and I like to give it a try.

Your explanations will help me get started.

Regards,