| APRIL 2009 NEWSLETTER |
Photographing hummingbirds in flight is a fun part of avian photography. Recently mutli-flash
photography, where the photographer is working with 4 or more flashes has become very popular
for photographing hummers. However, you can also make really nice images of hummingbirds in
flight with only one flash mounted to your hotshoe or to a flash bracket. If there's enough available
light you can also make some nice images without flash.
If there's a lot of available light my technique for shooting hummers with flash is to shoot at the
highest iso my camera can handle without producing a lot of noise and to set the ambient exposure
to either 0 or to -0.3. I then usually set my flash to about -1.3. This produces a fairly natural looking
image and the flash gives it a bit more pop and helps a little bit in stopping the wings.
photography, where the photographer is working with 4 or more flashes has become very popular
for photographing hummers. However, you can also make really nice images of hummingbirds in
flight with only one flash mounted to your hotshoe or to a flash bracket. If there's enough available
light you can also make some nice images without flash.
If there's a lot of available light my technique for shooting hummers with flash is to shoot at the
highest iso my camera can handle without producing a lot of noise and to set the ambient exposure
to either 0 or to -0.3. I then usually set my flash to about -1.3. This produces a fairly natural looking
image and the flash gives it a bit more pop and helps a little bit in stopping the wings.
ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD - photographed at Gilbert Water Ranch, Arizona in May 2007. Canon 20D 500F4
1.4X 1/3200 F8, iso 400, evaluative metering at 0. 580ex fill flash at -1.3, better beamer, Gitzo tripod. In
this image I was able to freeze the wings partly because of the very fast shutter speed of 1/3200.
1.4X 1/3200 F8, iso 400, evaluative metering at 0. 580ex fill flash at -1.3, better beamer, Gitzo tripod. In
this image I was able to freeze the wings partly because of the very fast shutter speed of 1/3200.
MAGNIFICENT HUMMINGBIRD, FEMALE - Photographed at Cave Creek Ranch, June 2006. Canon 20D
500F4 1.4X 1/800 F5.6 iso 400, evaluative metering -0.3, 580ex fill flash at -1.3, Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod.
I was happy that I was able to get the wings sharp and frozen here at not such a fast shutter speed. Note
that due to the lower amount of light available here compared to the Anna's Hummingbird above I was
forced to use less depth of field.
Another way to stop the action and get sharp hummingbird photos in flight is to use some of the same
techniques that are used with multi-flash photography while using just one flash. To do this, you need to
set your ambient exposure to somewhere around -2, with your flash on generally with no flash exposure
compensation (flash at full power for ETTL shooting). The more you lower your ambient exposure the
more you will be able to stop the action, the tradeoff for this is that the more you lower the exposure the
darker the bg will be. This technique allows you to make nice images of hummingbirds at a slow shutter
speed in darker areas. Shooting this way also allows for greater depth of field than the techniques
discussed above.
500F4 1.4X 1/800 F5.6 iso 400, evaluative metering -0.3, 580ex fill flash at -1.3, Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod.
I was happy that I was able to get the wings sharp and frozen here at not such a fast shutter speed. Note
that due to the lower amount of light available here compared to the Anna's Hummingbird above I was
forced to use less depth of field.
Another way to stop the action and get sharp hummingbird photos in flight is to use some of the same
techniques that are used with multi-flash photography while using just one flash. To do this, you need to
set your ambient exposure to somewhere around -2, with your flash on generally with no flash exposure
compensation (flash at full power for ETTL shooting). The more you lower your ambient exposure the
more you will be able to stop the action, the tradeoff for this is that the more you lower the exposure the
darker the bg will be. This technique allows you to make nice images of hummingbirds at a slow shutter
speed in darker areas. Shooting this way also allows for greater depth of field than the techniques
discussed above.
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird - Los Bancos, Ecuador, November 2008. Canon MkIII 500F4 1/125 F9, iso
640, evaluative metering at -1.3, 580ex flash at 0, Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod. In this image I wanted
to keep the background from being too dark so I used -1.3 rather than -2.0 or higher. It resulted in a
bit of "ghosting" or movement in the wings. Some photographers and viewers prefer this bit of
movement or life to the image rather than having the wings totally frozen. The extra depth of field
allowed me to get the full flower in sharp focus as well as the bird.
640, evaluative metering at -1.3, 580ex flash at 0, Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod. In this image I wanted
to keep the background from being too dark so I used -1.3 rather than -2.0 or higher. It resulted in a
bit of "ghosting" or movement in the wings. Some photographers and viewers prefer this bit of
movement or life to the image rather than having the wings totally frozen. The extra depth of field
allowed me to get the full flower in sharp focus as well as the bird.
SPARKLING VIOLETEAR - Photographed November 2008 at Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. Canon MkIII
500F4, 1/200 F9, iso 500, evaluative metering -2.0, 580ex at 0 compensation, Better Beamer, Gitzo
tripod. The background was quite a bit farther away here which resulted in a dark background
because of the -2 ambient compensation.
500F4, 1/200 F9, iso 500, evaluative metering -2.0, 580ex at 0 compensation, Better Beamer, Gitzo
tripod. The background was quite a bit farther away here which resulted in a dark background
because of the -2 ambient compensation.
GREEN-CROWNED BRILLIANT - photographed December 2008, Tandaypa Valley, Ecuador. Canon MkIII
500F4 1/300 F13, iso 320, evaluative metering -2.3, 580ex flash at 0 compensation, Better Beamer,
Gitzo tripod. The owner of a small lodge that I was shooting at brought out this very large flower and
set it up for photos. I feel it overpowers the bird a bit, but I liked the flared tail in this one. Because
of the size of the flower I used a large depth of field here.
500F4 1/300 F13, iso 320, evaluative metering -2.3, 580ex flash at 0 compensation, Better Beamer,
Gitzo tripod. The owner of a small lodge that I was shooting at brought out this very large flower and
set it up for photos. I feel it overpowers the bird a bit, but I liked the flared tail in this one. Because
of the size of the flower I used a large depth of field here.
This last trip to Ecuador was the first time I started using this technique of going to a large negative
ambient exposure compensation to photograph hummingbirds and I hope to get even better images
on our next tour there. I'm also going to start using a multi-flash setup at times as well. However, I
do really like the ability the technique I've written about here gives me to create sharp images of
flying hummingbirds in low light. Not all of you are always going to have a multi flash setup at your
disposal so I think it's good info and a nice technique to add to your repertiore. In a lot of respects it
creates a more natural looking image with a bit of wing blur and a natural looking background
compared to the mutli flash images. Multi flash images have their own strengths of a clean
background, ability to illuminate more of the bird and use great depth of field.
ambient exposure compensation to photograph hummingbirds and I hope to get even better images
on our next tour there. I'm also going to start using a multi-flash setup at times as well. However, I
do really like the ability the technique I've written about here gives me to create sharp images of
flying hummingbirds in low light. Not all of you are always going to have a multi flash setup at your
disposal so I think it's good info and a nice technique to add to your repertiore. In a lot of respects it
creates a more natural looking image with a bit of wing blur and a natural looking background
compared to the mutli flash images. Multi flash images have their own strengths of a clean
background, ability to illuminate more of the bird and use great depth of field.
SWORD-BILLED HUMMINGBIRD photographed at Guango Lodge, November 2008. Canon MkIII 500f4
1.4X 1/100 F7.1 iso 1000, evaluative metering at 0, 580ex fill flash at -1.7,Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod.
This species is easily photographed and observed at Guango Lodge, the first stop on our
upcoming Ecuador trip.
If anyone would like to photograph some hummingbirds and learn more about these and other
techniques for photographing them, we still have space on 3 tours where we should be able to
photograph a lot of hummingbirds. There are links to them below.
Green Valley, Arizona May 15-17, 2009
Cave Creek Arizona, May 21-24, 2009
Ecuador August 1-12, 2009
1.4X 1/100 F7.1 iso 1000, evaluative metering at 0, 580ex fill flash at -1.7,Better Beamer, Gitzo tripod.
This species is easily photographed and observed at Guango Lodge, the first stop on our
upcoming Ecuador trip.
If anyone would like to photograph some hummingbirds and learn more about these and other
techniques for photographing them, we still have space on 3 tours where we should be able to
photograph a lot of hummingbirds. There are links to them below.
Green Valley, Arizona May 15-17, 2009
Cave Creek Arizona, May 21-24, 2009
Ecuador August 1-12, 2009
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