Stop-Action Hummingbird Photography

Much of what I know about photography comes from stop-action hummingbird photography. I have summarized my experiences here in blog form. I am not looking to market, or sell, or otherwise gain any notoriety. I simply want to share what I have learned. Please be respectful, all text and images are copyrighted material and may not be reproduced without my approval.

My Journey began at the advent of the digital era. Many hours were spent walking the gardens with a long lens on a monopod. Early on, like everyone, I tried to see how close I might get to the birds. I learned about hummingbird behavior, and where to go to see them

I realized that even when perched these birds seem to be in constant movement. Shutter speed and depth of field always seemed to be at odds. On-camera flash helped in that it provided, in a practical sense, infinite light because there was enough light to shoot at high f#’s as long as I could get close. But backgrounds and composition became unnatural. I need more control of the situation.

Ultimately I achieved a solution which enabled complete control of the light. For me, the epiphany was understanding that multiple flashes of short duration were the best method for achieving this. I identified and evaluated commercial photography equipment that were suited to this purpose. Ultimately creating a portable, self-contained rig that could be easily transported to the field.