Part of the experience of being a birdwatcher is being able to take exquisite photos of the birds you see as mementos. And among those birds, a collection of hummingbird pictures do make for an excellent photo album. As royal as hummingbirds do look in pictures, photographing them isn’t an easy task. With our bird watching tips you can learn How To Take Hummingbird Pictures.
After all, not only are these the only species of bird who have mastered flying backwards, they can flap their wings from 15 to 200 times in a second. Excellent flyers with great control of their movement and speed as they are, taking hummingbird photos, where they are visible and not a blur becomes hard.
Now, there isn’t an instant fix to this problem. However, if you do study about them a little and get better acquainted with your camera, you do have a better chance of taking good pictures.
1 . Study Your Subject
A huge part of photography is being intimately aware of the subject you are capturing. You need to know what makes the subject appealing and how to present them the best way possible. This is more so the case with wildlife photography, where you have moving subjects who are completely unaware they are being photographed and as such, have no consideration for whether your camera captures them properly or not. In the case of hummingbirds, this applies moreso.
Now, you don’t need to become a hummingbird expert overnight- though if you’re a birder, you’re probably already studying them- but you do need to have basic knowledge. For good Hummingbird pics, you should be aware of how to find them- that is, the habitat- as well as their diet and the sound of their call along with the sound of their wings.
This way, you’ll be present at the opportune moment where hummingbirds are present instead of aimlessly looking for them. Specifically focusing on their call would help you narrow them down as they’re quite hard to spot with eyes because of their speed.
2. Patience
Patience is a key part of photography. Once you have mapped out the habitat, for hummingbird pictures, you will basically have to stake out there and wait for the birds to show up. You can be somewhere around flowers they’re likely to get their nectar from. You can even show up with a nectar feeder, position it at an ideal place and then wait for hummingbirds to come to it.
This is going to take time, lots of time, so you will really have to make up your mind and be patient.
3. The Camera Quality
The speed of hummingbirds’ wings is somewhat rapid so you’re gonna need a camera with good shutter speed. The shutter speed essentially allows us to freeze the moments in frame, making it easier to capture. ISO also needs to be high along with a wide aperture. If you can use an external flash, that will be good, as it will allow you to freeze the frame properly.
Also, keep the autofocus on. As the hummingbird moves, your camera will do the job of focusing on the bird. Remember, it should be the center AF point. This way, the focus won’t get distracted from the hummingbird.
Final Thoughts
This might seem like a lot of work but for a true birder, being able to capture hummingbird photos is definitely worth the pain. Learning more about hummingbirds and getting a good camera isn’t that hard. The only thing you might have to work on is a little patience. Once you have that down, you will have some wonderful pictures to add to your camera roll.
