[Leica] IMG: Calliope Hummingbird again

[Jim Nichols]

That is dedication!  Great image.

On 5/13/20 10:56 PM, Douglas Herr via LUG wrote:
> Over five years of trial-and-error went into making this photograph.
>
> In the fall of 2015 I learned of this particular spot in the Sierra Nevada where this species can be reliably found for a few weeks of the year.  Calliope Hummingbirds are elusive at best, they winter south of the USA border and spend their summers in the western mountains of North America, visiting the lowlands only briefly during migration.  At my home in eastern Sacramento County California I've seen this species only once; he hovered in front of my face for at most 15 seconds then was gone.
>
> This particular mountain meadow is graced with these feisty jewels for a few weeks beginning in early May, so in 2016 I visited on 04 May, found the birds and made a few photos.  I was delighted but I wanted more: more pixels for larger prints, more feather detail.  This is the smallest of the North American birds, long lenses have long minimum focussing distances and to make a presentable image a lot of cropping was required.
>
> I also wanted to photograph this bird in overcast light.  Direct sunlight reflecting off the bird's gorget is clipped by the limited dynamic range of nearly every image capture medium and is best tamed with diffused overcast light.  Also, the bird's favorite perch is shaded by a nearby mountain early in the day when the bird is active, while the background is in full sunlight.  I wanted a dark forest background, not an overexposed forest background so early on a sunny day didn't give me the foreground/background lighting ratio I wanted.  It has to be overcast light, a rarity in California's spring.
>
> Overcast light also means slower shutter speeds or higher ISO or shallower DOF, or all three.  I wanted to use as low an ISO as possible, an aperture that would yield a modicum of DOF and no subject or camera motion for feather detail.  Did I mention that overcast light in these mountains usually comes with wind and rain?
>
> Over the next few years incremental improvements in equipment and technique resulted in incrementally (to my eyes) improvements in the pictures:
>
> A high-MP camera resulted in more pixels-per-bird, but the minimum focus distance was limited by the old manual-focus 500mm lens, and extension tubes with long lenses provide only limited benefit.
>
> This mountain meadow is about an hour & a half's drive from home and my schedule is constrained by family obligations so only day trips have been practical vs. camping out near the meadow for several days.
>
> Last year my first visit was on a bright sunny day, so no overcast light.  My second visit last year coincided with a late-season snowstorm that dropped a foot of snow in the mountains, delivering a final crushing blow to the scraggly skeleton of a willow that had been the hummingbird's favorite perch.
>
> This year a financial windfall made it possible to replace the old 500mm lens (a great lens in its time) with a modern 600mm lens with a good close-focus limit and many handy features.  My first visit was in sunlight, which I tried to make the best of.  Cool photos, but not what I was looking for.
>
> bright background:
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com/birds/trochilidae/selasphorus/calliope/selcal19.html
>
> far away, not enough pixels (and I'm lucky I didn't slide down the mountain):
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com/birds/trochilidae/selasphorus/calliope/selcal20.html
>
> bright sunlight, few photos worked past 10 AM because of harsh shadows and clipped gorget highlights:
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com/birds/trochilidae/selasphorus/calliope/selcal21.html
>
> I visited again yesterday with a weather forecast of mostly clouds but as I've mentioned overcast in these mountains often means wind and rain.  The hummingbird was totally OK with the weather but I didn't feel comfortable using my equipment in the deluge.
>
> Today's forecast was overcast again and with no rain until late in the day.
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com/birds/trochilidae/selasphorus/calliope/selcal22.html
>
> I'm happy with this one.  I would have liked a few light drizzle-drops but that might be asking for too much.  Maybe next year.
>
> Doug Herr
> Birdman of Sacramento
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com
>
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-- 
Jim Nichols
Tullahoma, TN USA