From July through October, observing hummingbirds in our backyard is something I look forward to. Initially, their tiny size makes them challenging to spot, yet their fast movements in all directions add to the excitement. Particularly fascinating is their ability to alter flight direction by executing a 180-degree rotation.
Typically, I notice them frequenting our yard from late afternoon to evening hours. Upon delving into a few articles, I learned about their territorial nature, suggesting that the same birds are likely to revisit our bird feeder.
Occasionally, luck grants me the opportunity to hear their distinctive humming directly beneath the feeder. Witnessing their dogfights with bees reminds me the scenes from Top Gun movie, which is may favorite by the way.
I observe ruby-throated hummingbirds, including males, females, and juveniles. When photographing them, I opt for Shutter Mode and occasionally Manual mode, allowing complete control over Aperture and Shutter Speed.
I started with 1/1000 Seconds with the Max Aperture available on my 200-500mm lens, which is f5.6. Evening light (Ohio) becomes challenging and some times I have to dial into ISO-1000 to ISO-3200 range. Only problem I had was, in low light conditions, 200-500mm lens with f5.6 does struggle a bit to keep the focus.
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