OT - no CBB so I'm back to one of my other obsessions

[ctfjr]

This week I managed to get up a new hummingbird feeder. They may be cute but unfortunately aren't as colorful as their southern cousins

Whoa! anyone know why the image came out so dark???

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Beautiful pic. We don't have a feeder but do have hummingbirds - in fact, earlier in the year, I saw one trying to get nectar? from a metal sculpture. Also saw a nest on one of our trees, with a bird sitting on top of it. I'm not a photographer however.

 

[DaddyChoc]

I love birds but feeding them in my neighborhood leads to all type of rodents (gophers, groundhogs, woodchucks or whatever they are)

 

[ctfjr]

Thanks for the comments but the image didn't reproduce well here at all

Its waaay too dark - The bottle is a rich red color & the background is green

 

[RadyLady]

This week I managed to get up a new hummingbird feeder. They may be cute but unfortunately aren't as colorful as their southern cousins

Whoa! anyone know why the image came out so dark???

I had a face to feather encounter with a hummingbird this weekend. I have seen many but never this close. I was surprised at how loud and how low the pitch is of their wings. We had a nice long look at each other, then before I thought to reach for my camera, the bird was off again!

I love watching the birds as some can now attest. Before I moved to the city I had feeders and suet outside my condo sliders, giving me a large screen look at the Connecticut bird world - coupled with a few squirrels of course. There are squirrel-proof feeders, but I didn't own one.

Sadly, my attmpt with a hummingbird feeder yielded only evil looking wasps - the little birds preferred my flowers

I did try to feed birds once I moved to the city, however anytime I put out food, it would be beset with large ravenous birds and completely gone within an hour. Also, being a newbie to the reality of the city at the time, I was advised by a neighbor that my charity would attract less desirable members of the rodent family, namely rats and mice, so I stopped.

 

[Icebear]

Thanks for the comments but the image didn't reproduce well here at all

Its waaay too dark - The bottle is a rich red color & the background is green

Dramatically the photo is awesome. It is reductionist in its elegance.

 

[meyers7]

Whoa! anyone know why the image came out so dark???

I don't know, but it looks pretty cool.

 

[ctfjr]

Dramatically the photo is awesome. It is reductionist in its elegance.

lmao

That's another example of why I have no 'eye'. To me it looks a lot better lighter

 

[2ndCity]

Dramatically the photo is awesome. It is reductionist in its elegance.

I agree with Icebear. You stopped a hummingbird in mid flight (with no blurring) and
the dark colors (including the feeder) make your photo even that much more dramatic.

Please don't mess with it. It's a great photograph, exactly as it is now.

 

[vtcwbuff]

I agree - great photo of a female hummingbird.

We have a couple of feeders on our deck. Now that this year's young have hatched we have a hummingbird swarm of a dozen birds or more around the feeders every evening.

They are one of the most aggressive bird species I know. My wife and I enjoy watching the hummingbird wars while we have dinner. Unfortunately, some of the aggressiveness can be fatal. So far this year I've picked up a couple of dead birds off the deck - one from a collision with it's reflection in our patio door and one from a mid air with another male.

 

[RadyLady]

This week I managed to get up a new hummingbird feeder. They may be cute but unfortunately aren't as colorful as their southern cousins

View attachment 6464

Whoa! anyone know why the image came out so dark???

wow - now that I am back on my computer and am able to see the image clearly, I must say - what's wrong with it? I think that it is a beautiful photograph!

 

[RadyLady]

Thanks for the comments but the image didn't reproduce well here at all

Its waaay too dark - The bottle is a rich red color & the background is green

yet the bird is lit perfectly...I like it.

 

[Biff]

Thanks for the comments but the image didn't reproduce well here at all

Its waaay too dark - The bottle is a rich red color & the background is green

Well I brightened it a little and it does look good but I also agree with everyone else. The original is wonderful as composed.

 

[Sonny44]

This week I managed to get up a new hummingbird feeder. They may be cute but unfortunately aren't as colorful as their southern cousins

View attachment 6464

Whoa! anyone know why the image came out so dark???

Too much backlight?

 

[ctfjr]

Too much backlight?

lol

just the opposite I shot this yesterday. It was overcast and the background was the woods - dark green leaves.

Biff the original I was working with in Photoshop shows a creamy green background going from very dark green at the top to dark green at the bottom. The bottle is ruby red. I also remove the masking tap shown in this image. The feeder has 4 'flowers'. I taped over 2 of them so the birds would have to come to the front.

All that said I had Costco make some 8x12's & they look the same. I just framed one & I have to admit everyone was right - it looks really good framed

for those interested: 1DS2 tripod mounted at 1600 iso, 300mm f2.8 at f5.6, 1/1000

 

[2ndCity]

lol

for those interested: 1DS2 tripod mounted at 1600 iso, 300mm f2.8 at f5.6, 1/1000

View attachment 6471

1/1000 @ f5.6? No wonder. Great Shot, esp. for overcast! Cannon has come a long, long way, baby!

But why 300mm? How far away were you?

 

[ctfjr]

1/1000 @ f5.6? No wonder. Great Shot, esp. for overcast! Cannon has come a long, long way, baby!

But why 300mm? How far away were you?

ya have to 'fill the frame '
12-14 feet

 

[ThisJustIn]

ctfjr - birding is one of my obsessions (mini), too! It's a measure of how ridiculously busy I have been this year that I've done little, if any, birding this season. Did do the annual trip to Bear Mtn./Doodletown for the Cerulean. Bliss!

Hoping to catch a glimpse of a Limpkin in Tampa. That would be a lifer.