Hummingbirds: I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of...

vicksart Loc: Novato, CA -earthquake country

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

(Download)

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

I think you do amazingly well with these cuties, Vicki! And how lucky you are to have them right around your home :)

vicksart Loc: Novato, CA -earthquake country

Linda From Maine wrote:

I think you do amazingly well with these cuties, Vicki! And how lucky you are to have them right around your home :)

Thanks so much Linda. As I stalk birds in the backyard, I'm finding a lot of different species I didn't know were here. These are fun and colorful.

DOOK Loc: Maclean, Australia

Top marks. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

vicksart Loc: Novato, CA -earthquake country

DOOK wrote:

Top marks. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Thanks for the kind words and thumbs up Earl.

UntamedImages Loc: Utah

I think they look great Vicki? Well done!

kerfree Loc: Sebago and Sanibel

vicksart wrote:

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

Gorgeous set again Vicki! That Wicked fast shutter speed must be part of your formula for success!

dave sproul Loc: Tucson AZ

Thank you for sharing -- they are very nice

Puglover Loc: Lakeside Ca.

vicksart wrote:

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

Great job Vicki!!! I know how hard these little guys are to get in flight. #3 is my favorite because of the detail in the wings. :thumbup: :thumbup:

birdpix Loc: South East Pennsylvania

vicksart wrote:

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

Vick,

As you can see, especially from your first photo, Depth of Field is an issue with longer lenses. The closer you are, the worse it gets. If you are committed to natural light, then you are always dealing with the trade offs of ISO/Shutter speed/F/stop. It helps to have lots of light and a camera sensor that can handle noise at higher ISO's.

The alternative that allows you to use smaller apertures is to use flash. This becomes a technical issue because you need to use multiple flash units set near the feeder and at low power so that you get short flash durations that can freeze motion but still allow the smaller apertures that give you greater DOF. There can be other issues related to the ambient light exposure resulting in ghosting etc. There are tutorials around on the Hog and elsewhere to tell you the details.

You've done well with the ones you've posted!

Stevieboy Loc: West Palm Beach, Florida

Nice going Vicki. Well done.

waltchilds Loc: Central Florida

[quote=vicksart]I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?[/quote

These are all very nice shots, but since you were losing light, you might want to try next time bumping your ISO up to 800 or even 1000 which would keep them from being slightly under exposed. Still these shots are excellent, nice work.

bcheary Loc: Jacksonville, FL

vicksart wrote:

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

Looked pretty good to me. No.3 was the winner. :thumbup: :thumbup:

Tiny Tim Loc: Forest of the Pacific Northwest

Very nice, Vicki. You're getting there. Shoot them when they are in direct sunlight, jack up your ISO and triple your shutter speed, at the very least. Try that and post if they stop the wings.

wmarcoux Loc: Massachusetts

vicksart wrote:

I keep trying to get these birds so they're somewhat in focus. Here are a couple from about an hour ago shot with a slightly higher ISO of 640 and shutter speed of 1/2000. I was losing some light as the shadow from the house closed in.

Any suggestions?

Nice series. It is amazing that at 1/2000 you still get some motion blur on the wings. It shows how fast they are flapping those wings.