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Krishna_Kumar
July 28, 2013
Great capture! The background colors bring great feel. Also love the title :-). Congrats on being featured!
CanonCarolyn
July 28, 2013
Wow! Perfect in every way! Even your title! Congratulations on your feature!
GBloniarz
July 28, 2013
Congrats having finely clicked on this pretty specimen during the height of it's activities!
billndotnet
July 29, 2013
Thanks everyone for the kind words and kudos, it means a lot to be appreciated so much!
leewright_0459
November 15, 2016
Congratulations! The creamy background is a perfect balance to the sharp focus you have on the front lower and the hummingbird.
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the Desert Botanical Gardens, in Phoenix, AZ. There are a number of paths through the garden showcasing the variety of flora the desert landscape has to offer.Time
This photo was mid-morning, about 9 or 10am, as I recall. Living in Phoenix, you learn to limit your activities to avoid mid-day for both heat and incredibly high contrast.Lighting
Lighting was mid-morning sunlight, fairly clear day.Equipment
This photo was shot with a Canon 5DmkII, mounting a 70-200mm 2.4L.Inspiration
Birds are the bane of my existence, I swear. Through a combination of a lack of patience and what I consider to be pure malice on the bird's part, it's rare for me to get a good, clear shot. Shooting at F3.5, my depth of field wasn't much bigger than the bird itself. A hummingbird is a high speed technical challenge, but the full, bright sunlight of Arizona offers a great opportunity to open up the aperture to isolate the subject, and get a well exposed shot at high shutter speeds.Editing
Post process is limited to a minor crop and contrast adjustment.In my camera bag
I shoot primarily with a Canon 5DmkII, with a 70-200mm 2.4L as my go-to lens for a number of photography styles. I'll follow that with a 24mm 1.4L for landscapes and astrophotography, or sometimes a plain ol' 50mm 1.8 'Nifty Fifty' if I'm in a mood. My second body is a Canon 7D, which I love shooting just as much. The crop sensor combined with the 24mm 1.4L produces great images, a favorite if I'm doing street photography. For events, I'll carry both, leveraging a double Spider Holster to keep my hands free and make managing my equipment easy.Feedback
Patience is a virtue. I wish I had it. Shooting wildlife takes the patience of a saint, it seems, but I can't stress enough how essential it is to know your equipment well, to be able to adjust your settings on the fly, to get the shot you want, not the shot you get. I tend to shoot in manual mode most of the time, but I understand the moments when it's necessary to switch to aperture or shutter priority mode when shooting 'from the hip', when you see a composition that may only last for a second or two before it's gone forever. Missing a great shot because you weren't sure how to set your camera is a self-kick in the pants I don't relish.