Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Penstemons are blooming and they’re very attractive to hummingbirds. I think this is an Anna’s hummingbird. I took a lot of photos of it. Most of them were profile shots from the side and they all looked pretty similar. This one was from an unusual angle and it appealed to me.
Specific Feedback
Any comments would be welcome. I don’t photograph birds very often and I’d appreciate any advice.
I know the petal is covering a small portion of the bird’s head. I’d prefer the photo without it but it doesn’t really bother me.
Technical Details
ISO 2500, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/1250th.
Very nice, Don. I like the angle as it shows of the gorget so well and you have great view of the eye. It’s fortuitous that his variety of penstemon matches the gorget so well. I also find it interesting that the hummingbirds are going for it. I keep planting it, but it doesn’t seem to get the attention that some of the other plants receive. And, yes, this is definitely an Anna’s.
Thanks, Dennis. I didn’t know the word “gorget” but I’ll add it to my vocabulary. 
This is so nice Don. I love the muted colors of the BG and the beautiful pinks and his bright gorget is an amazing flash. I don’t think you could have done any better.
Beautiful, the colors overall speak of spring. They are lovely. I might clone out that tiny bit of the blossom at the top, but that is a very small nit.
Ed, Barbara, thank you.
Barbara, it hadn’t occurred to me to get rid of that blossom at the top. I think you’re right.
Very nice catch, Don. Wonderful light.
Colors are wonderful and the hummingbird is nice and sharp. Comp is tight, but this type of composition seems to be suitable for small birds @Dennis_Plank it takes a while for hummingbirds to learn new nectar sources. It also depends on when the flower makes its nectar available as well. I have had limited success with penstemon species, while Salvia species are the most reliable hummingbird plants in Michigan.
Thanks, Jim.
We’ve made an effort to grow plants in our yard that attract birds, bees and butterflies. By all appearances, the Mexican honeysuckle is the biggest hit with the hummingbirds. But we’re in the Sonoran Desert and have an unusual microclimate. Elsewhere the bird magnets will be different.
