Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
While cleaning my hard drive, I discovered this photo and thought that it might be worth putting it through some work. The plant is a species that is present where these hummingbirds spend the winter and serve as a reliable nectar source.
Technical Details
Multi flash set up with 4 flashes set at 1/16 power that provide enough light for freezing the motion. 1/200 sec at f16 were the settings used. DeNoise, crop for comp, levels, and brightness and contrast were used during post processing. I also reduced the saturation of yellow, green, and cyan in the background…Jim
4 Likes
Wonderful!! Well worth resurrecting! I love the pose, the plant and the BG. It’s amazing how low power flashes give effective SSs of maybe 1/16,000 or more.
We’ve had an invasion in the last week or so – I’m filling a 4c feeder every day now! Time to set up for some shots.
1 Like
Very nice image Jim. Love seeing the tiny hummer next to the much larger plant - emphasizes the diminutive size of these birds we love so much. Fine sharpness throughout and I like the pose of the bird. Powering down to 1/16 can really freeze their action. I used 1/8 power last year to get a little motion blur in the wings but I think I might use 1/16 this year to mix things up. Nicley composed with the incoming hummingbird. Nice BG too. Well done.
1 Like
I found these numbers some years ago for my old Canon Speedlight 580 – now upgraded. Different flashes might differ slightly. It’s also a bit approximate because the flash intensity builds up very quickly but trails off at the end.
1/8 power – 1/3700 sec
1/16 power – 1/6000 sec
1/32 power – 1/10,000 sec
1/64 power – 1/14,000 sec
1/128 power – 1/20,000 sec
4 Likes
Jim this is such a nice shot. Great colors, amazing clarity and detail, and great job with the BG. No nit picking from me. . .
1 Like
I like everything about this image from the plant, background, and sharpness in the hummer. Great job. One of these days I need to try flash on hummer’s. And thanks to Diane for her information.
1 Like
Big congratulations on the EP – so well deserved!
1 Like
Thank you @Diane_Miller , @Allen_Sparks , @Ed_Williams , @Allen_Brooks for your comments critiques and also thank you @Avian_Moderators for the EP. @Allen_Brooks you will have fun getting some of the Western species with this technique. Placement of the flashes and altering the distance from the subject enables the photographer to be creative with shadows. @Diane_Miller provides some excellent data on how flash strength and flash duration are related. It is important to use strobes of the same model which will prevent ghosting.
