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Category Archives: Hummingbird

How About an Insect for Dessert?

01 Friday Jan 2021

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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I took these series of photographs in sequence as I followed this hummingbird’s actions. These hummingbirds are constantly looking for food to maintain their energy level.

It is amazing to see the different positions of this bird’s wings from the back to the side and forward. I love the forward curved wing positions.  He enjoyed the nectar from the flower and kept moving his wings while drinking the nectar.

The hummingbird’s green back blends in so well with the greenery in the garden. The Creator gave the hummingbird pretty colors to match his surrounding and to be hidden from any predators.

The hummingbird’s expression is interesting as he gazes at the insect dessert. Not sure how he compares the insect snack with the flower nectar. I usually prefer sweets over savory. But it is a hard choice since I love all food.

I can identify with the hummingbird and his constant need to feed. It doesn’t take me too long to get hungry after a meal. I often am hungry by bedtime. Unfortunately, I do not have the metabolism of a hummingbird. So I cannot afford to eat before bedtime.

As this difficult 2020 ends, we all possess an abundance of mixed emotions about the events of this year.

One of my goals during this pandemic was to get healthier. I learned to increase my steps per day and managed to lose about 10 pounds. Perhaps, I would not have accomplished this goal, if it were not for the pandemic and sheltering in place.

During this pandemic, our household tried to cook and eat different foods. Fortunately, my wife did bake comfort treats to ease our SIP mood. We needed our desserts to soothe our anxieties and the changed social interactions.

In the midst of trials, we do need good things to comfort us like dessert.

This hummingbird enjoyed his insect dessert, as he stared at his spec of a meal.

In 2021, make sure to find ways to reward ourselves, since we do not know how long until we transform into a new and better normal.

What pandemic goals will we seek to achieve in 2021? Let’s give ourselves comfort rewards for our achievements in the new year. We all need our comfort foods, but I would not choose an insect dessert.

May we find photographs to motivate us to do better in 2021!

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Crazy Wings

18 Friday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird, Sloat Garden Center

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Since I have been shooting photographs of hummingbirds, I never realized how many different poses and positions these birds have. The more I shoot the more I am surprised by the many different positions they move their wings. These wings look curved forward in their position. Also this bird’s head gives a different position of looking at the top from a slight angle.

Being a good photographer means catching natural images. I dread having my photograph taken. I probably only have a couple poses when I asked to be in a photograph. Being a typical guy, I am not flexible. I miss not playing sports. I walk for exercise and keep an eye on my fitbit to get 15,000 to 20,000 steps a day. In addition to walking, I do get low when I am gardening, but that’s my limit. My wife does pilates. She is flexible and gets into stretch positions I cannot even figure out.

One of my best pictures are taken as I am in position to shoot pictures. That is my natural position. It is best to capture any living creature doing their own “thing”.

A good picture reveals who we are. So my perfect pictures show me in action.

The hummingbirds are pretty focused on getting their nectar. They need the energy, since they move so quickly. So most of their pictures show their beaks in the flower.

How can you improve your photography? Try to catch your subjects in their natural habitat where ever or whatever that is.

See how you can improve your picture taking during this Christmas? Can you take some creative pictures other than just around the tree? What kind of fun poses can you shoot of your love ones?

Photos Teach!

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Up Close & Personal

17 Thursday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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It is difficult to get an up front photograph of the hummingbird. Most of my shots are from the side. The hummingbirds are timid and are getting accustomed to me in my yard. They fly closer to me to check me out and access if I am safe. I try to wear colors to match the environment and to blend in. I am pretty still and do not move much.

It is hard to find the right spot to catch the hummingbird. It is unpredictable knowing where the birds will fly to get their next sip of nectar. It was pretty remarkable to get in front of the bird to see him face to face.

Since being sheltering in place, we hardly see anyone. We go grocery shopping and see the other shoppers whiz by.

It has been a challenge to be up close and personal with people via video chats. Our family has been just as busy with activity. We save time by not traveling as per our old routine. Instead we spend more regular time with our friends, family and relatives. We are hearing about experiences from the younger generation as they are learning to develop their passions. We enjoy their acting, dancing, writing and ambitions to make this world a better place. We share our worries, problems and triumphs during this pandemic life.

We are learning how to be involved with each others lives. For example, my cousins are enjoying my recent nature pictures. One cousin passed on my website info on a Nextdoor thread about hummingbirds. This probably would not have happened if we were not regularly meeting together.

Surprisingly, we are getting up close and personal with our loved ones, even though we do miss being together physically. Our relationships have become stronger even during our video meetings.

I’m glad I could get up close and personal with this hummingbird. It took effort on my part to get close to this bird.

In the same way, it takes time and effort to get up close and personal with the people in my life. But it is so worth it to be a part of people’s lives. I

Are you going to be up close and personal with your people? Find your people and get involved. A Pandemic is not an excuse to be a spectator. Can you expand your circle?

Photos Teach!

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Reaching Forward

14 Monday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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This hummingbird’s wings look translucent. They look a little angel-like. It is interesting how he has his wings going forward. Humans reach forward to obtain an object. A referee will put his 2 arms forward to signal his call for a play. During a worship service, some people will raise their hands to symbolize surrender to God.

Is this hummingbird just reaching forward in excitement for his next drink of sweet nectar? When I was able to attend a live game, fans raise their hands up to cheer when their team scores. Even when at home while watch a championship game, my friend had her own style of raising her arms up to cheer.

How often do we reach forward to grasp something and clumsily drop it? Consider the football player reaching for the ball during a pass and accidentally drops it. The ball was in his grasp. But something goes wrong, and the grip was lost. This hummingbird is fortunate that it does not have hands to hold onto anything. It just has the wings to hold upward and onward.

Do we have something to be excited about during these pandemic times? We can be grateful for this waiting period for COVID-19 to be resolved. Why should we be grateful for this time? We don’t know how long this waiting time will last before things become our new normal without the threat of catching this virus. There is a lot of uncertainty.

The only certainty is that we have to wait. Waiting means having a hope to reach forward and pray for solutions. We have not because we ask not. Reaching forward means we expect to receive something in our hands.

Can we reach forward in hope?

Photos Teach!

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Who is that Masked Bird?

11 Friday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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Light creates interesting patterns and effects for photographs. Due to the change in the seasons, the light is best between 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The position of this hummingbird is getting the black shadow on his face with a backward “C” around his eye. The black shadow resembles a black mask on this hummingbird’s face.

One thing I enjoy about watching these creatures, who are visiting my garden, is their nonchalant persona. The hummingbird does not try to hide who he is. He shows himself as he really is. This bird is not afraid to show how much it likes the flower nectar. He flies from flower to flower and keeps drinking the nectar. Birds have no inhibitions. They know their purpose in life.

Man typically hides his insecurities, fears and anything else he does not like from other people. Being under a mask to pretend we are someone we are not makes it easier to face the world.

My wife is working from home. Like many others, she has meetings with groups of co-workers. Often times, the camera is turned off as they converse about work. Most people do not want to show they are working in their pajamas. Or they may not want to show their hair which has not been cut for a long time. Many are hiding what they look like since everyone is just staying at home.

Wanting to connect with other people at church, she participated in a virtual choir. A video file with the audio singing is required to be merged with the other singers’ files. It was difficult for her to see and hear herself in the videos. It took quite a few takes to create a halfway decent video and audio file.

Ironically, this could be how we approach showing ourselves to the world. Maybe we need to do more practices of life to improve and get out from behind our masks. Imperfection is ok.

I hope my photographs of birds, bees, butterflies or people would show their true individual essence. Yes, I want to capture a sharp and clear image. But a true artist is able to capture the expressions that show who the subject really is.

Photos reveal reality!

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Greenback

11 Friday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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Here’s a real greenback of a hummingbird who visited me in my garden. These hummingbirds seem to recognize me now when they come to feast on my flowers’ nectar in my backyard. I try to be quiet not to scare of the birds. The birds are getting accustomed to seeing my big camera equipment. Initially, they were a little scared of the equipment.

A greenback is a slang term for the United States paper dollars issued during the American Civil War. This paper currency was not backed by gold or silver but only by the American government’s credibility.

I prefer the greenback on this hummingbird than the old time greenback reference. It is glossy and the color highlights the darker speckles. His wings are perfectly pointed out to the sides, as he approaches his next flower.

I do not utilize any software to change my photos. So the hummingbird’s greenback color is true to his actual appearance.

Being credible and true is important. We all should endeavor to be real and authentic. Nobody enjoys a false persona. I would not have wanted to utilize the original greenbacks. I would not have trusted this currency without any real value backing it.

My goal is shoot photographs which reveal true colors and the intricacies of the subjects.

Individuals may try to hide their true colors. But reality is usually revealed with bright lights.

Let’s try to be credible and real. If we are not content with our current reality, then let’s seek to improve and change.

This hummingbird has the best real greenback!

Photos teach reality!

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Bright Guy

10 Thursday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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I am not a guy who wears pinks or bright colors. I like darker colors. Male hummingbirds possess bright colors like this bird. Notice the scale pattern with the varying shades of purples, pinks and white from under his eye moving down to his wing. These are the colors my wife loves. It’s interesting how he has one wing forward and one wing going back.

Dreams should be pursued. I thought of this idea of shooting images of birds, butterflies, and bees almost 30 years ago. Due to this pandemic and SIP, I created my garden oasis and upgraded my camera equipment for this quest. I go to my yard for almost 2 hours around lunch time when the lighting is the best. I got a heavy duty chair that will hopefully hold me and my heavy equipment. Since I am in my yard, I do not worry about thieves coming behind me to steal my equipment. It’s already happened to me in the past. In the Bay Area, we’ve heard of many incidents where thieves steal camera equipment from individuals and filming crews.

New equipment means spending time to learn. One can only learn by trying and doing. I figured out how to use some new settings to make this bird look sharper and brighter. Practice does help to improve skills. Since I’ve figured out a schedule to shoot pictures due our pandemic situation, I’ve been practicing and am learning how to improve my photographs.

Please note my website is “untouchedtcphotos”. How did I come up with this name? These colors are not altered via any software program. These are the actual colors from my photo shoot. The picture has not been brightened. The picture has not been sharpened. By the way, “tc” refers to the initials of my name.

Dreams can be pursued even during a pandemic. Pursuing excellence in my photographic skills is my goal.

I hope my sharing these bright hummingbirds in my blog brings a little brightness to our SIP time at home. My bird watching and photography has helped to improve my disposition too.

Photos bring brightness!

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This bug on my Head is bugging me

09 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird

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A bug crawled from the flower to the beak of the Hummingbird

The bug crawled from the beak to the head

The Hummingbird feels the bug on his head

The Hummingbird doesn’t want to miss a drink of nectar even with the bug on his head

The Hummingbird still enjoying his drink

The bug crawls to the back of the head of the Hummingbird

The bug crawls near the left eye of the Hummingbird

The bug is really irritating the Hummingbird

The Hummingbird flicks the bug off of his head to the left

The bug continues to fly away from the Hummingbird

I took these series of pictures and didn’t realize that a bug had crawled from the Cuphea Vermillionaire flower onto the Hummingbird’s beak until I reviewed the pictures on my computer. The bug had crawled from the beak to the head until it got near the Hummingbird’s eye ,and he shook the bug off. You can see the bug flying off in the last two pictures.

What does this bug on the head remind you of? This bird tried to continue feasting on the nectar regardless of the bug on his head. But that bug would not leave him alone. The bird had to finally shake his head to get rid of the pesky bug.

It was pretty interesting when Vice President Pence continued in the debate while the fly was on his head. Perhaps he was unaware the fly was there on his hair. He played cool to ignore the pesky fly and continue with his rhetoric. Observers had a good laugh watching the fly travel on the Vice President’s head. His patience with the fly did pay off where the fly finally left. Sometimes we shoo a fly away, and it keeps coming back to bother us.

What is our reaction when we are faced with a problem which is irritating and bugs us? Do we try to make it go away by shaking the problem away? Shooing a problem to make it go away may not be a permanent solution. Being patient to find an answer to a problem may take more time but is better than having the problem return.

How do you handle the bugs in your life? Do we try to shake off these bugs? Or do we patiently work on a solution.

Photos Teach!

 

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Zooming In With a Fan Dance

02 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird, Sloat Garden Center

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Hummingbird is doing a fan dance while drinking nectar. The shutter speed was set for 1/4000 sec. See the quick flutter of the hummingbird’s wings. The wings still have a slight flurry in the photo due to the speed of movement. This was a pretty fast fan dance.

The shiny green camouflaged back seems surreal in the reflection of light and the pretty black shaded pattern.  It is nice this bird is naturally decked out in a shiny outfit for the dance.

This hummingbird went straight into the Cuphea Vermillionaire flower purchased from the Sloat Garden Center to drink the sweet nectar. The bird drank from this flower for about a couple of seconds. It is difficult to photograph these birds since they are always moving quickly.

It is nice the hummingbird is happy with simple pleasures like sweet flower nectar. The bird can do the happy fan dance to express his joy. The bird is enjoying his own personal party with dancing and drinking.

Being home during this pandemic teaches us to enjoy the simple pleasures while sheltering in place. Our family has a good time eating together for our meals. We are discovering new favorites to cook and eat together. More recently, I am enjoying football while eating my turkey sandwich with avocado.

Simple pleasures are the best. Unfortunately, I cannot do any fan dance to express my happiness when I eat delicious food. My dancing is pretty comical compared to the artistry of the hummingbird’s fan dance.

Photos Teach!

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The Eyes Say it All

25 Wednesday Nov 2020

Posted by untouchedtcphotos in Anna's Hummingbird, Back Yard Garden, Backyard Garden, Canon, Cuphea Vermillionaire, Garden, Home Garden, Hummingbird, Sloat Garden Center

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Here’s another slow motion slide show to show us hummingbird’s moves. Normally a hummingbird moves pretty fast. It is hard to catch all the wing moves and the bird’s facial expressions. I never thought too much about a bird’s facial expressions until my recent photography dates with my new friends.

This pretty purple speckled neck hummingbird has some funny eye expressions. Did you notice how his eyes were wide open, dilated with ecstasy, half opened and closed?

His eye expression makes me curious if this bird was just happy to drink the nectar. And was the nectar extra sweet? Was this bird extra hungry and famished to eat? Did the bird just burn a lot of calories flying around and appreciated this snack break?

Do we pay attention to our family and friends’ facial expressions? Are we sensitive to what a person’s face is telling us regardless what the verbal conversation is?

I do not have a poker face. My face shows my emotions. For example, we went on a tropical family vacation tour. One of our resort hotel stops had a turtle shaped swimming pool. The weather was humid and hot. I am not really a water person. But my wife convinced me we should use the pool, since the weather was so hot. Well once I got into the pool, the expression on my face showed my relief and delight. My wife said my face looked so pleased with the coolness of the water. I felt so refreshed being in the water.

Do we notice our “people’ with expressions of “Pandemic Stress”? This Pandemic is causing many of us to be on edge. As I interact with my neighbors, I do sense everyone feels stress and irritations from our new lifestyles.

Let’s not be so callous or busy to ignore the expressions of the people around us. Being sensitive is the first step to offering help to someone.

Noticing a hummingbird’s eyes should remind us to look into the eyes of the people in our life.

Photos capture the look of interesting eyes!

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