I easily could blame the rainy weather of the last few days for not shooting as much as lately but I actually believe that rain creates a lot of possibilities to make some good nature photography. The truth is that I had a busy work schedule and also have been working on a photography project that I will reveal here shortly.
As every year the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds showed up by the end of April. They never arrived later than May 2. We have several feeders placed around the house but they are also feeding on the blossoms of flowers and bushes that Joan has planted already years ago. The males are very territorial at the moment and sit on a small branch or like in these images on the wire that will very soon covered by the ranking vine that rapidly climbs up the balcony.
One of the advantages having them so close to the house is that I can use my Sigma 150/f2.8 lens. It delivers a tack-sharp image if properly handled and is my favorite lens to shoot hummingbirds. I made several sharp images of the birds hovering at the feeders but was not able to keep the feeder out of the frame and so they will not make it into the blog. The season is still long enough to work on this and hopefully I can present some more images of the tiniest bird we have here in Eastern Iowa.