Just going for it...

Must admit, somewhat intimidated by the awesome hummingbird images posted here. If you are a regular to this POTN section, you've seen the outstanding shots of these little darlings. They are definitely a great challenge and these folks(you know who you are) have mastered it well. But, as the self-appointed VP of the "Not Quite There Yet" group, decided to go ahead and post these. Not bad, but as said, "not quite there yet!"
He's a brave little guy-will visit the salvia even w/ me standing next to it. Need more like him!!
Sidebar-he will investigate me outstretched hand. What can I hold to encourage him to come even closer?

Well done Rog. You are there.

Nice shots Rog!

Very well done, these are amazing birds. Wish we had them here.

Three very good shots for me Rog, all with good detail and focus on the eye, well done.

Rog, have you any idea how much progress you've made?! These are great!

Great series! You did fabulous your technique looks solid! Great job!

Good ones, Rog, and good for you and your dedication to excellence.
Al

Great set.

Good for you Rog, glad you are still working on perfection! Very pretty set!

Good stuff! Keep the hummer pics coming while you can. Ours are gone for the winter already.

Thank you, thank you everyone for the very kind comments! May a bit too generous but I'll bask in it for a bit. Levina, while going thru pix and backing up to another hard drive, I saw some shots from last year that I really liked so not sure about progress per se but the accumulated experience has to be good, And Mel, also saw a few hummer shots that I took in early October last year, so I may have some time. Hoping for that swarm that Carol experienced! It's still pretty much "one at a time" here.

Thank you all again, Much appreciated.

These are nice! I love the third one - looks like she's trying to hide! Ours have been few and far between this year, sadly.

ardeekay wrote in post #17128050
Levina, while going thru pix and backing up to another hard drive, I saw some shots from last year that I really liked so not sure about progress per se but the accumulated experience has to be good,

Ah, but I didn't necessarily mean progress made recently, Rog. I just remembered how you started and seeing where you are now, well, that's quite a journey.

If you still consider these images as "Not quite there" Mr. VP, maybe you'd care to share with us what you see wrong....or what you'd rather see. I know it took me at least a month or so to figure out myself what I was trying to achieve and that might be an ongoing process for the both of us.
The 2 images I see are both in excellent focus on the eye and flower which we all agree is very important. The main difference I see is that the tail is much sharper in the first image, and I would suspect a slower shutter speed in the 2nd image as shown in the blurred wings might be the culprit. Your editing of both is excellent.
As to bringing him in to your hand, if he's used to nectar from the feeder try a small jar top with nectar in it. I've seen pix of birds enjoying nectar from jar lids in peoples palms. Have your camera ready too as I want to see it