A Southern Hummer and His Flowers

I've always enjoyed images of hummingbirds interacting with flowers, so my goal this year in hummingbird photography was to offer a greater variety of flowers to the birds and subsequently to the board. I've managed to squeeze in 16 different species/cultivars of flowering perennials on my deck which is my hummer photo studio. I'll offer 4 types of flowers in this thread, ranked from most popular to least popular, with exposure data included for those who are interested.


1. The first 2 images are the male Ruby-throated hummingbird feeding on the "Black and Blue" cultivar of Salvia guarantica. These flowers are by far the most popular with my hummers.

ISO 5000, 1/800th @ f/6.3 using 400mm @ 4.7M

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Wonderful shots, Steve, and you know your flowers too!

Great set Steve and perfect choice of flowers. Their colors compliment the hummers well.

Beautiful shots!

That sure is a beauty of a set Steve. A lovely garden you have. I have to go with number two, well, they are all very nicely done. Grand set indeed my friend. I finally saw a single male checking out some of the flowers that have bloomed. My little Hummer garden is growing but no flowers or any Hummers stopping in and staying. I have heard that is the case with a lot of others this year. Looking forward to more!

Awesome shots Steve.

A beautiful set Steve.

CDMOOSE wrote in post #17581295
Wonderful shots, Steve, and you know your flowers too!

Thanks so much Al! My flower knowledge came from studying all the online nursery catalogs this Spring

jhayesvw wrote in post #17581467
Great set Steve and perfect choice of flowers. Their colors compliment the hummers well.

Always appreciated Jeremy! I was hoping to find some new complimentary colors.

Beekeeper wrote in post #17581978
Beautiful shots!

Much appreciated Beekeeper!

Oldjackssparrows wrote in post #17582188
That sure is a beauty of a set Steve. A lovely garden you have. I have to go with number two, well, they are all very nicely done. Grand set indeed my friend. I finally saw a single male checking out some of the flowers that have bloomed. My little Hummer garden is growing but no flowers or any Hummers stopping in and staying. I have heard that is the case with a lot of others this year. Looking forward to more!

Very kind of you Mr. Bret...very kind indeed! I too have neighbors just the next street over who say they haven't seen any hummingbirds yet this year even though there's 4 hanging around my area. Hope yours settle in soon.

Peter2516 wrote in post #17582487
Awesome shots Steve.

Thanks Peter! Ever so kind as always.

Joe52 wrote in post #17582532
A beautiful set Steve.

Why thank you Joe! It's always a treat to hear from you.

I envy you your males, friend. The minute the rare male visits, that dang female dive bombs him! Have a few shots but nothing to be proud of. So I'll drool over yours. These are all top notch, Steve, couldn't ask for a better presentation. Very well done on all accounts.

Awesome series and I absolutely love them all. You did a fantastic job. I am still waiting for things to really get blooming here to play with the hummers. Your work is very inspirational!

Excellent photos, well done on all and thanks for posting the names of the flowers you are using to attract them. I always have good intentions of getting some more Hummer friendly flowers but don't seem to get around to actually buying them. I do have some flowering shrubs they like and have planted some trumpet vines but would like to have some flowers to concentrate them more.
We have not had very good weather for the Humming birds, it is cold and wet, they are just don't seem to be very active yet, I'm seeing two or three and normally would see 10 or more this time of year.

Great stuff Steve, Flowers in my yard are only just emerging, sure do like the plant life in the image, If I wasn't so cheap I would go buy some colour

ardeekay wrote in post #17583163
I envy you your males, friend. The minute the rare male visits, that dang female dive bombs him! Have a few shots but nothing to be proud of. So I'll drool over yours. These are all top notch, Steve, couldn't ask for a better presentation. Very well done on all accounts.

Thank you kindly for your gracious comments Rog. I realize that for the 2nd year in a row I'm blessed with a male early in the season and am trying like heck to take full advantage of it.

butterfly2937 wrote in post #17583244
Awesome series and I absolutely love them all. You did a fantastic job. I am still waiting for things to really get blooming here to play with the hummers. Your work is very inspirational!

Thanks ever so much Carol! I think waiting for blooms is a lot like the "watched pot" if you know what I mean. I know yours will come too and we'll all benefit from it.

Grizz1 wrote in post #17583313
Excellent photos, well done on all and thanks for posting the names of the flowers you are using to attract them. I always have good intentions of getting some more Hummer friendly flowers but don't seem to get around to actually buying them. I do have some flowering shrubs they like and have planted some trumpet vines but would like to have some flowers to concentrate them more.
We have not had very good weather for the Humming birds, it is cold and wet, they are just don't seem to be very active yet, I'm seeing two or three and normally would see 10 or more this time of year.

Your very kind Steve and I appreciate your comments/feedback as always. I thought some might like to know the flowers and hopefully I'll have more. The weather there will turn too and your hummers will love the trumpet vine. Good luck on any other plants you may pursue.

Pondrader wrote in post #17583526
Great stuff Steve, Flowers in my yard are only just emerging, sure do like the plant life in the image, If I wasn't so cheap I would go buy some colour

Haha Jeff, thanks as always and if all you have to do is wait on color I certainly understand. I know come July 1 my male will be run off by kids coming off the nest so time is of the essence for me.

Wonderful shots Steve. Fantastic data you have provided.

Beauty of a set! Appreciate the flower review also, will try one or two in my yard.