Anna's Hummingbirds (Calypte anna)

Gabriola Island saw its first snowfall of the year on Monday, which just happened to also be the first day of winter.  Our resident Anna's Hummingbirds weren't too happy, and stayed close to their feeders, which did allow for some great opportunities to photograph them without disturbing them.

The hardy little. Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) is a year-round resident in the coastal regions of southwest British Columbia, and in 2017 it was voted as the official bird of the city of Vancouver.

This little hummingbird was once found only in southern California and the Baja Peninsula. But ornithologists have documented the expansion of its range since the 1930s. Today, you’ll find it in locales as far north as British Columbia and as far east as Texas.  Anna’s Hummingbirds have been found to colonize new locations, even cold ones, based on the availability of flowery  landscaping and nectar feeders.

Anna’s can cope with our cold winter weather by entering a state of torpor.  A hummingbird in torpor can drop its body temperature from about 40°C to about 9°C and reduce its respiration rate from 245 breaths per minute to 6. It can even suspend its breathing for up to five minutes. The metabolic rate of an Anna’s during torpor can be 300 times lower than when in flight. The savings are significant; they can help a hummingbird sleep through a severe weather period.

All images were captured using an Olympus OM-D E-M1X camera with the M.Zuiko Digital 40-150mm f2.8 and 300mm f4 IS Pro lenses.

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) in Snow

Male Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)

Male Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)

Male Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)

Male Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)

Bird Photography with Olympus

Olympus recently released a firmware update for their OM-D E-M1X cameras, which added AI-based bird recognition and tracking to the camera's autofocus system.  After hearing that news, I purchased an E-M1X body along with an M.Zuiko Digital ED 300mm f4 IS lens to see how it would cope with our small backyard birds.  As you can see from the images below, the camera did quite well despite the poor light conditions.

Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)

Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)

Chestnut-backed Chickadee (Poecile rufescens)

Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)

Drumbeg Provincial Park, Gabriola Island

Some images from Drumbeg Provincial Park on Gabriola Island.  These photos were taken on September 7, 2020, just before the heavy smoke from the US wildfires arrived in southern British Columbia.

Shoreline, Drumbeg Provincial Park

Driftwood, Drumbeg Provincial Park

Sailboats, Gabriola Passage

Sailboats, Salish Sea

Back to the Fujifilm System

It's been a long time since my last post, but a lot has happened since then, both out in the wider world as well as in my camera bag. 

The global pandemic has shut down or delayed so many planned projects and kept us close to home for much of the year.  Surprisingly, I have taken more photos since the provincial health authorities shut things down in mid-March than I took all of last year, as I have been using the time to test and evaluate many different camera systems.  At the same time, I have been learning and evaluating new image processing software (Capture One Pro 20) which has also affected my choice of camera equipment.

After thorough reviews of all the images I have taken over the past five years using Canon and Nikon DSLR equipment, plus testing the latest cameras from Panasonic, Olympus, and Sony, I have come to the conclusion that my personal photographic wants and needs are best served by Fujifilm cameras and lenses, and I have returned to using their X-series (APS-C sensor size) and GFX (medium-format sensor size) cameras and lenses.  I will endeavour to elaborate on my choices in future posts.

In the mean time, here are some images from where we have spent much of the pandemic, in our own front yard...