believed that i'm lucky

by mike shriver
(san francisco, ca 94114)

Having gone out on disability several years ago, I began taking photographs as a way of not just keeping some semblance of mental acuity but also because I have always loved taking pictures.

Because of some of the treatment regimens I have been on, I have a tendency to not have very good balance if I have to stand in one place for long stretches of time and sometimes I fall. That, and I also have a slight shakiness in my hands as a result of another treatment regimen.

I say all this as backdrop to my hummingbird photos.

I don't photograph hummingbirds at feeders but instead only shoot them in local parks and gardens and when I am out and about the city. And with all the sort of residual physical limitations/challenges that are a sort of mainstay with me, I have discovered that I can take pretty good hummingbird shots. The irony of the situation is not lost on me.

My friends joke with me that I must be a hummingbird whisperer or that I was a hummingbird in a former life. I can spot them when no one else can and seem to sort of intuitively "get" them.

Here are the specs for this hummingbird photo of mine:

camera: nikon d5000
f/stop: 5.6
exp time: 1/60 sec
ISO: 800
focal length: 300mm
date taken: 5/12/10
time: 8:05pm (pst)

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