Three Weekends, Three Hummingbird Festivals: Worth it for Photographers?
Today I attended the Ijams Hummingbird Festival in Knoxville, Tennessee - my third hummingbird festival in three weekends. It was a large, well-attended event. Ticket price was $12.30, plus an additional $5.13 to attend the banding demonstration. The festival events followed a familiar structure:
Bird banding station
Live animal show (variety of birds from the local rehab facility)
Vendor booths
Guided walks
Crafts and activities for the kids
Lectures/talks
Food trucks
Not enough parking
Like the other two birding festivals I recently attended (the Land Between the Lakes Hummingbird Festival in western Kentucky and Indiana Audubon’s Hummingbird Migration Celebration east of Indianapolis), it was difficult photographing hummingbirds at this event. As I have mentioned in previous posts, the main reason was the bird banding demo. To catch birds for banding, all the hummingbird feeders are taken down, except those in the off-limits bird trapping area. This is to drive the hummingbirds into the traps. The scientific value of bird banding and related public education is incredibly important - no question about that - but strictly speaking as a photographer, this activity just ruins any meaningful opportunity to photograph hummingbirds.
Bird trapping area. Hummingbird traps and mist nets located behind the banding demo area. This area was not open to the public. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 28-75mm f/2.8 lens at 75mm, f/2.8, 1/200 sec, ISO 250.
I do think there is a solution to this problem. Simply create two feeding station areas - one for trapping birds for the banding demos, and another feeding station for photography. I am sure a “hummingbird photo zone” would be hugely popular with photographers, both amateur and professional, without taking away from the success of the banding demos. So if any hummingbird festival organizers happen to read this, simply set up an area with a few feeders and plants nearby for “staging” and you’d have a new activity for your festival for participants of all ages. Super simple with no additional costs.
While walking around looking for birds, I did find a couple of hummingbird feeding areas. All of the feeders were empty, presumably to drive the birds to the banding area. However, a few hummingbirds would fly in and check out the feeders, see they were empty and move on. One stubborn female, though, kept vigil over her feeders chasing off any intruders. If not for her, I wouldn’t have gotten any photos of hummingbirds at the Ijams Hummingbird Festival.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird. This female sits atop her throne keeping a close watch for any marauders entering her kingdom. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR lens at 600mm, f/6.3, 1/1250 sec, ISO 2200.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird. The same female chased off an intruder then perched on the steel structure from which feeders are hung. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR lens at 600mm, f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1800.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird. This appears to be a juvenile male coming in to inspect the feeders. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR lens at 600mm, f/6.3, 1/3200 sec, ISO 4500.
Unlike the previous two festivals, this time I went over to the live animal area where the rehabbers had a variety of owls out. The rehab facility at this event was Owl Ridge Raptor Center. They had an Eastern Screech Owl, Barred Owl, Barn Owl, and a Great Horned Owl out to meet visitors. I focused on the Eastern Screech Owl because it was so small and cute (plus there were other people around the other owls, and I didn’t want to crowd in). No, this isn’t wild bird photography, but it’s really cool to get some close-ups of some rarely seen birds. I am always awestruck by the love and commitment these rehabbers have for the birds in their care.
Eastern Screech Owl. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 28-75mm f/2.8 lens at 75mm, f/2.8, 1/1250 sec, ISO 1000.
Eastern Screech Owl. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 28-75mm f/2.8 lens at 75mm, f/2.8, 1/1250 sec, ISO 1000.
So is a hummingbird festival “worth it” for photographers? It depends. If your aim is to take photographs of hummingbirds, then no, I do not think these festivals are the best places to photograph hummingbirds. You would be better suited going to known hummingbird feeding areas and you won’t have to deal with the crowds or expense of going to a festival. However, if your goal is to learn about hummingbirds, meet and speak with hummingbird experts, and to support the nonprofits that protect these birds, then yes, I wholeheartedly think it’s worth it. What I can confidently say is that I will not be attending all three festivals next year. Maybe just one…
For now though, migration season is still upon us and these little hummers are fattening up in preparation for the migration south. I have a single feeder in my backyard which is diligently guarded by a single female. She keeps battling the chickadees and goldfinches which like to drink the water out of the ant moat. Ha!
Happy birding!
