I took this photo last month with my new Panasonic Lumix FZ100 super zoom bridge camera. This bridge camera is kind of best of both worlds. It offers many features of an SLR like a hot shoe (for external flash), camera hood, 24x zoom and the ability to add filters but the ease of a point and shoot because the zoom is built in instead of having to carry extra lenses around. The best part was the price ... $399.

Now I'm still learning about how to use it but even still, I was able to stop a hummingbird in its tracks.

Jodi-

I love those pictures, you can even see the hummingbird's tongue!

One of the greatest considerations with Digital Cameras of all varieties is shutter lag.

Nearly all the Point & shoot cameras that I have used seem to have a terribly long shutter lag. It is not quite so bad with Bridge Cameras and with most of the DSLR's I have used it is not a noticable problem except when using autofocus.

I love to shoot birds in flight but I have developed a simple technique that avoids the autofocus lag. First off, I study the birds habits to see if they have a favorite limb to perch on or I set up a feeder or birdbath to attract them to me. Then I set the camera on a tripod and either use a manual focus lens or use the autofocus in manual mode.

I can then prefocus on the point where I know the bird will be and set an aperture to permit an appropriate amount of depth of field.

If I am shooting through the window from inside the house I attach an extension shutter release cable and just sit back and watch. Whenever a bird I want comes into view I just hit the button and voila's..I got the shot.

Sometimes when the weather permits I set the camera on a tripod near the feeder, birdbath or flower and I then attach a radio control remote shutter release. With the remote I can sit in the house or in a lawn chair 100feet away and just hit the button.

Thanks, Alisande. You're right, my camera does have an action setting, and I've never used it! I'll try it soon and see how it works.

I used to have a cheap Fuji camera that I loved, it took clear pictures even of hummingbirds...but it broke, and I've missed that little camera ever since.

Jodi, I almost bought the Panasonic Lumix FZ100 a few years ago. I ended up with an Olympus for some reason. Your pictures are always so good.

Lazypup, love the bird's wings, what a great shot! Lots of good tips too, thanks.

Oops, it wasn't the Panasonic Lumix FZ100, but a similar model.

The vast majority of photos I post here were taken with an 8 year old Olympus C-740 3.2MP with 10x Optical Zoom digital camera.

It took superb pics but with the lower Mpixel count, terrible shutter lag and 256Mb memory card limit, it definitely had its downside.

I dropped and broke my first Olympus about two years after buying it. It had been discontinued so I went on eBay and bought the exact same camera for $55. It too took exceptional photos. But, when it became so slow on a recent trip to Panama that I missed a sloth photo op (a sloth!!! for heaven's sake!), I decided it was time to find a new camera. :-)

I did lots of research. I didn't want an SLR quite yet as it would be more camera than I can currently handle. I seriously know next to nothing about manual settings but I do know that I really don't want to be lugging extra lenses and the weight of an SLR around with me...yet. :-)

I finally order the Panasonic Lumix FZ100 and wait for it to arrive. Low and behold there is a box on my doorstep the next day! But it was for my DH. Turns out he bought another Olympus exactly like my old one since it takes such great pics. He paid $30 for it.

I've only been using the FZ100 since June but I'm pretty happy with it so far. I start a 10 week photography class next Monday. Hope the teacher can break through my thick skull and help make F-stops and aperture settings and depth of field all make sense. Well, actually in theory it all makes sense it's just they made it more difficult than it needed to be with all the wanky numbers you need to remember. LOL

Oh, and I missed my old Olympus so much that I bought a new Olympus Stylus 9000 to carry around in my backpack when I hike.

Jodi-

I want to add an honest contribution to this thread...but I honestly defer to this man when looking for camera opinions...

Ken Rockwell.....http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/nikon-vs-canon.htm

He's written other articles if you care to read his take on camera choices...

Ken Rockwell is almost a political figure--he is such a controversial subject. He has his followers.......and his detractors. I find him annoying. :-)

Oldgardener, I have nothing but good things to say about the Panasonic Lumix line of super zooms. I bought the first one that came out in 2005 (the FZ5) and got one for my son, too. A few years later he bought the FZ28 for his wife, and then I bought the FZ35 for myself. The only reason I upgraded is that I needed to print 16x20" enlargements and wanted more pixels than the FZ5 had. I kept the camera, though.

Most of the picture I post on the KT are taken with this camera. My other one is an Olympus DSLR. Olympus used to make really excellent super zooms (like Jodi's, and mine), but in recent years they've emphasized their DSLR line(s), and lack the reputation they once had with the non-interchangeable lens models.

Thanks for all the camera feedback, everyone. It's very helpful.

Hey....I just ran out in the rain and took this shot....with a 5mp point & shoot, with the flash....it needs to be overcast or in the shade for this to work or the picture will look "blown out"...but it did stop his wings.... LOL

It certainly did! You'd think he was gliding. :-)

Have you ever seen one of those multi-flash hummingbird photo setups with five (I think) flashes that fire at once from different locations? Elaborate and tricky, certainly requiring way more skill than I possess, but the results are dazzling. There's a lot of information on it on the Internet.

It certainly did! You'd think he was gliding. :-)

Have you ever seen one of those multi-flash hummingbird photo setups with five (I think) flashes that fire at once from different locations? Elaborate and tricky, certainly requiring way more skill than I possess, but the results are dazzling. There's a lot of information on it on the Internet.

Why are my posts showing up twice? This is the second time this week.....

Susan....I haven't seen that.....right now I'm enamored with the panoramas that are twisted into a round pic....

Getting ready to do an underwater shoot in a few weeks...:0)

Here is a link that might be useful: Panorama twisted into a round pic....

Great shot, nicole!