Ruby throated hummingbird - Archilochus colubris
Canon 5D, MP-E 65mm f2.8, and twin lite flash
full frame and a eye crop (1/2 size) The first image and the eye crop taken at 2X the last at 1X
Full frame images are linked to full sized images compressed (1-2MB)
Is this bird alive? Yes, this bird is alive, but not feeling too well. The birds have taken to gorging themselves at the feeder, so much so that they can't fly. They launch off the feeder and if they don't take to the air they usually land in the grass, where they will flail around and chatter attracting all sorts of unwanted attention. So if I see it happen, now that I really understand what is happening, I will go and pick the bird up out of the grass and perch him off the ground.
For this bird I happened to have camera in hand. After the last picture the bird sat up, crapped all over my hand, and flew away.