He asked where I photographed the hummingbirds and how I did it. He's only 8 years old, but he's already shown some interest in photography. Furthermore, he owns a point-and-shoot camera and understands how difficult it is to photograph wildlife—especially birds.

All the hummingbirds pictures I have been posting lately were taking at a local park, the Crews Lake Wilderness Park. I have been visiting this park every weekend for the last two years. During this period of time I have seen hummingbirds few times and managed to take one or two pictures of them.

But over the past two weeks, I've taken nearly 50 pictures of them, both perched and in flight, and that probably sparked his curiosity.
How did I do it?
As with any other wildlife, the first step is to know where they’ve been seen. There are many online sources where photographers and birders report their sightings. But in this case, I had spotted them a few times myself, so I knew for a fact they were there. The next step was to take note of where I saw them and what plants and flowers were in those areas. I noticed that they were particularly attracted to a flower called by locals Firebush (Hamelia patens). It's a native plant to Florida and other tropical regions, known for its tubular, reddish-orange to yellow flowers, which are very attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies. I spent time, hours, watching when and how often the hummingbirds visit the plants. Taking note of their preferred flowers and approach patterns — they tend to follow routines.

Hummingbirds flap their wings up to 70 times per second, so I used a shutter speed of 1/4000 ~ 1/5000 to freeze motion. For wing blur (artistic effect), you can try around 1/500s to 1/1000s, but that did not work for me because they were moving too fast from one flower to another. Using these fast shutter speed will result in a high ISO (25600) specially if the flowers are located in a shaded area. That means that a good post editing software is needed to clean the noise in these pictures. I used LrC and DXO PureRaw.
I was predicting their flying pattern, pre-focusing in particular flowers, making it easier to focus on the bird approaching that area. Be patient, I spent hours standing quiet without moving to be sure that they got used to my presence. In 3 hours, I managed to take just 10 or so good pictures.
You need to shoot bursts, in my case, using a mechanical shutter mode, from 4 to 12 frame per seconds in my Canon R6. Do not be surprised if you get one or two good pictures in each burst.
Of course, you need a zoom lens for these photos. If the hummingbirds notice you, they for sure will fly away. This is why to be quiet and without moving is that important.
Dear Liam, I know that at just 8 years old, you might not understand all the technical things I’ve mentioned here — and that’s perfectly okay. In time, you’ll learn all of it. The key word is time.
When it comes to photographing wildlife, being patient is essential. Staying quiet is very important. Moving slowly is key. Many animals and birds are territorial, and if you follow these simple rules, they’ll feel safe and return to the places they like. All you have to do is wait — and be ready to press the shutter button.