Did you know that hummingbirds can fly sideways, backwards and even upside down? And that they effectively go into hibernation every night to save energy?

Hummingbirds are among the most colourful species in the wild kingdom, yet far from easy to photograph. Kaleel Zibe travelled to Costa Rica to capture a bird that flies faster than autofocus…

I wouldn’t be surprised if J.K. Rowling had hummingbirds in mind when she invented Harry Potter’s quidditch snitch, such is their dizzyingly fast speed and ability to change direction at break-neck speed. These incredible creatures are a dream to watch, but a nightmare to photograph. In this article I explore some of the techniques that helped me capture images of these tiny birds in Costa Rica.

Well now, I got quite a surprise when I went to download my copy of Wild Planet Photo magazine on Sunday. I was looking forward to seeing how the article was laid out when I discovered that my photo was on the front cover! That’s my first front cover ever! Very chuffed indeed.

For the full 10 page article, please see the July 2014 edition of Wild Planet Photo magazine. Screen-shots are below.

I have various other blog posts about Costa Rica on the blog page.