They are Violet-Backed Swallows, and I love to shoot them! 1/1250 second wasn’t nearly fast enough to capture these, so I doubled to 1/2500 second, but still not fast enough. They only fly 28 miles/hr, but it seems like twice that, and they never fly straight, zig-zagging all over the place catching bugs in mid-air. Like fighter planes swooping the creek, then back to the treetops, then one inch off the ground for a grasshopper. There are hundreds of them on Rock Creek. You can’t keep the camera on them except for an instant, but when the light catches them just right, their blue-violet colors flash at you.
I’ve tried to get pictures on this trip before, but had to wait for the occasional 5-inch tiny rocket to fly by, but there’s no waiting here. My arms got tired swinging the camera all around. What fun! After a number of times of shooting these amazing, little birds, I am convinced they come to check you out. When I first come up to the stream, they fly right up to me, some buzzing all the way around me – checking me out, looking me right in the eye. Do I HAVE to leave today?
Beautiful birds. When I first saw the pics I thought they were large predators; your camera is that good.
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Thanks so much for the comment Jim. I am out of the Frank Church Wilderness now, and hope to catch up on the blog. I have seen so many incredible places!