REVIEWS HUMMINGBIRDS

                                                                                                                 

PERSONS

Mary Lou Goodwin                                                                                                                                          Author of Birding in Venezuela - Lynx Ediciones, sponsored by Audubon Venezuela & Bird Life International

I have just finished seeing the new DVDs by Carlo Ferraro titled The Video Guide to Hummingbirds.
This DVD has only emphasized my long-held belief  that I am the luckiest North American bird watcher in the world to live in Venezuela with its some 1392 species of birds.
I have seen many DVDs by Carlo, but I believe this to be his best.   In this  new set Carlo has once again shown his incredible patience in filming birds and his  capacity to capture the hummers as well as their ability in flight, including flying backwards, something no other species has.  It is their domination of flight that makes hummingbirds very special, and
Carlo has captured it.  He also has illustrated the beauty of hummingbirds with their lovely colors.
If you are able to secure a copy of this two DVD set, I highly recommend it, a unique tool to identify hummingbirds.

Caracas, Venezuela, July 2008

 

Ralph Dessau                                                                                                                                                                         www.66timbertop.com - Author of  "Los Tucusitos (Hummingbirds) de Caracas"

I want you to know that I think your Hummingbird Guide is the most perfect presentation of these magnificent creatures. I first discovered how to photograph hummingbirds in an article by Crawford Greenewalt in the National Geographic Magazine. It enabled me to take high quality photographs of the Hummingbirds of Caracas, which were eventually published in a book, sponsored by the Municipal Council of Caracas. But I never dreamt it was possible to achieve such perfection in every respect as demonstrated in your Hummingbird Guide. Each bird in its natural surroundings, feeding, nesting, bathing and resting - always with perfect lighting and incredible detail. Your guide should be seen by all bird lovers and by every child in the world.

Sincerely, Ralph Dessau  -  Texas, USA, July 2008
 

 

Hans Neumann                                                                                                                                                                            Senior Research Associate - Realinsite - Toronto - Canada                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

What a labour of love! They have already moved to the top of my prized possessions in my video library list.
It is an absolutely dazzling visual display of the cinematographer's expertise and superb control of his craft combined with his knowledge of the feathered, flying jewels he so flawlessly captures in their natural habitats.
In the number and in the quality of the hummingbirds' video you captured on film, this is a definitive work (I'm sure you are the first to present video footage of many of the hummingbirds depicted in your video guide). You have put together a lasting monument to the beauty of these beautiful creatures not  only for use by the trained ornithologist but also for  the enjoyment of the public-at-large. 
I gratefully congratulate you on your unique accomplishment and my delight in being able to share in your experience.
With all best wishes for the future, now relax and rest on your laurels for a while.

Toronto,  Canada, July 2008

 

 

 

 

ORGANISATIONS

THE HUMMINGBIRD SOCIETY    (www.hummingbirdsociety.org)      

The Hummingbird Society, in pursuing its mission of teaching about hummingbirds and working to prevent their extinction, strongly recommends this video resource!  The quality and diversity of hummingbird video images captured by Professor Carlo Ferraro are unmatched.  Here is an opportunity to see beautiful, even magical hummingbird species without actually having to travel to so many countries!  Those who do travel in search of these wonders will find this an unequalled resource for identification and for observation of behavior (buy it before you go!).  Professor Ferraro has done his homework well, and careful editing clearly followed his hundreds–perhaps even thousands–of hours in the field photographing these treasures.

 

BIRD GUIDES Ltd   (www.birdguides.com)

As you might hope for, there are countless moments where you cannot help yourself and go “wow”. The Brilliants are just that, especially the final 20 seconds or so of Velvet-browed….the sheer dazzling beauty of the Sunangels, Velvet-purple Coronet and Rainbow Starfrontlet, the amazing green crown of the male Festive Coquette, the aptly named Fiery-throated Hummingbird captured being exactly that, the grace of the male Booted Racket-tail are all joys to behold and I can’t wait to see White-throated Mountain Gem…and the two hummingbird species I’ve enjoyed most on my travels didn’t disappoint either….as soon as the super shots of Sword-billed Hummingbird appeared on screen I was whisked back to Peru and a hard, hard day up in the Andes, marvelling at the incredible flying bill just yards away, while the 35 seconds of a fabulous perched male Bearded Helmetcrest (complete with swirling mist and gusts of wind) took me back instantly to the Venezuelan Paramo some 18 years ago and the overwhelming joy that seeing this amazing little avian tough-nut brought with it.......................

Please read full review of Mark Golley here.

 

FATBIRDER   (www.fatbirder.com)      

It is a magical product capturing so many species in high resolution and is the very best medium for anyone wanting to be able to identify hummingbirds. Such a large family of birds is hard enough but when they are hardly ever still it is very difficult to pick out their salient features. Luckily for us Carlo Ferraro has filmed wide, medium and amazing close-ups of these fascinating birds shot originally in high definition, most of them (when possible) illuminated by fill-in artificial light to show all the amazing colors hummingbirds are able to produce on their forehead, throat, gorget, chest, belly, tail and/or back................. My hope is that he will film every species so that the guides can eventually be re-edited into family groups or country sets preserving the high quality film forever as the foremost hummingbird ID tool in the cannon of ornithological identification...............

 Please read full review of FATBIRDER  here MO  or go to http://www.fatbirder.com/reviews/index.php?article=339