How I got this incredible hummingbird footage in a Victoria backyard
I moved to Victoria in early January 2022, amid the heaviest snowfall of that year. Thankfully, unlike in my hometown of Calgary, the snow was gone in a matter of days and didn't return for the rest of the winter. After settling into my new apartment, I began exploring the city.
As someone born and raised in Alberta, the first thing I noticed about Victoria is just how green it is, even in the depths of winter. The second thing I noticed was there were hummingbirds. Everywhere! In the middle of winter!
In Alberta, hummingbirds only visit for a few months of the year in the summer. And in Calgary, you really have to search for them. In Victoria, they are everywhere, all year long. I soon found myself going out to photograph the tiny birds whenever I got the chance and I even bought a feeder for my balcony. I was obsessed.
The man with birds in his backyard
One of my colleagues noticed my interest and offered to introduce me to her neighbour, who had been filming hummingbirds for over a decade. Two days later, I was in Eric Pittman's backyard filming an Anna's hummingbird feeding her newborn chicks — something I had never seen before. It was amazing.
Eric, on the other hand, had been following hummingbirds for 14 years and estimates he's documented over 120 nests. This was a familiar scene for him, yet he was still visibly excited to be filming another nest.
As spring went on and I spent a few more days in Eric's yard filming the nest, I got to know him better. I learned he used to be a helicopter pilot, has a Guinness World Record for the largest underwater press conference, and received a Medal of Bravery from Gov. Gen. Adrienne Clarkson after helping to save a family from a burning vehicle.
Since he started filming hummingbirds, the BBC has hired him as an expert for two natural history shoots, Netflix has filmed birds in his yard, and he has sold his footage to outlets around the world. Today, he sells windows, which allows him to film whenever he pleases.
Telling the story of a man and his birds
I quickly understood Eric's story was special, so I asked him if he wanted to make a film. As you can see, he said "Yes." So between January and April of 2024, I spent about 40 days filming Eric and hummingbirds. We followed five different nests during that time, but I ended up focusing on just two for the film.
I used a high-speed camera, capable of capturing very slow-motion footage to showcase the birds in a magical way. As you can imagine, this resulted in a lot of footage — over 11 terabytes, to be exact!
I decided to post some of the amazing shots I'd taken, and within a couple of months, my Instagram followers went from about 7,000 to over 130,000. It's been a wild ride. I'm looking forward to sharing more moments that didn't make the final cut.
How to watch The Bird in My Backyard
The documentary is streaming now on CBC Gem and The Nature of Things YouTube channel.
The Bird in My Backyard won the 2024 Jackson Wild Media Award for best short — wildlife and entertainment, and was named best short film at the 2024 Banff Mountain Film Competition.