Photo of the Day: Fawn-breasted Brilliant Hummingbird

Mark Thomas uses strobes to create a hummingbird silhouette.  

Taken in the Tandayapa Valley in Ecuador, this silhouette invites both awe and a hint of mystery. The bird pictured is a fawn-breasted hummingbird, says photographer Mark Thomas. 

Using multiple strobes set at very low power, Thomas was able to selectively light the background, creating the silhouette you see here of a hummingbird with wings spread apart, approaching a flower to feed.

This image was a Top 100 photo from the 2013 Audubon Magazine Photography Awards. To see all of the photos, click here.