Looking for something unique in bird photography? Welcome to Shippenbirds.

Shippenbirds brings birds together with their environment, expressing a moment in nature the human eye seldom sees. The life-like, three-dimensional appearance of our 8x10 compositions offers a moment in nature almost impossible to capture with one snap of the camera.

Hummingbirds epitomize this moment. Their small size and incredibly quick and variable flight patterns defy clear observation. But, thanks to modern digital photography, you can own a hummingbird moment in sharp clarity, in bright color, freezing a blend of the moment’s primary elements.

Photographer/artist Al Mason, Jr. hosts Shippenbirds. Al has spent many hours in a blind using a Nikon D2X digital camera with an 18-200mm digital zoom lens and electronic flash system to help capture those split-second moments, his lens less than three feet from the bird.

Al shoots each flower in the same location as the bird to capture the proper lighting.

The rest takes place on the Macintosh. Working in Adobe Photoshop, Al painstakingly brings the birds, flowers, backgrounds, mats, etc.–as many as 12 to 15 layers– together in a pleasing design, preserving a unique moment in nature to be enjoyed for years to come.