Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — Australian visual artist Christian Spencer began painting professionally 25 years ago. This may be the reason why his photographs come across as carefully drawn paintings, especially his series of hummingbirds, Winged Prism.
And in 2011, Spencer documented a hummingbird facing the sunrise, as part of a film.
The Brazilian artist was surprised to see tiny flashes of rainbow colors on the lens of his camera.
hidden event
Credit: Christian Spencer
“This phenomenon, which is usually invisible to our eyes in its prime, only appeared when we slowed down the video,” Al-Australi told CNN in Arabic.
In 2014, the artist decided to document this natural phenomenon with photographs, which led to the creation of the colorful “Winged Prism” series.
Credit: Christian Spencer
Hummingbirds are among the most amazing creatures in the world for Spencer, who asserts that “it’s incredible that their wings can turn into rainbows.”
Artwork in the air
Credit: Christian Spencer
According to the artist, the hummingbird’s feathers act as a filter, transforming white sunlight into a variety of bright colors.
Credit: Christian Spencer
Documenting birds requires a great deal of patience, and the project was a special challenge because Spencer was only able to take pictures on so few days of the year. The rays of the sun between the trees, and account for the migration period of these birds.
Credit: Christian Spencer
These factors did not meet except for one or two months each year, so it took years to work on the project.
The artist emphasized: “The images are not digitally processed, this is a natural phenomenon invisible to the human eye.”
Credit: Christian Spencer
Al-Astrali believed that these scenes were not specialized works documenting birds.
Photographs from this photo series have been recognized in various photography competitions including “Wildlife Photographer of the Year” and “Tokyo Photo Awards”.
The artist’s interest in photography began in 2014.
His keen interest in birds is embodied in his book “Birds: Poetry in the Sky” which he published at the end of 2022.
This book provides breathtaking views of bird habitats and includes the “Winged Prism” series.
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