Photographer Anand Varma masterfully navigates the intersection of science and art. Fascinated by the natural world, he often experiments with photographic techniques to capture his subjects. For his work on hummingbirds, Varma used several innovative tools, including high-speed cameras, to begin unlocking the secrets behind these perfect flying machines. Hummingbird species can claim many superlatives: the world’s smallest birds; the only birds that can hover for 30 seconds or more; the vertebrates with the fastest metabolic rate; and the only birds that can truly fly backward. In these images: 1. The secret to the hummingbird’s hovering ability lies in the near symmetry of its wing motion. By filling the air with a fine mist, researchers can observe the tornado-like vortices that this Anna’s hummingbird sheds at the end of each half-stroke—when its wings flip more than 90 degrees and reverse course. 2. In dense vegetation, hummingbirds must dodge and weave around branches and vin...