From Helicopters to Hummingbirds

With over 1.7 million views on YouTube, the documentary The Bird in My Backyard opens with slow-motion footage of hummingbirds, their iridescent neck feathers shimmering fuchsia against a backdrop of falling snow. But the documentary is not about hummingbirds, not entirely; it’s about the man who captures them on camera.

Eric Pittman, a Toastmaster from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, has been filming hummingbirds for more than 15 years. He first discovered a hummingbird making nests in his backyard in 2009. “I started filming her, and she just kept having nests, one after another. She had six nests in one year.”

He was hooked, and so were others. “Facebook was coming in at that time, so I started a Facebook page called Hummingbirds Up Close. Lots of people started following it, so I just kept doing it.”

Pittman has followed 120 hummingbirds from egg to flight—and not just in his own garden. “I started to get calls from the BBC [British Broadcasting Corporation] for their wildlife films. I’ve been on a couple expeditions with them … and I get called for hummingbird footage from places all over the world,” he says.

The birds in his backyard have taken him well beyond its bounds. The 20-minute film, which follows Pittman as he documents two hummingbirds and their chicks, was nominated for Best Short Documentary at the 2025 Canadian Screen Awards.

Pittman, a member of Thunderbird Toastmasters Club, has had a remarkable journey, made possible by his curiosity, passion, and willingness to try something new—characteristics that have stuck with him throughout his life.

Early Career

Pittman started his career as a helicopter bush pilot in Saskatchewan, Canada. “The owner [of the company] told me, ‘There are three wrecked helicopters behind the hangar. If you can build one, you can fly it all summer. Here are the books and here are the wrenches. Go for it.’ And I did.”

As a bush pilot, Pittman flew geologists to isolated sites, fought forest fires, transported jade and other minerals, and did logging—the process of using helicopters to remove logs from difficult-to-reach sites.

“It was the helicopter logging that made me quit, because it was really too dangerous,” he says. One afternoon, after a near-miss, Pittman realized that he was taking too many chances. “There’s a saying with pilots: There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots.”

Pittman left the flying behind, but not the boldness and curiosity. He took a job installing architectural glass blocks, and that launched another idea. “I found out that nobody made glass blocks in Canada, so I thought, well, we should make glass blocks.”

He raised money and started a glass foundry. “We built the whole thing right from the ground up. At one point we had four furnaces going.”

Pittman and a partner ran the foundry for 10 years. In addition to the glass blocks, they also made art glass, such as trophies and decorative pieces. “We were successful, but the things that occurred were not in our favor, like energy costs going up,” he explains. “As you can imagine, a glass foundry uses a lot of energy.” Pittman decided to pull the plug and focus his energy elsewhere.

 

 

All photographs by Eric Pittman.

Breaking World Records

One area that he focused on ended up landing him in the Guinness World Records book. Pittman had written a book and wanted to make a splash with its launch. “I looked on the Guinness Book of Records website and I found one that I thought I could do,” he says.

The world’s largest underwater press conference—at that point—had been attended by only 12 journalists, and Pittman was sure he could beat that. He reserved a pool, had a local brewery sponsor the after-conference refreshments, prepared a puppet show, and organized an internet livestream. But there was another important task he needed to do on his way to breaking the world record: “I learned how to scuba dive.”

Most people who didn’t already know how to scuba dive would have flipped the page to find a more accessible world record to break, but Pittman is not most people. He knew what he wanted to achieve, and with that goal in mind, he put in the work to make it happen.

Pittman beat the record for the largest underwater press conference in 2006 with 61 journalists in attendance who dived to a depth of more than 32 feet.

Environmental Causes and Toastmasters

Pittman’s drive and dedication are also evident in his passion for nature and his work for environmental causes. In addition to filming hummingbirds, he co-founded the Canadian Orca Rescue Society. In an effort to bring recognition to the declining orca population, Pittman and the Society taught themselves to design and sew life-size orcas out of ripstop nylon—based on actual orcas that had been identified and tracked—which they inflated like balloons and brought with them to rallies.

His commitment to this cause and his determination to make an impact led him to Toastmasters. “[Toastmasters] has been essential … because I do so much public speaking in this role,” Pittman says. “We go to many environmental marches and things like that, and often we get up in front of the crowd and talk to people about it … Without the confidence to speak to them, it would be really difficult.”

He first joined Toastmasters in 2008. After taking a break in 2013, he returned recently as part of his preparation for The Bird in My Backyard documentary. “I decided to brush up on the skills because I knew that doing an interview for a film would be difficult, and I didn’t want to have those ‘ums’ and ‘ahs’ and all the bad things that come along with not recognizing the importance of what you’re saying.” As the documentary proves, Pittman does recognize the importance of what he’s saying, and says it well.

Of course, Toastmasters is about more than just technical skill; it’s about camaraderie. “Most people in Toastmasters are intelligent, and I like that,” Pittman says. “I like being in a room full of smart people. I just feel like it helps me mentally.”

Pittman is an asset to his club. Lynn Goodacre, a fellow member in the Thunderbird Toastmasters Club, has known him for about a year. “Eric contributes to the club’s atmosphere and culture with his sense of humor and spontaneity,” she says. That sense of humor runs throughout the club. “We know his passion is hummingbirds, so we tease him about ‘trying’ to talk about [other] topics, as well!” Goodacre adds.

Pittman’s drive, determination, and willingness to learn have helped him along his journey. “I didn’t know how to fly before I started to fly, and I didn’t know how to have a glass foundry until I had a glass foundry,” he says. “There’s never been any fear of starting something new.” This collection of new beginnings have linked together to form a fascinating life. From hummingbirds to helicopters, from orcas to underwater press conferences, his boldness, inquisitive spirit, and enthusiasm have served him well.

“There may not be old, bold pilots,” he laughs, “but there are certainly old, bold environmentalists.”

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