Birds that I find in the field, photograph and share the stories behind the images.
The past couple of weeks on some of my journeys to the West Desert of Utah I have been able to have a few long distance views of Ferruginous Hawks and that has me excited.
One of the seasonal changes I look for in autumn is when I see that the Dark-eyed Juncos have arrived in the Salt Lake Valley.
This is a really simple photo with three features, the White-crowned Sparrow, the stump, and a very dark background.
The Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Wild Turkeys and the Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay made the very bumpy and extremely dusty ride into the mountain canyons well worth taking.
This male Mountain Bluebird seemed to glow in the early morning light which was in sharp contrast with the shadows on the mountains in the background.
I spent sometime at Farmington Bay WMA yesterday morning where my best bird of the day was an immature Red-tailed Hawk resting in a tree.
Red-breasted Nuthatches aren't easy to photograph because they are tiny, they move quickly and their flight patterns are fairly unpredictable. Finding the right habitat, their habitat, can make it fun.
I didn't get the photos I wanted of the sparrows perched on the rabbitbrush but I like this portrait of the young White-crowned Sparrow in front of it just as well.
I know where in the mountains to find Townsend’s Solitaires by seeing them, hearing them and by knowing their preferred habitat.
I don't know how many times I have said "expect the unexpected" since I began photographing birds while talking to fellow photographers.
There were a few times when the Wild Turkeys stood upright and looked right at me as I photographed them and I took full advantage of the opportunity to take portraits of the large birds.
This adult female Northern Flicker and a male were both foraging for hawthorn berries when I spotted them from across a creek high in the Wasatch Mountains.
I noticed immediately that the Red-tailed Hawk was on prey because I saw it tearing into something despite the grasses that were partially obstructing my view.
September is a marvelous time for photographing Snowy Egrets in the freshwater marshes that surround the Great Salt Lake.
Yesterday afternoon I spent thirty-one minutes photographing migrating Yellow-rumped Warblers close to home and those warblers kept me on my toes.
It was a terrific "season opener" for me yesterday thanks to my keen observation skills at Farmington Bay WMA with a Green Heron, one-eared Long-tailed Weasel and a one-eyed American White Pelican.
When this Warbling Vireo popped into my view I knew if I wanted to photograph it I had to hurry because these small vireos move fast.
American Robins seemed especially abundant yesterday high in the Wasatch Mountains and I was happy to photograph them foraging on the ripe berries of a hawthorn.
Three days ago while I was up in the Wasatch Mountains I had an immature Wilson's Warbler in my viewfinder for just a few moments.
I look at this seasonal change as a personal challenge to grow, to adapt and to meet my bird photography goals. I'm looking forward to the challenges and changes ahead.
This morning I wanted to share a potpourri of Ruby-crowned Kinglet photos because I adore seeing and photographing these quick moving, charismatic little birds.
Eleven days ago I photographed an adult Sage Thrasher regurgitating the seed of a sumac berry that was so close I could barely fit the thrasher in the frame.
When this Mountain Chickadee came into view it was hanging from a juniper bough with two Douglas Fir seeds in its bill it appeared to be looking around for a place to cache its food.
I parked next to a stand of willows to see what birds would come in and it wasn't long before I was busy photographing Nashville Warblers foraging for aphids on the leaves of the trees.
Spotted Towhees are among the most colorful members of the sparrow family and I always enjoy photographing them on those occasions when they are out in the open.
I don't usually share photos where the main subject is facing away from me but I liked the alert pose of this raptor as it perched in the dead but distant juniper tree.
I was busy photographing six species of sparrows when I noticed this adult Sage Thrasher pop up in a sumac bush that was close enough for me to take portraits of it.
I had a great time photographing all of the sparrow species I saw two days ago and I could have stayed with them all morning long. I might do just that later this week.
The first bird I photographed yesterday morning was an immature Cooper's Hawk that I found because I spotted a Red-tailed Hawk on a cliff face that the young accipiter decided to harass.
A few days ago I was able to photograph an immature Chipping Sparrow that landed on a wire fence next to a dusty road in the Wasatch Mountains.