Adult Spotted Sandpiper – Small In The Frame
I don't often see Spotted Sandpipers perched in trees so I was enchanted when this one landed on the bare branches that hung over a slow flowing creek.
I don't often see Spotted Sandpipers perched in trees so I was enchanted when this one landed on the bare branches that hung over a slow flowing creek.
When this European Starling perched in a Crabapple tree close to me during the snowstorm I was able to get a few photos of it before my hands started to hurt from the cold.
Yesterday I was able to focus on this American Robin as it foraged in the branches of a crabapple tree and took a nice, long series of images of the handsome red-breasted thrush.
Yesterday morning I spent some time up in the Wasatch Mountains and I am so glad that I did because I found a second winter Bald Eagle with leucism.
For a couple of years now I have enjoyed photographing Cedar Waxwings high up in the Wasatch Mountains from spring through the tail end of autumn.
While hoping to photograph Brown Creepers two days ago I spotted a Hermit Thrush at a distance on the ground in the deep shadows of a stand of trees.
Last Friday as I looked for birds in a few West Desert canyons I was serenaded by the songs and calls of Townsend's Solitaires and while I loved hearing them it was frustrating because they were either too far away or hidden from my view.
This immature Northern Flicker was one of the last birds I spotted and photographed three days ago while up in the Wasatch Mountains and I was happy that she stayed long enough for me to take a nice series of images of her.
I was extremely pleased to find and photograph my first Gray Catbird juvenile of this breeding season yesterday morning high in the Wasatch Mountains as it came into view on a hawthorn tree.
Just a few days ago I was listening to Song Sparrows singing on the East Coast and yesterday I was listening to them singing in a canyon in the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah.
It was interesting to watch and photograph this little Broad-tailed Hummingbird defend his favorite perch from the intruders I barely saw but could hear as they flew in and he flew out to chase them away.
I had this gorgeous Warbling Vireo up close singing its tiny heart out and I couldn't photograph it so I sat and watched it sing and move around in the aspens.
The Willow Flycatcher perched out in the open high on a shrub with a clear blue sky in the background and I didn't even mind the foliage and branches behind and above the bird.
Three days ago I photographed Yellow-rumped Warblers in the Wasatch Mountains, these warblers are a challenge because they move so quickly but they are always fun to have in my viewfinder.
These two Song Sparrow photos are a reminder to me that sometimes having man made objects in my photos isn't such a bad thing, it is just a matter of personal tastes.
I've been collecting images of immature White-crowned Sparrows that I have taken over the past month or so up in Box Elder County because of all the different settings I have photographed them in.
I've shared photographs of Warbling Vireos here before but this is the first time that I am sharing photos of Plumbeous Vireos, these images were taken earlier this month in the Wasatch Mountains.
I've been trying for over a month to get decent images of fledgling and juvenile Cedar Waxwings and hadn't succeeded but yesterday I was able to take a photograph of an immature waxwing that I actually like.
I see, but don't often photograph House Finches at home, I get most excited about them away from human civilization and in their natural habitats.
I looked up and spotted a Warbling Vireo not only out in the open plus it had gorgeous fall colors in the background. I locked focus onto the vireo and started taking images in a long burst!
I've had such an amazing time this year photographing Yellow Warblers in the Wasatch Mountains and I've enjoyed learning more about them and their behaviors since early May.
I could wish that the Warbling Vireo had hung around longer so that I could have taken many more images of it but I'm thrilled that I was able to take any photos of the bird at all.
Yellow Warblers are anything but mellow instead they are frenetic, hyperactive, frenzied, energetic and move so quickly they sometimes make me dizzy trying to track them with my long lens.
Since a flock of waxwings can be called an “ear-full” of waxwings I thought I'd share a group of Cedar Waxwing photos I have taken over the last month in a canyon in the Wasatch Mountains east of Salt Lake City.
I pulled over to the left side of the road after I passed the bush and the bird and I succeeded in getting the Cedar Waxwing in fairly good light with a cloudy sky background.
Knowing that this is a favorite perch has given me opportunities I might have missed if I hadn't been paying attention to the behavior of this tiny Broad-tailed Hummingbird since their arrival this spring.
Spending time photographing Yellow Warblers can try the patience of even the most patient photographer because they are so flighty, small and move quickly but it can also be rewarding when you get photos that you like.
Of the photos that I took that morning I liked this one Rough-winged Swallow the most because I could see its entire body while the other swallow had the out of focus perch in front of the body of the bird.
I had fun yesterday morning photographing a male Green-tailed Towhee singing in a mountain canyon, this was a bird I heard before I spotted him perched on a flowering branch.
When it comes to small birds like Yellow-rumped Warblers I prefer photographing them in clean habitats over cluttered habitats because the small birds stand out better when the background isn't so messy.