Immature Male Red-winged Blackbird
I photographed this young male Red-winged Blackbird singing at the top of a Russian olive tree at Farmington Bay WMA nine days ago.
I photographed this young male Red-winged Blackbird singing at the top of a Russian olive tree at Farmington Bay WMA nine days ago.
Usually when I see and photograph Savannah Sparrows they are on barbed wire, fence posts, railings or on the ground so seeing a Savannah on rocks was a nice change for me.
For a few moments yesterday morning I was absolutely enchanted by a small flock of Ruby-crowned Kinglets in Box Elder County in northern Utah.
I live in such a beautiful state and even though birds are my primary focus as subjects the natural world that surrounds me is endlessly fascinating, stunning and I hope I never lose the sense of wonder I feel when I see it.
Yesterday I was delighted when I spotted a Warbling Vireo at the top of some nearby willows and that the vireo stayed long enough for me to take a few photos of it.
The best bird I spotted that I could photograph was a male Red-tailed Hawk resting on a cliff face and what I loved about this photo was all the grasses, lichen, wildflowers and the sage high up on the cliff.
I don't see and photograph foxes as often as I would like to so this Red Fox was a surprise to me because I'd never seen one at this location before.
Sometimes I go out to look for birds to photograph and all I get are great views of the scenery, sometimes I am okay with that and sometimes it is very frustrating.
I love the darkness and the light in the stormy sky in the background, how well lit the Short-eared Owl was and the position of his wings in flight and I like that he is small in this frame because this is often the view that I and others have of these wonderful owls in the field.
If I hadn't already been stopped to photograph the blackbird I wouldn't have seen this immature Bald Eagle flying towards me in time to take the photos that I took of it on the wing.
It took a long time but I have gotten On The Wing Photography moved to the new server.
This female Great-tailed Grackle was the first bird I photographed yesterday and she was so close to me that I opted to take portraits of her in the nice afternoon light at my local pond.
It isn't often that my best photo of the day is a simple cell phone snap but that is kind of what happened yesterday at Farmington Bay WMA.
Yesterday morning I spent time focused on photographing Ruby-crowned Kinglets in a Wasatch Mountain Canyon in a thicket of hawthorn and chokecherry trees.
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.
I spotted a flash of black, white and red as a bird landed in the aspen tree that was closest to me above where the wrens and swallows are nesting and realized that a male Red-naped Sapsucker had flown in and was foraging for food in the buds of the aspen.
When I lived in Florida I saw Snowy Egrets year round and that kind of spoiled me but here in Utah they leave for the winter and come back to the marshes and wetlands surrounding the Great Salt Lake for their breeding season.
The last couple of times I have gone to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and further north of there I have been so happy to hear and see, even if from a long distance, the return of our Sandhill Cranes.
The Tundra Swans are truly at home in the landscape of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and they belong there as much as the mountains, marshes, birds, animals, fish, sky and the clouds overhead do.
My entire focus was on the calm Great Blue Heron in front of me and I felt as relaxed as the heron appeared to be that morning.
I had a blast photographing the Tundra Swans at the refuge yesterday and for the first time in a while I forgot about practically everything but the birds in front of me and the peace I find at the refuge.
Three frames later I was glad this Ring-billed Gull's rotund belly caught my eye when through my viewfinder I could see the gull preening while in flight which is unusual behavior in my experience.
People who are environmentally conscious and whom respect and love nature already know this, they are my sisters and brothers at arms.
I really wanted some nice bird photos to remember Christmas Day 2017 and I found them but just a few blocks away from home at the local pond.
For several weeks now Rough-legged Hawks have been migrating into northern Utah and showing up in locations where I have photographed them for years.
Yesterday morning found me at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, a wild and wonderful place that I am very thankful for because of the birds there, the spectacular scenery and the refuge I find within its boundaries.
This Fish Crow in flight over Egmont Key In Florida image isn't the best, I see many flaws in it, but on my old photo gallery this photo had by far the most views in the entire gallery.
A few days ago I photographed a Yellow-rumped Warbler at a pond close to home that was tossing its prey around before it consumed it.
The Marsh Wrens at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge live there year round even through the heat of summer and our harsh winters they are there going about the business of living.
I don't often have the opportunity of taking photos of ducks that are flying straight at me while coming in for a landing which is exactly what this drake mallard did.