Arizona Photography

 It was a chilly morning, around 48 degrees when I left home, but I wanted to go out anyway.  At the canyon, it was 45 degrees and quite windy, around 15-20 mph.  The wind made it very uncomfortable, but it hadn't discouraged the birds.  There was a lot of bird activity, and as it turned out, plenty of people were there also.  No doubt that was due to recent reports of birds returning from migration, including several species of hummingbirds.  There was so much chatter among the visitors that it was hard to find a spot and just concentrate on photography.  It all proved to be worth it, however.  After moving around to several different locations, I finally opted to go to the enclosed blind, even though it hasn't been very active lately.  At least it protected me from the wind, and there were actually quite a few birds there. Rufous (F)   Calliope (M) Broad-tailed (M) Broad-tailed (F) Broad-billed (M) Chipping Sparrow Bridled Titmouse Luc...

 For a change of pace, I went to San Pedro House on the east side of town.  I can usually count on a different variety of birds here, although it's a little tougher to get good photographs.  That's because the only perches, besides feeders, are the trees that provide good hiding places.  Good for the birds, not so much for the photographers. There were a million birds flying around and hopping all over the ground.  Unfortunately, I estimate that 999,950 of them were White-crowned Sparrows.  There were some good opportunities with female Red-winged Blackbirds and a few other species I don't see that often.  Some of them just didn't work out as the birds stayed in the shadows. Abert's Towhee Curve-billed Thrasher Red--winged Blackbird (F) Pyrrhuloxia (F) Pyrrhuloxia (M) Northern Cardinal (M) Vermilion Flycatcher (M) White-crowned Sparrow