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you can get some pretty light-weight tripods these days...i use a gitzo basalt...its carbon fiber and alot lighter than my induro aluminum legs.  both are great...but the gitzo legs are pricey...

nikon just came out with the P5000...supposedly does it all.  fast frame advance and many features...but can also be set to ''auto'' and used much like a point and shoot.  i'll bet you will love it once you start to get into it.  it adds another level to birding...you need to get a bit closer in most cases and this requires more ...

Not very familiar with thrashers...this looks like a Long-billed to me.  Any thoughts?

Watering at a trough in South Texas.  It's so dry down there that all you need to do is sit at the watering holes.  I put out two blinds this morning!

thanks...that was quick!

Is this a Black-throated Sparrow?  I've never seen one in all my trips to South Texas and can't find anything that looks closer in my books or on this site.  The photo is in my gallery http://www.whatbird.com/forums/photos/bradwatson/picture47328.aspx ... As usual...thanks!

I saw this little guy on a ranch in South Texas this morning.  Looks closest to a Black-throated Sparrow, but the white cheek markings don't quite go all the way to the white on the breast like the photo on this site or the one in my ID book.  Can someone please verify, or at least tell me what you think? As usual, thanks!!

oh...same picture as my icon...forgot.

looks like summer to me...the wings aren't dark enough for a scarlet.  attached link to my best tanager picture from this summer so far...we're lucky to see these in my back yard in central texas.  i've only started noticing them in the last couple years.   direct link... http://www.eyefetch.com/image.aspx?ID=813421

The hawk tried numerous times to get the rabbit off the ground with no luck.  It finally dragged it into the scrub just to the left and sat on it as I drove by.  I was lucky enough to catch a few frames of the action...not everyday I see something like this!