As I was looking down on Brigham, I was reminded again of the miracle of a child. As I placed my hand against his he instinctively grasped my thumb, and as I gazed in awe at the tiny fingers and miniscule finger nails of his hand, I wondered, how could anyone abuse one of these little ones?

After recovering from a bad cold, I finally was able to go down to Ben and Jaime's house to see my new little grandchild, Brigham Benjamin Griffiths. (Such a large name for such a small baby!) He is only 5 days old, so he spent most of his time sleeping. I did get to feed him and hold him though. He is a very good little baby, rarely cries, but has his days and nights mixed up, so his mom is very tired!

The Last Leaf on the tree. This photo symbolizes the feeling that creeps over you from time to time when you get older. The expression is, " I feel like the last leaf on the tree and the wind is blowing".

Christmas Lights. Our neighbor across from us put up

a small net of lights over a bush. I threw the lights out of

focus and took this shot.

Pass complete! BYU beat San Diego State Saturday, December 2nd, to end a second undefeated season in conference play and another Mountain West Conference championship. We had season tickets this year.

This is the next frame of Max Hall's pass in the BYU to Utah game. Hall's receiver is nearly hidden behind Utah #94. (continued!)

BYU's QB, Max Hall, prepares to throw in the final quarter of the game against the University of Utah. His receiver is not visible in this photo. BYU went on to win, 17 to 10 in the final one and one half minutes on a 4th and 18, 49 yard pass to Austin Collie. Very exciting. (Canon 70-200 F/4 IS with 1.4 converter. I am in the North end zone, the action is a the 50 yard line.)

Autumn Leaves

Sunlight makes the Autumn leaves appear tranlucent in the morning light.

Delicate Pink Rose

Taken with Canon 5D & 24-105MM L IS

There has been a large die-off of honey bees in the last year, and no one can explain why. This is of great concern, not only for those who harvest (and eat) honey, but also for farmers who depend on them to pollenate their various agricultural plants. None-the-less, I caught this little fellow out doing what bees do, and he seems to be looking at me and perhaps thinking, "What are you lookin at?". [Click on my pictures for larger versions.]

Spring flowers are my assurance that I have survived another winter and that life is good!

Pink Columbine

I have to photograph, and flowers are all that is available!

A majestic bird

A lucky grab shot caught this eagle with it's wings fully extended as it swooped over my location. They will not allow you to get this close when they are on the ground.

Heading home after a photo session. (3 of 3)

This gentlement is the one with the blind on the water's edge. He spent 5 and a half hours in the blind with nothing but a candy bar to eat. He also has a $10,000 camera outifit, plus the blind and accessories. If I get to see him again I'm going to ask him if he's a pro. Maybe I'll see his photos in some camera magazine!

He uses a full frame Canon digital and a Canon 600mm F/4.0 IS and a 1.4X teleconverter. 

Real dedication (2 of 3)

This guy arrived and set up his blind before sunup in order to be in the best position to get closeups of the eagles. Technically, he is trespassing, as you are not supposed to go of from the roads in the Famington Bay Waterfowl Management Area (FBWMA ).
He told me he got some great shots before all the people arrived. (I was one of those!)

I love to photograph the birds, but I'm not that gung-ho.

A few serious bird photographers (1 of 3 photos)

Bald eagles are coming into a small a bay to feed on some dead carp. The word has gotten out and the "birders" have come to take photos. Each of the camera outfits in this photo cost about $10,000, and none of these photographers are, to my knowledge, professionals. I feel like a novice when I take my little Canon !00-400mm lens out of my camera bag in this group. I think they are saying, "What is he doing here?" But they are all very nice. 

Those Hawks will eat anything!

A Swainson Hawk dines on a dead carp (which it is also standing on!) while a Great Blue Heron watches. Herons will not eat carp for some reason, though the hawks and eagles have no such compunction. 

I'm right behind you!

Seagulls hovering over a small bay filled with dying carp that have been poisoned by the Utah Wildlife Management guys. The carp have to be systematically thinned out or they crowd out the other fish. 

Bald Eagle over Farmington Bay

A beautiful Bald Eagle soars over the Farmington Bay WBR searching for lunch. 

Red Tailed Hawk

Another shot of the Red Tailed Hawk. This is a large bird 18-20 inches from beak to tail. His look seems to say, "Back off"! 

Bald Eagle on stump in Farmington Bay

I went out early in the morning and saw three bald eagles, two in trees too far away to photograph. This one was on a stump sticking up out of the frozen marsh, still about 75 yards away so I was zoomed out all the way to 400mm and still had to crop. It stayed on this same stump for 35 or 4o minutes, watching for prey I guess. 

Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is a large bird that stands 4 1/2 feet tall. I caught this one by surprise and got this great shot before it could fly away. Canon 20D w/Canon 100-400mm at about 250mm. Farmington Bay. Ron, too bad you couldn't have stayed one more day!

Red Tailed Hawk

Taken at Farmington Bay Wild Bird Refuge 01/25/07. I believe this to be a Red Tailed Hawk, but it might be a Swainson's Hawk as they are very similar except for coloring and breast pattern. Canon 20D w/Canon 100-400mm IS L at 400mm.