A Caracara Morning
Breakfast Is Served
This blog post is a continuation of my recent 2025 Summer road trip! To see a menu of all of the days on this road trip, click here.
Today would find me somewhere between Tucson and the rugged Superstition Mountains near Apache Junction. The adventure began with my very first visit ever to a Crested Caracara nest, an experience I had been eagerly anticipating for quite some time!
As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, Whoo Knew, I don’t typically photograph wildlife and definitely do not consider myself a wildlife photographer. Tho, with that, that doesn’t mean that I do not enjoy wildlife photography. It simply means that I do not do it a lot, for better or for worse.
I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when I arrived early in the morning. Would the Crested Caracaras be at the nest? Would they be reachable with my lens? Would I get the opportunity to photograph them bringing food to their young? All of these questions were answered within minutes of my arrival…!
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One of the adult Caracaras returned with a decently sized lizard. I’m not sure what kind it was, but its underbelly appeared to have a blue/turquoise color to it. No matter, the chicks seemed happy.
I believe I counted three chicks, all seemingly at different levels of starvation. Lol, okay, not really; but you’d be hard pressed to tell at the excitement they exuded with the arrival of breakfast.
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I did manage to catch a few images of the Caracaras in flight. They definitely owned the skies in their area and soared quite majestically. I found their markings to be quite beautiful…!
When not on the nest or swooping down on oblivious lizards, they spent much of their time eyeing their surroundings.
It didn’t take me long to fill my memory card. Those CF Cards are expensive, so I only own one. I use a much cheaper SD Card as a backup. Luckily for me, the CF Express cards are quite reliable. (This will come into play later during the trip.) With that, I decided to pull chocks and head toward my next photo location.
I could tell, based on the regular bird photographers who were still shooting and even only recently showing up, that I was leaving much too early. I guess that’s the inexperienced wildlife photographer in me. As a landscape photographer, the lighting was getting way too harsh. I’m sure they knew what I didn’t. Regardless, I had a couple of hours of driving to do and intended to spend the hot hours of the day doing office work and dealing with that full memory card.
Speaking of the hot hours, they were here, kinda. While I never hit the century mark inside the Five Billion Star Hotel, I definitely came close! Just before I could get there, a thunderstorm rolled in and quickly cooled things off. A trend that continued into the evening hours.
I thought the rain on the windows made an ordinary desert scene a bit more unordinary and therefore quite photogenic. Either that or I was avoiding dealing with transferring thousands of images over to my SSD and looking for any excuse to do something else.
Eventually, the task of getting organized could no longer wait. I got out my three image cameras, my three video cameras, and my drone. I hadn’t used all of these as of yet on this trip, but I figured I’d take the opportunity to get their batteries charged, lenses cleaned, and memory emptied so that if I did end up using any of them, they’d be ready. #RainyDayTasks
When I photographed the owls in the saguaro, I technically needed a permit. Glad I got it, because now I got to use it a second time. Not that it was expensive or anything. It was just nice to have gotten more use out of something that I only expected to use once. But I digress…
I managed to snap a few images while scouting around in the surrounding desert. There’s definitely no award winners here, but the time spent in the desert after a thunderstorm was worth it alone. The air was now fresh, cool, and clean. The skies were a bit overcast with dampness on the flora. This often allows for great colors without the need for a circular polarizer.
This Gilded Flicker, seen above, perched atop a tall saguaro, no doubt enjoying a nice sip after the recent rain.
I tried to take advantage of the lighting conditions as the sun peeked out from behind the passing clouds. The changing lighting conditions are evident in the string of approximately 15 images below.
Above: Desert images in portrait orientation
Below: Desert images in landscape orientation
To the bird below, that I believe to be a Lesser Nighthawk, I am sure I would have never seen you in a million years if you’d have just kept quiet. However, since you highlighted your location to me, you had to pay dearly by having your photograph taken.
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When searching for landscape shots, I try to slow down and focus on small details. It helps me appreciate the area instead of seeing it as a challenge. I don’t know the history of the rock below, but I think it might have marks from a blast or a fencline. What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments.
I found myself drawn to the ocotillo. (See image below) The surrounding desert area was full of them. Tho, getting them to separate from their backgrounds was often a challenge. Of course, I could always put the sky behind them, but I’m not a big fan of that type of image.
Fun fact: the ocotillo is more closely related to a blueberry than it is to a cactus. So while it thrives in the desert and looks like it should be hanging out with saguaros, genetically speaking, it’s more of a distant cousin to your morning cup of Earl Grey or a blueberry muffin. Nature’s full of curveballs, isn’t it?
You didn't actually think you were going to make it through one of my blogs without seeing an image of my Delica, the Five Billion Star Hotel (IG), did you? ;-)
The Five Billion Star Hotel Is Lit
Before I knew it, the day’s end found me. Tho I was in good company. I met up with a buddy of mine who lives in the general area. His name is Remo Daut. (IG) If you aren’t already following him on his Instagram, check him out. Good guy! Great photographer! He was joined by a couple of photographers who flew across the pond to visit and photograph the Southwest. Their names are Atanas Chulev (IG) and Dinko Shahanov (IG). Check their Instagram accounts out as well. Good stuff! I’d like to have hung out with them a bit more, but our paths soon split.
Remo and the Gang!
Another photographer I met up with was Kenny LeRose (IG)and his dog Sabu (IG). If you’ve not seen their Instagrams, you are truly missing out. Anyhoo, we chatted the evening away, made some plans for the next day, headed to our respective camps, and hit the lights. If tomorrow were to be anything like I thought, I’d definitely need some rest.
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