ID HELP! Probably Impossible

I was going through all the bird pictures I've taken the last couple of months and ran across these that were taken in late August. Yikes, why did I ever let these go so long! Other than the date, I know very little about what was going on when I took them. In fact, the pictures were of such poor quality, I had to undertake a major photoshopping to pull out a recognizable image of a bird.

At first I thought Kinglet, but nope, that's not it. Eastern Phoebe came up as a possible suspect, but I also ran across the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. Don't mind the colors in the pictures below because they probably are not true after all the manipulation. When I say the BGGN, I'm looking at the eye ring, length of the wings, and, most importantly, the tail feathers. The BGGN has a black tail, but from the underside a distinguishing characteristic is the white outer tail feathers that give the "underside of the tail a mostly white appearance when the tail is closed."

If you have any ideas, let me know!




Cornell's "All About Birds" has suggestions for similar species:

Similar Species

Cerulean Warbler with streaking on chest and sides, two wingbars, and shorter tail, lacks eyering and white outer tail feathers. NO STREAKING on my bird.

Kinglets with greenish, with wingbars and shorter tails. STOCKIER, MORE YELLOW (can't tell on my pictures, but seems to be more whitish on the belly & sides) & MORE PROMINENT EYE RING? compared to my bird.

Black-tailed Gnatcatcher with mostly black undersides to tail feathers, duller overall. Breeding male with black cap. TAIL IS MOSTLY BLACK. DIFFERENT RANGE. compared to my bird.

California Gnatcatcher with darker underside and nearly all black tail. Breeding male with black cap. TAIL IS MOSTLY BLACK. DIFFERENT RANGE. compared to my bird.

Rare Black-capped Gnatcatcher female very similar, with longer bill and more tapered tail. Breeding male with extensive black cap. UNLIKELY - SW US. vs. Missouri.