Hard to tell female or male (as the red crown may simply be concealed), but it is definitely a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Note the thin bill adapted for catching insects, as opposed to heavy and conical for sparrows and finches (seed eaters). Very small size, large seemingly neckless head, and yellowish streaks on the wings are all god field marks pointing to this species.
thank you Tom and Daniel - definitely no ruby crown, (got a few pictures of it as it hopped thru the seed heads and one showed the top of the head pretty well) - so female ruby-crowned kinglet seems exactly right. what a cool name. will have to watch for more - really liked the oversized head and the tiny, precise bill.... I didn't notice insects in the weed, but will try to look more carefully if I see her again.
As previously pointed out, you cannot tell whether this is a male or female. The red crown is present on both females and males and is often not visible.
Pat: I agree that it is a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, but being in California you need to be cautious about confusing this species with Hutton's Vireo. This ID problem is covered in the regular books, but you can go to this link for an online resource on how to separate the two species.
thank you Paul and Chris for more information - when I get home tonight, I'll look more closely at the other pics - unfortunately it surprised me, and I didn't think to up the ISO enough to get enough light for very good photos.
Other than the annoying little big of vegetation over the rear of the bird, I think the image looks pretty good. I like the colors. They're very different than most of the photos I've seen here, and makes the image feel like evening.
I like the effect/colors too - I'm actually looking forward to trying to see if I can figure out just what gave the effect. it was actually almost 10am on a bright sunny morning and long past when i would normally stop trying to get pictures. i think there must have be a small tree between me and the sun, though i didn't notice one at the time. (I was so happy it stayed moving around in the weed long enough for me to try to catch a few pictures - very active little bird)