In the Introduction of the 1997 edition of Warblers of North America, the authors (Jon L. Dunn and Kimball L. Garrett) list several reasons why warblers can be a challenge for field identification. One reason that resonated with me given my limited success in getting decent photos of wood warblers in the past was "warblers are small and very active, often foraging at high levels and in dense foliage, where subtle markings are hard to discern." To date, these are my best photos of Golden-winged Warblers. All are large crops.
Larger versions of the photos can be viewed by clicking on the image.