A femme fatale show.

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Two lovely ladies decided to put on a show for us.
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Look how relaxed this one was, as she did a one-legged pose. She is the wife of a Malachite Sunbird, and I didn't expect to find her here.

I always cast a very deep look at trees, and at times I have found some very interesting birds. Apart from the fire season, it is also now the snake season, and I dream about getting shots of one on camera. Especially one of Africa's venomous snakes on a branch. Something like a boomslang, or a python, will really make my day. Not that I am ungrateful for all the birds that I see, as we have many different species here.

This was when I first spotted the bird, and I decided to ghost up to the tree. Ghosting in this instance means a slow and careful walk with no sudden movements.
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This lady has a lot of finesse, and not once did she look directly at me, but I think that she was watching me out of the corner of her eye.
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The second little lady below is one of our smallest sunbirds.

She was working on Agapanthus flowers for some nectar, and she is the wife of a Southern Double-collared Sunbird.
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No colors like the malachite female, but she has beauty and cuteness of her own.
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Even smaller than the sparrows, and her straw shaped long tongue is ideal for sipping nectar from the flowers.
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Finally, she decided to take a rest, and it's also the end of my picture post.
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I said many times that there is always something interesting to be found in nature if one cares to take a look. During this photo shoot not one of the males was anywhere around, but I don't blame them as we are having some very hot temperatures lately. How does 37 Celsius sound? And it's only the beginning, and I think that temps into the 40's will also be on their way. A few of my main grievances about the hot weather is for example mosquitos that arrive to torture us, the severe heat that leaves one with no energy, and of course the sweat. I don't know how people could survive with no cold showers, as to us it is a real blessing. Another problem that I have is that once a person takes a cold shower, getting out with a nice cool skin, then in a short while the sweating starts again :)
Such is life.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures and the story.

Photos by Zac Smith. All-Rights-Reserved.

Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.

Thank you kindly for supporting this post.

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35 comments
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Fantastic how you managed to calmly capture both beautiful birds from different angles. Congratulations on this excellent work. Saturday hugs!

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That was quiet a show for you @papilloncharity. I imagined how "ghost" were you when trying to take the photos. And yeah, birds see also movements from their peripheral vision so that girly didn't even took a time to look at you. She was watching you for sure. But since you have a light energy, as what I observed in your posts, they allowed you to see them. Birds are gonna fly here and there so it takes time and sanity to capture them.

I am amazed to the fact that even if the bird was in camouflage of the trees, you spotted her. Such a good eye you have there. I enjoyed this another magical experience of you papillon.❤️

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I am glad that you enjoyed the post, and the thing about shots of birds, or anything else for that matter, is to take things calmly and slowly. Birds are on the lookout constantly for what they perceive to be danger, and they will instantly disappear when they feel threatened. Yes, I knew that she was watching me, but my slow manner kept her calm.

Anyone can do it, and it's just my way of scouring the trees for life in it.

!BEER

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I'll try doing some shots of birds. I always love your shots and keep on studying it also. I am a beginner of photography, at least five months now, but sometimes I get disappointed of my shots. But I still try it again and again. Maybe observing other photographers shots here can help me identify my errors.

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The best that you can do is to try, and to keep on trying until you get it right. I was also a beginner once, and practised every day for a long period. What kind of camera do you have?

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Im making sense of Canon 800 and 750 D now but I'm trying to save some money to upgrade my camera since this model's not a type I want 😅

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she is the wife of a Southern Double-collared Sunbird.

🤓 oh, I was expecting something more like: "he is a friend of the family and works as a tailor beneath the marula tree at the mountain’s foot." 😂

You are quite right that nature always has something interesting to show us if one looks closely. Thank you for sharing these beauties.

I decree that the encounter with those snakes take place soon!

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I really love your take on it, and as long as the tailor doesn't drink too much marula juice :)

Always a pleasure to share, and time will tell for me to get a snake Iin a tree.

!PIZZA

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I would gladly take 37 celcius and mosquito torture, for beauty of the "ladies" and flowers. Plus we are freezing here.
Thanks for sharing your world.

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Yeah, I hear you and I forgot to mention the jumping spider bites that I get often on my legs when I walk in the grass :)
Shame, you are freezing there, and we are baking here.

Keep warm and have some !PIZZA

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Little ladies showing up to grace you with the elegant beauty for a change, normally more difficult to find.

Short lived cold showers are a blessing in the hot months, reprieve is short lived, always imagine it's in a mountain under a small waterfall to let ones mind wander a little.

!LUV
!PIZZA

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Real models milady and it times it seems that they are more interested in me than I am in them :)
Ah! A mountain waterfall is bliss, and can you believe that the hotter that it gets, the colder the Atlantic's water gets, at least it feels like that.

!PIZZA
!LUV

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Ladies still enjoying the garden, I was afraid they would disappear with changes made, male still swooping around so all happy in the tiny kingdom here for now. Alas our water still not where I would walk along let alone swim!

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Glad to see, and yeah, tough little critters. Sorry to hear about the water troubles there, and I suppose that it will not get better soon.

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They have food and water, sure to find safety in the many thickets around, just not as convenient for them as it once was.

Have not been on a beach since before covid, bridge for train still not repaired, world is in a sad state of affairs not only here. !LUV !PIZZA

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It looks like their convenience will continue to degrade.

Thankfully the beaches here hold blue flag status, and it's a sad story about the damages there. But yeah, it's the same as the rest of the world.

!PIZZA
!LUV

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(Edited)

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What spectacular photos! The little bird seems to be posing for the camera 🤗

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Thank you, and maybe she is a model for the feathered bird newspaper :)
!PIZZA

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Thanks for bringing us such a beautiful, serene moment from your corner of the world.

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