Superb Starling catch

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Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania, Africa The aptly named superb starling impresses his mate with an offering of a juicy insect while the iridescent colours shine off his back in a beautiful flash of blue and green. The tree branch he is standing on is of the iconic acacia tree, the thorns meant to protect the tree make these trees a safe haven; a suitable place for the many thousands of species of birds that call africa home.

photographic details:This bird was standing here for quite a while, normally I would prefer sunset or sunrise conditions but the overhead light by the mid day sun was perfect to light up the back of this bird, who would look mostly black in the wrong light. I could not ignore this opportunity despite it not being the golden hour. I don’t like to place my subjects in the centre, nor do I want to loose myself too much in the details of the animal. With this in mind I left the bird on the right side of the image, looking into the frame, I made sure I could include the acacia tree to create a sense of context also illustrating the incredible thorns on this famous tree. One picture, two subjects, my kind of photo.