Pondman, it sure is nice when the bees cooperate, not that they always do. Most of my videos of me removing established colonies I do have a jacket and veil on. The veil may be thrown back behind my head, but it is there at the ready just in case the bees decide to become pissy.
At this day and age our bees for the most part are downright enjoyable to be around. I hope things stay like this for some time to come.
With that said I believe the smoker to be the bee keeper's best friend. It is an invaluable tool. Without it a lot of what you see on my videos would not be possible, I kid you not. A little smoke goes a long way and will in most instances IMO keep your butt safe around and in the bees.
Scott, I meant to tell you, I like the idea of showing bees in my apiary. I will be including some footage soon.
I actually was going to do a video of me cutting the grass with the tractor last week at one of my bee yards but I forgot the camera at the house!
...JP