Osprey fishing at Horn Mill Trout Farm, on the Gwash River.
We had two sessions in the hide. Evening (1600 to dusk) and morning (dawn to 0830). Not much sleep when we realised that in July we had to be in place by 0430 in the morning. Both sessions yielded several visits from a regular dominant male, while in the morning a younger male sneaked in for a go. A red kite also had a dive or two, and in between, a kingfisher dropped by.
Photography was hard. First dive I had a set of beautifully framed images, but every one out of focus. Next attempt, all in focus, but I forgot to press the shutter. Fortumately, by the last dive of each session I was getting the hang of it, and the Osprey obliged by taking off towards the hide.
The last dive of the morning was almost perfect – good light, high shutter speed, low ISO and (should you ask) most shots were with a focal length of about 120 mm.
The Osprey waits, perched on an oak tree
Perfect relection – this time with wings up
More symmetry
In less than a second, he’s clearing the lake
The second sequence was late in the evening. Less light, slower shutter speed, more ISO (a bit of denoise required), but this time I got the splash
The hardest shot is at the end of the dive with feet out entering the water. Next time…
The kingfisher preened himself in the morning light
And tossed his food about
Penny didn’t have a camera. I’d like to say she knitted these in the hide, but no, here’s two she put together beforehand
As always, more photos in the gallery, after the videos. I have nearly 50 shots from each full sequence from dive to departure, all done in about three seconds. I’ll spare you the whole lot!
Early morning was too dark for the cameras, but the phone camera (Pixel 8PRO) did a great job of recording a slow motion video. In real time, these clips last just under 10 seconds.
Osprey Dive
Red Kite Dive
Select any thumbnail below for a full screen slideshow
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