This is the moment a bird was witnessed swooping down from above and snatching its prey.
The kingfisher was captured on film as it snared a fish in a stream before flying off.
The man behind the lens was Norman Watson, 44, from Bieldside, Aberdeen.
The amateur photographer, who works as a draughtsman, took the pictures in Kirkcudbright, Dumfries and Galloway.
In the images, the tiny bird can be seen diving down with its wings tucked in, which Mr Watson calls “the bullet”, in a dart-like shape.
It then plunges into the water and a blue-and-green blur emerges with a fish in its beak before soaring into the sky.
Last night Mr Watson, whose passion for wildlife photography has taken him all over the world, said the key to capturing the sequence was timing.
He said: “The images were taken from a hide where the kingfisher comes to catch fish regularly. Shutter speed, aperture and focal length are all critical to achieve the shots.
“Then it’s all about timing when the bird will dive. My camera can shoot 14 frames per second and it only takes the kingfisher around one second to dive, catch the fish and return to the branch, so without the camera the sequence could not be really seen by the naked eye.
“Wildlife photography is a challenge, you can sit for hours and nothing happens, or in two minutes something spectacular can happen. Being behind my camera and looking through the viewfinder is my gateway to another world.”
For a look at Mr Watson’s other work, which features cheetahs, lions and elephants, as well as wildlife closer to home, visit www.normanwatsonphotography.com
