Perfect picture of diving kingfisher took six years to capture

(Photo by Alan McFayden, Facebook/Scottish photography hides)

The old saying ‘persistence pays off’ is definitely true for one photographer, who managed to finally capture his perfect shot of a diving bird after years of trying.

Scottish photographer Alan McFayden recently captured an amazing photo of a kingfisher in a rare mid-dive into the water, Daily Mail Online reports.

It took six years, 4,200 hours and 720,000 photos to finally get his bird but it paid off in the end.

“The photo I was going for of the perfect dive, flawlessly straight, with no splash required not only me to be in the right place and get a very lucky shot but also for the bird itself to get it perfect,” McFayden told the news outlet.

For the last few years, McFayden was trying to get the perfect shot of a kingfisher, symmetrically diving into the water going after prey, according to Daily Mail Online.

“There are not many people in the world who have got this shot,” McFayden told the news outlet. “Kingfishers dive so fast they are like bullets so taking a good photo requires a lot of luck - and a lot of patience.”

Growing up, McFayden use to visit a lake with his late grandfather to watch kingfishers at a favourite nesting spot close to Kirkcudbright, Scotland, according to Gizmodo.

When he took up photography, he wanted to honour his grandfather by capturing the diving birds in action.

“I’m sure my grandfather would have loved it,” McFayden told Daily Mail Online. “I just wish he could have seen it. All of my family contacted me when they saw it and said he would have been so proud of it.”

(Photo by Alan McFayden, Facebook/Scottish photography hides)