Yes, yes, yes! I intimated a couple days ago that I got a photo this past weekend that I had been wanting for years and this is it.

I have taken thousands of pictures of these fantastic raptors but never have I gotten what I considered a good picture of one diving toward the water to catch a fish. Bad angles, backlighting, poor focus and so many other things have made the image very elusive. Throw in the fact that when osprey dive they can hit from 30 to 50 miles per hour and it is a very tough shot to get.

Well, Sunday I finally did it.

A dive earlier in the morning came close but backlighting ruined it. When this osprey started to hunt, I moved myself to a better position putting the sun at the side. Thankfully, I was able to keep up as it plunged into the water, wings back, talons first, ready to snag some unsuspecting fish. Unfortunately for the osprey, it missed on this strike but its

A totally chance encounter with this awesome bird of prey. I stopped at an area open space to grab some pics of some pelicans and herons. As I got out of my truck, I see a large bird heading right for me.

Quickly I throw up my camera and start snapping pictures, capturing a great sequence of this handsome fellow as he flew over. He had managed to catch himself a really nice-sized fish (carp?) and was keen to show it off.

I do occasionally see osprey at this spot but have yet to find a nest. Taken in Adams County, Colorado.

A great morning for this osprey and the photographer. As for the fish, well, I reckon it had had better days. LOL!

Taken St. Vrain State Park, Colorado, a couple of weeks ago on a “me day” I had taken to recharge. I spent the morning watching these guys and gals dive into the water, easily snagging fish with just about every attempt.

I never did successfully get the dive, something which is on my photo bucket list. However, I did get this capture of this handsome fellow as he emerged from the water.

Taken with my Canon EOSR5 and RF 100-500mm lens.

These awesome raptors have returned to the Colorado Front Range and are busily setting up their homes for mating season. Last weekend I checked out this spot that was vacant the week before and found the male and female had finally arrived.

While the male wasn’t too interested in doing anything exciting, the female was quite active. At one point, she departed, disappeared down into an old, dry lakebed, and emerged with some building materials for the pair’s home.

In recent years, this nest has not had any luck successfully fledging young. Hopefully that will change in 2021.

That is what I imagined this beautiful osprey was thinking yesterday as it seemed to be a bit annoyed with me. 😉

Knowing these awesome raptors were returning to the Colorado Front Range for the season, I ventured out to try to get my first photos of the season of them. With how early it is, they were few and far between and usually too far away but this one was kind enough to give me some nice poses.

While it looks annoyed, it wasn’t really upset with my presence as it pretty much ignored me and continued its watch, undoubtedly awaiting the arrival of its mate.

Osprey can be found across much of North and South America, only staying year-round in Florida and the Baja California area. Winters are spent in South America and along the Gulf Coast while they summer in the northern third of North America. Some will migrate 5000 miles to their summer homes.

In the coming months I am sure I will have many more photo opportunities with them.

I kind of like the pose here and, in particular, the nice look at those impressive talons it provides.

It is about time to bid farewell to this summer time visitor to Colorado. Very soon they will be beginning their migration to the Gulf Coast and South America.

This was the female at a nest stand not too far north of me. Unfortunately, she and her mate were not successful in having any offspring this year, the second year in a row the nest has failed. Hopefully if they or another pair return to the same spot next year, they will have better luck.

Such a beautiful lady and an impressive pose and landing. It had been a while since I had checked on my favorite osprey nest site so I stopped by a couple weeks ago.

While I didn’t get pictures of it, I did catch a very brief glimpse of at least on young osprey down in the nest bowl. As this pair has historically not had success, this is good to see. I’ll have to get back up there soon to check on them as any young ones should easily be visible now.

Just a bit of an amusing image to brighten your Monday. 😉

Normally raptors will “lighten the load” before taking off. This female osprey though decided it would be more efficient to just do it in flight.

A new osprey that has taken to hanging out not far from where I live. A few years ago the county put up a nest stand along the South Platte River. Unfortunately, it has remained unoccupied with none of these hawks showing any interest.

A couple weeks ago I noticed an osprey hanging out at the stand pretty regularly. I walked into it recently, wanting to get a better look. As he finished up breakfast, he gave me some nice poses then went for a quick flight – seen here soon after launch.

This is a male osprey and he continues to hang out alone. As he appears to have chosen this spot for a home a month or two late, he isn’t likely to attract a mate this season. However, I hope he returns next year – with a pretty lady friend.

On my most recent visit to my favorite osprey stand, things were pretty standard fare. The male was perched alongside the nest, keeping watch, while the female laid inside of it, presumably on eggs.

The handsome fellow gave me some nice shots as he posed and did some flybys. She apparently decided it was time to take a break and hopped up and took flight, making one, quick circle of the nest, then returned to her spot and resumed her caretaker duties.

She looked beautiful in the morning sun and this capture really does a nice job showcasing their plumage and 5+ foot wingspan. I would guess there would soon be little ones although with the nest 25 feet off the ground, it will be a while before I am able to see them.