The high dive into a fish tank: Amateur photographer spends a YEAR lining up perfect picture of kingfisher catching lunch

Amateur photographer Noel Marry got the perfect photo of a kingfisher catching a fish - after spending a YEAR setting it up.
Noel, a father-of-three, was close to giving up on his dream of picturing the brightly-coloured bird diving underwater for a minnow.
But, just as he was about to end his year long quest, his efforts were rewarded with stunning pictures of the fish 'plunge-diving' to catch its lunch.

Splashdown: The kingfisher dives into the water to grab the minnow, which was placed inside a fish tank in the river

Success: Noel Marry captures an incredible photo as the kingfisher picks up the minnow in its beak

Noel, 53, got the idea after watching a BBC documentary about the notoriously shy bird.
He built a fish tank in which he would place a minnow before almost completely submerging the tank into a river.

He built a perch above the tank and over the months the kingfisher got used to fishing its lunch out of the tank.
Gradually, Noel was able to take it further out of the water so that he could get a clearer shot.
And eventually he was able to snap the bird with the tank completely out of the river as it dived headlong into the water to catch its prey.

Painstaking: Noel Marry spent a year perfecting his plan for the photo and it finally paid off

Noel built a hide for himself metres away from the tank so he didn't scare off the bird and operated the camera by a remote control.

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The photos were taken at Ireland's Broadmeadow river, in Swords, County Dublin.
Noel said: 'I was absolutely delighted when I got the set of photos. I would sit and wait for hours with my camera and sometimes the bird wouldn't even show up.
'I was starting to get downhearted and just when I thought about packing it all in it just happened. It was really special.'

Feeding time:The kingfisher perches patiently on a branch waiting to swoop on the minnow in the fish tank which sits above the water

Noel, from Drogheda, in County Louth, added: 'I use a remote operated camera so I didn't even know whether I had the photos until I checked.
'I was nervous because the week before I thought I got the snaps but my camera had jammed after it took the first frame.
'The camera takes 10 shots a second and it has to be quick because a kingfisher takes one or two seconds from starting its dive to catching the fish and heading back to its branch. When I saw the result I was over the moon.'