Osprey Photography Hide Workshop 2024

The Workshop will start in the afternoon where we will meet up to discuss the best ways to capture the Ospreys and other wildlife that may come and visit the hide. We will then head down to the hide to get set up and await the Ospreys. We will have the services of an expert wildlife spotter, who will be located away from the hide with a full panoramic view of the area – as soon as an Osprey arrives they will be able to give us running commentary and tip us off as to when a dive is imminent.

Please note we are photographing wildlife and I cannot guarantee any sightings, but the hide has regular visits from several different Ospreys, Kingfishers and Red Kites amongst other wildlife like Herons, Egrets and even the occasional otter! Fingers crossed we will see some ospreys fishing, but please note there are the occasional blank sessions – so be prepared for this please. I also do not control weather and lighting, but it is my job to help you make the best of what we have and to assist you in capturing whatever wildlife we are lucky enough to see. This is not easy photography, but very rewarding if you capture something. I will of course offer tips and help with camera settings.

You will be surprised how close the Ospreys fish to the hide and for the iconic fish catching image a lens of around 200-300mm will be more than enough. I use a sigma 150-600mm for which I was almost fully zoomed out for the images I have taken there in the past. That said, if the ospreys sit in the tree or the kingfishers arrive then the 600mm reach is very useful. I would recommend bringing the longest lens you have but if it is a prime lens anything too big will make the fishing harder to capture. Unless you have something specific in mind, I don’t think you will require a wide-angle lens on the day. You will need to keep your camera mobile, so using a tripod or clamp will be a hinderance but a bean bag may come in handy, to rest the camera on.