TAKING a picture of a bee in his back garden maybe worlds away from photographing coyotes and bears in the Canadian Rockies.

But this stunning shot titled 'Flight of the Bumblebee' has landed amateur photographer Ray Pownall top prize in the first competition he entered.

The 70-year-old former paramedic took to the lens after retiring and he has travelled the world photographing wildlife.

He explained how he got this magnificent photo: "I was on a sun lounger and just happened to watch bees going in and out of snap dragons which were in tubs. I thought they were in there for a long time so I took my macro lens for fine detail and just waited. I kept clicking away until I got the shot I wanted. It was mid-flight and not touching anything. It took a lot of patience and I had a lovely tan waiting."

Ray from Toll Bar said on a trip to Bents Garden Centre he noticed they were asking for entries for a wildlife competition. "I wondered if it was good enough so entered. I have friends all over the world who saw it on Facebook and started voting. Apparently Bents were inundated and narrowed it down to the last 20 before it went to the public vote, which I won."

The grandfather who spent 40 years with the ambulance service, admits he is never without a camera and frequently travels to Canada and the US where he has family to take advantage of the varying wildlife.

He said: "I just take the photos for pleasure. I just love going out into the wildlife in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies. People have said I will end getting eaten because I get too close to the bears.

"And I did get stalked by coyotes who were walking parallel to me just about 50 yards away. Every time I stopped they stopped. But I got out my camera and got a perfect shot."