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Gougane Barra is effectively my back garden, and it's also my office as that's where I run my Cork-based workshops.
Always beautiful, every once and a while you're treated to something really special, which is what happened on this beautiful October morning.
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Clogher Strand is one of the more spectacular beaches in Ireland and is renowned for its pounding surf in westerly storms. Inis Tuaisceart (An Fear Marbh) is visible through the channel.
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An Tiaracht is an island of many names. Also known as Inishtearaght, The Tearaght and Tearaght Island, all these names mean the same thing - 'The Westerly', or 'Westerly Island'. This is a pretty good description, as not only is it the westernmost of the Blasket Islands, it's also pretty much the westernmost point of Europe, with the exception of the nearby Foze Rocks.
In my opinion, the lighthouse on the island, which was constructed in 1870 and made automatic in 1988, is the most dramatic of any of the lighthouses around the coast. It's also one of the least well known as it's invisible from the mainland - sitting as it does on the western end of the rock.
The island is a pair of jagged, steep-sided pyramids reaching a maximum height of 656 feet above the sea. Joining them is a saddle pierced by a natural tunnel. The light itself is at a height of 275 feet on top of a 55 foot tower.
This image was made during a maintenance flight out to the lighthouse, but due to the stormy conditions we were unable to land. However, it did provide me an opportunity to photograph the island as it was pounded by an angry sea.
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The Colleen Bawn Rock is one of the scenic highlights of the Killarney National Park. This image, with Torc Mountain on the left, was made at sunrise on a late spring morning. It was an unpromising start at 4.30am when I woke up, but the clouds broke up to give the dramatic sky you see in the photograph.
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Carrigaphooca Castle (Caisleán Carraig a' Phúca - The Castle of the Fairy Rock) is a magnificent 15th century tower house on the banks of the Sullane River near Macroom. The castle is reportedly haunted and is a frequent stop for ghost hunters.
Photographed here on a frosty winter's morning, the rising sun illuminates the castle's east wall. No sign of the pooka was in evidence this morning! Or perhaps it was in a good mood and allowed me this great light.
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The Colleen Bawn Rock is one of the scenic highlights of the Killarney National Park. This image, with Torc Mountain on the left, was made at sunrise on a late spring morning. It was an unpromising start at 4.30am when I woke up, but the clouds broke up to give the dramatic sky you see in the photograph.
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On December 21, 2010 there was a total lunar eclipse which was visible from Ireland as the moon was setting just before sunrise.
That December was a brutally cold one in Ireland with virtually the entire country covered in snow - a rare occurrence. Braving the -15 degree (centigrade) temperatures I made this exposure from the driveway of our house. It pays to live in an area of natural beauty!
In it, the eclipse is nearing totality with only a small sliver of the moon in sunlight. The rest is a red colour as it has passed into the shadow of the earth.
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The Macgillycuddy's Reeks are Irelands tallest mountains and form a jagged horseshoe ridge about the Hag's Glen. Seen here from the shore of Lough Callee, the eastern section of the Reeks is crowned by a rainbow at sunset.
The leftmost peak is Cruach Mhór, followed by Knocknapeasta, Maolán Buí and Cnoc an Chuillinn on the right hand side.
This was one of the best evenings I've seen in the Hag's Glen and to see a rainbow at sunset was a real treat.
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This was one of the finest sunrises I've ever experienced. The combination of clear skies in the northeast and low cloud and fog on the mountain allowed this dramatic composition including the sun, filtered through layers of mist.
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Made on the evening of March 7th, 2011, this image shows the International Space Station and the shuttle Discovery flying over the hills of Gougane Barra.
Just a couple of hours before, Discovery had undocked from the ISS to return to Earth for the last time. Discovery was leading the ISS in its orbit, so both took the same path across the sky and appear as a single trail. However, at the left side of the image, you can see the fainter trail that is the shuttle by itself - the ISS ended its track in this photograph where the line brightens again.
The orange-red light in the bottom center of the picture are the lights in the Gougane Barra valley.
I’m delighted with my purchase of the Gearagh. The photo brings a sense of piece and tranquility to me. It’s a magical photo where you can almost feel yourself sitting on that bench enjoying the moment.
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Cúm na Léime (The Valley of the Leap) is a beautiful isolated valley near Bantry in Cork. The name derives from the local legend of a priest who made a miraculous nine-mile leap to escape pursuing soldiers from the ridge at the head of the valley. That ridge is known as the Priest's Leap (Léim an tSagairt).
This photograph looks north from the eastern side of the glen towards Léim an tSagairt, which is wreathed in mist. A rapidly changing morning, as I drove up the narrow road it looked like the mist might not clear at all, but clear it did and this is the result.
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On the Kerry side of the Healy Pass on the Beara Peninsula, the road winds up the side of Glanmore. This view, looking west across the valley shows Lackabane with clouds kissing its summit. The stream flows past the remains of a farm building down into Glanmore Lake, out of sight at the bottom of the valley.
This was a dirty day with frequent heavy rain showers, but the weather was starting to lift as this image was being made. Sometimes, you have to get wet and cold to be rewarded with scenes like this. Standing in the river sometimes helps, too!
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Made on a fine morning during my stay on the Bull Rock. On the steps leading up from the Wendy House to the old fog signal station on the island's summit. This is the view looking south-west.
The building in the foreground is the keeper's accommodation and engine room. One of the water tanks is visible as is part of the oil store. You can also get some appreciation of the exposed nature of the helipad, sitting on stilts with steep drops on three sides.
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Silver Strand is one of Mayo's hidden gems. Located at the end of a several mile cul-de-sac, it nestles at the base of Mweelrea Mountain, Connaught's highest peak.
This image was made during the filming of Dynamic Range episode 2. The tide was coming in and at this point my boots had already filled with water a few times. Already having wet feet meant I may as well stay put and wait for the perfect wave to capture the essence of the scene.
The shutter speed here was just half a second and is just enough to show the flow of the water as it wraps around the foreground rock.
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One thing that's difficult for photographs to capture is the impression of height. I feel this image, made from the lower balcony of the Fastnet lighthouse, succeeds in conveying that sense of vertigo. Looking down 140 feet to the seething waters below gives a real sense of the accomplishment of the builders who finished this structure in 1904.
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Kilcatherine is one of the hidden jewels of the Beara, itself an under-appreciated gem of the south-west of Ireland. This photograph from Kilcatherine Point looking west to Inishfarnard shows the rugged beauty of this area. It was a day where the forecast was bad enough to make you want to curl up by the fire and forget the outside world exists, but I ventured out and was rewarded with this wonderful sunset.
You don't need good weather to make good photographs!
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The Pan's Rock is a popular fishing spot on Ballycastle Beach on the North Antrim Coast, or the Causeway Coast as it is also known.
Reachable at low tide by hopping the slippery rocks, it becomes an island at high tide, and so a footbridge has been built out to it.
In this view of the rock, made an hour or so after dawn, a long exposure of two minutes has been used to smooth out the movement in the water. This has also blurred the clouds which were moving briskly from the north. Rathlin Island is visible on the horizon.
This is another favourite image from the second Antrim trip I took in 2009, and produces a stunning large print.
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The Muglins lie about half a mile northeast of Dalkey Island, and are a danger to shipping. Many ships came to grief on these rocks until a light was established at around the turn of the 20th century.
This image was made on a very fine night, and shows the northeastern extent of Dalkey Island, with the Muglins light beyond. On the horizon, the Kish lighthouse winks at us.
This is one of the images that I'm most happy with. It is simple, but there is plenty for the eye to wander over and appreciate - most notably the line of clouds near the horizon and the fine detail in the Moon's reflection. The sea is slightly smoothed as it was a long exposure - perhaps 15 seconds or so.
This is the second image I've made of this location. Slightly earlier in the night than the first, and in almost identical weather conditions, it adds colour which I felt was lacking in the original.
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Made on my visit to the Bull Rock lighthouse, the largest of the three offshore islands the Bull, the Cow and the Calf.
In this image, looking back to the mainland you can see the Cow (the largish island in the center of the frame), the Calf (to the right with the broken-off lighthouse) and Dursey Island (the largest island in the center of the frame).
Made with a long exposure, the sea and the clouds have smoothed out completely. I very much like the quiet moodiness of this image.
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One of the advantages of living in a remote area is that often you don't need to go much further than your front door to get some wonderful images.
I was working on some projects in my home office when I looked out the window as the sun was setting. A beautiful crescent moon was low in the western sky, so I grabbed my tripod and camera and went outside.
The wonderfully subtle tones in the sky and the gradual transition from bright to dark, combined with the fact that the dark side of the moon is visible (due to earthshine) make this an image I'm very happy with.
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The Ballaghbeama Gap (Bealach Béime) is a mountain pass in Kerry to the south-west of the Macgillycuddy's Reeks (Na Cruacha Dubha). It runs through the gap between Mullaghanattin (Mullach an Aitinn) to the south and Knockaunanattin (Cnocán an Aitinn) to the north. This view is looking east.
It's a fairly isolated place, forming the southern entrance to Glencar. Just around the corner from the Gap is the Bridia Valley.
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The Bridia Valley lies to the south of the famed Macgillycuddy's Reeks, the tallest mountain range in Ireland.
The Reeks themselves are hidden by cloud to the left of the frame here, and the prominent mountain to the right of center is Broaghnabinnia (Bruach na Binne). The hill to the left of it is Curraghmore (An Curragh Mór). The popular Kerry Way walking route emerges over the saddle between these two mountains from the Black Valley beyond.
This is one of my favourite views in all of Ireland - a dramatic scene made more so here by the threatening cloud, the use of an infra-red camera and a high-contrast treatment.