Aerials

The Skelligs march to the horizon with Puffin Island in the foreground as the sun sets.

A rarely seen angle on Skellig Michael, looking from the northeast. The monastery is just behind the ridge of the leftmost peak, while the lone hermitage clings to the slopes just under the summit of the right peak.

The sun rises over the North Peak of Skellig Michael with the monastery huddled on its shoulder.

Photographed just after sunrise, this view from the western end of Skellig Michael shows the two lighthouses very effectively. As shafts of sunlight penetrate the clouds and light up the sea, the abandoned northern lighthouse sits high on its ridge in the centre of the frame. The still-operational southern light is very visible with its white painted walls.

Benwee Head, with the stags as rain squalls pass by.

Shot from a helicopter flying through a rain squall, rainbows photographed in the air are full circles.

The St. John's Point peninsula extends towards us with the sun rising behind it. The lighthouse is in the foreground on a calm summer's morning.

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.

The dramatic eastern end of Tory Island.

Ballynakill Harbour is adjacent to Letterfrack, a tourist hub for the nearby Connemara National Park. It sees few tourists, being off the beaten track. However, from the air it is a pleasing foreground for the Connemara hills in the background.
Diamond Hill is the prominent cone-shaped mountain in the centre of the image, with the Twelve Bens beyond. To its left, you can see straight down the Kylemore Glen with its abbey clinging to the slopes of Doughraugh Mountain to the left.

The lighthouses at Slyne Head seen from low altitude at sunrise with an agitated sea.

Inishtrahull is the northernmost point of Ireland, and was inhabited until 1929.

This image shows detail of the sound between Valentia and the mainland. The bridge that links the island to Portmagee can be clearly seen. The bridge was built in 1970, and previously a ferry ran from the village. At the eastern end of the island, a ferry still runs, connecting that side with the town of Cahersiveen.
In the distance, the snow-capped peaks of the Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, Ireland’s highest mountain range, huddle together beneath a squall.

Home to the Bridges of Ross, seen here just after sunrise.