Ireland

Made on 8x10" film, this image uses a lot of view camera movement to produce a shallow and somewhat distorted plane of focus - as tenuous as the winding path through the ranks of straight trees to the single wavy tree in the distance.

Inis Tuaisceart (Inishtooskert) is the northernmost of the Blasket Islands off the tip of the Dingle peninsula in Kerry. From the shore, it looks like a giant lying on its back, hence its popular name of 'The Sleeping Giant'. In Irish, it's known as 'An Fear Marbh', which translates as 'The Dead Man'.

It's rarely photographed from the water, and early in 2020 I ventured out to do just that. Its northern tip has some of the most dramatic island scenery anywhere in Ireland, and I was delighted to work with it under brooding overcast skies - perfectly matching the moody menace of the cliffs.

Bray Head looms at the viewer on a beautiful spring evening. The cloudless sky contrasts with the surf pounding against the base of the cliffs.

The moon sets behind the Skelligs on a calm spring morning

Rarely seen, the hermitage clings to the narrow South Peak of Skellig Michael with a 700 foot drop on either side. The main monastery can be seen on the North Peak in the middle distance, and the Small Skellig and the Kerry coast lie beyond.

Photographing from Hag's Head for the first time, I discovered this canyon at exactly the right moment. The moon was just rising through the slot - a circumstance I couldn't have planned better.

Being mainly famous for its 6th century monastery, the dramatic island of Skellig Michael also boasts two lighthouses built in 1830. This image was made of the lower lighthouse from the road to the upper (which was discontinued and abandoned in 1870).
Made shortly after moonrise, the image shows the light in its new guise. Just a couple of weeks before this image was made, the old fresnel lantern was decommissioned and a modern LED lantern mounted on the balcony. In a large print, this new light can be seen illuminated. It has great advantages in cost of operation, but unfortunately means that the rest of the lighthouse complex is surplus to requirements and will be closed up. The end of an era, but on this trip I was fortunate enough to enjoy the hospitality of the lighthouse for possibly the last time ever.
This is one of my favourite images of recent times. I love the line of the road leading down to the light, and even more the evidence of nature's relentless assault in the cracked and damaged walls, and the overgrown road itself.

The Gap of Dunloe is perhaps the most iconic of the landscapes around Killarney. A dramatic, steep-sided valley with a narrow road winding torturously through it, it's endlessly scenic.
This photograph was made at sunset on a particularly beautiful November evening.