A panoramic view of the Maharees with Brandon Mountain in the early morning haze in the background. 

A panoramic view of the Eagles' Rock from the air.

The Black Valley is not a million miles from the bustling town of Killarney. However, due to the geography of the area, it's one of the more remote parts of Ireland, surrounded by craggy mountains on all sides.
This house is located at the very heart of the valley and couldn't present a more Irish scene if it tried. A classic view of the valley, it epitomises wild Ireland for me.

Mist descends over the mountains as a lone tree stands on a ridge above a pasture.

Evening sun settles over the mountains of the Beara Peninsula with Bantry Bay in the foreground.

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.

Made on a blustery summer's afternoon, this view shows Ross Castle and Island with the town of Killarney in the background.

This photograph is the triumph of perseverance and optimism in the face of pessimism and the Irish weather!

The Small Skellig is a dramatic rock thrust out of the Atlantic off the coast of Kerry. The smaller sibling to Skellig Michael, featured in the recent Star Wars movies, it's every bit as dramatic, if not more so. During winter storms, the entire island has been known to be overtopped by huge waves.

I'd long wanted to produce a photograph giving some hint of that drama, and found the opportunity on a late summer's day a few years ago. The only way to get the angle I wanted was from a boat, so I needed a willing skipper to take me out on a suitable day - one where most people would be happy to stay home on dry land!

On this day, the fog was thick along the coast and the waves were high enough to make the trip an unpleasant one. My friend was hesitant to go out - he wanted to save me the charter money as he was certain I wouldn't get anything worthwhile out of it. However, on the satellite imagery for the area I saw there were one or two thinner spots of fog scattered about. If one of those coincided with the Small Skellig, I knew it would look incredible. If it didn't, then the trip would be a wasted one!

So much in photography depends on going out in marginal conditions - you'll either come back with something spectacular or you'll come back empty handed. There's rarely a middle ground on those days.

I convinced him to go out, and for most of the journey you couldn't see more than 30 yards in any direction. However, as we got closer to the Small Skellig, the fog began to thin out, and sure enough it ended up being exactly what I hoped - not so clear that the island was just set against a gray background, but exactly thick enough to show the layers of  rock receding into the distance, and emphasise the drama and ruggedness of this incredible rock.

Capturing the image on a small boat while it was pitching and rolling was difficult - especially as I'm prone to sea sickness (despite spending a lot of time on the water for my coastal work)! It's made all the worse when the camera decides to have a tantrum and refuses to work properly at the critical moment! However, between my friend's expert boat handling and my loud curses at the camera, and suppression of my rebellious stomach while I carefully framed and exposed the image, I was able to achieve my goal and I couldn't be happier with this image.

My own copy hanging on my wall at home brings me a lot of joy and I know yours will too!

Another beloved location for holidaymakers and surfers is the Maharees, a 5 kilometre long peninsula off the north coast of the Dingle peninsula. It’s actually a tombolo, a landform that occurs when an island or islands becomes attached to the shore by a spit of sand.

The sun rises through the tunnel that passes entirely through the Bull rock. This only happens a few days a year, near the summer solstice. The lighthouse perches above as gannets from the colony on the rock wheel around the clear sky.

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.

A ram taking its ease with the backdrop of the Kerry Mountains beyond.

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.

Morning mist clings to the mountainsides and perfectly still reflection in Gougane Barra Lake.

We don't get much in the way of thunderstorms in Ireland, and when one does arrive it's usually pretty mild. On this evening, however, I experienced a storm that seemed stronger than anything I'd encountered while living for 10 years in the American mid-west.
Once things calmed down enough to permit photography, I grabbed the camera and this is the result. I love the dark tones and the way the lightning has lit the underside of the clouds.

A panoramic version of the Meeting of the Waters photograph.
The Old Weir Bridge in the Killarney National Park is the gateway to the Meeting of the Waters where the Upper Lake (via the Long Range river), Muckross Lake and Lough Leane converge.
This image was made shortly after sunset as the light was fading from the sky.

Geokaun Mountain is the highest point on Valentia Island. In this classic panoramic view looking east, Fort Point and the Valentia lighthouse are visible in the bottom right. Beginish Island and Doulus Head also make an appearance.
I was even able to bribe some sheep to wander into the frame at left for the authentic rural Irish experience!