Peaceful

The finest lighthouse on the Irish coast, the Fastnet stands proud on an unusually calm fine Summer's evening.
A granite tower constructed of interlocking blocks, it's a virtual monolith which presents itself like the bow of a ship to the incoming Atlantic swells, dissipating their energy before they reach peak force.
So effective is the design and construction that it has survived the worst the Atlantic can throw at it for over a century with nary a scratch. In 1985, it was struck by a 48m rogue wave (the same height as the focal plane of the lantern). This stove in the glass of the lantern room and overturned the vat of mercury on which the lantern turns, but the structure took no other damage.

Morning mists rise above a calm Gougane Barra.

One of my favourite spots in the Gougane Barra Valley, and a view I'd had my eye on for a few weeks before all the pieces fell into place.
This image was made while teaching a workshop student on a foggy morning when the light was no good for the usual "grand scenic" landscapes. Mist and woodland are often a magical combination, as can be seen here!
This is one of my most popular images, and it's easy to see why. There's a very appealing graphic quality to the image, which combined with the soft mood makes it a satisfyingly peaceful print.

Rabbit Island lies just off Myross in West Cork, near Union Hall. Uninhabited now, there are the remains of a house on the northern shore, and seaweed was once gathered around its shores.

This image was made on a beautiful still evening - one of a very few we got in the late summer of 2008!
It captures the peace and serenity of this wonderful location - St. Finbar's Oratory on the island in Lough Gougane Barra. About an hour after sunset, night was closing in. There had been a wedding in the oratory earlier, and so the door was open and the lights on. Ribbons and other decoration can be clearly made out through the door in a large print.

This is Illauncreeveen island in Glengarriff harbour. I'd been here on several other occasions and never really got an image I was 100% happy with. However, on this particular evening I was rewarded with some fantastic high-level cloud which caught the wonderful colours of the setting sun.
The Sugar Loaf mountain on the Beara peninsula is visible in the distance.

This lone tree is a magnet for local photographers. and was particularly beautiful on this evening. The red light on the clouds is not sunrise, but streetlights from the nearby village.

Rich light suffuses the deep woods of Gougane Barra, glancing over the moss-covered tree trunks.

The sun rises over Gougane Barra lake on a fine spring morning.

Made during my trip to visit the Bull Rock Lighthouse in early Summer, 2010. This image was made on the way down from the old fog signal station and shows the illuminated lighthouse against the empty sea beyond.
As this is a night image, the exposure was long and thus the waves and clouds are completely smoothed out, creating a timeless look.

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.

This photograph was made in the evening after the lantern had come on in the lighthouse. The open door is very inviting - lighthouses were always very hospitable places. Unfortunately, since automation more often than not the doors are barred as there's no one present. When work is ongoing, for a brief time some of that old hospitality comes back to life.

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.

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