Photographs from "The Skelligs"

The Small Skellig emerges from the fog on a blustery day. Featured in the book "The Skelligs: Islands on the Edge of the World" by Peter Cox.

The famous Skellig islands, Skellig Michael (on the left) and the Small Skellig are seen on a calm evening near the Vernal Equinox at sunset.

The Small Skellig with a rain squall and rainbow in the distance.

The monastery on Skellig Michael dates from the 6th century and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Perched on a man-made terrace 600 feet above the Atlantic, it's possibly my favourite place in the world. This photograph was made looking into the rising sun - a rare privilege!

The Small Skellig is not often photographed other than from Skellig Michael. However, it's a worthy subject in its own right. Home to thousands of pairs of gannets, it looks dusted in snow as the sun sets behind it.

Skellig Michael is perhaps Ireland's most alluring location. Wild and untamed, it was home to a monastery of ascetic monks from about the 6th to the 13th century.
This image was made from across Christ's Saddle between the two peaks of the island, looking towards the North Peak, which is where the monastery is located.

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

A lone figure lights the way to the monastery on the peak of Skellig Michael on a calm night.

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.

Lemon Rock is the third island in the trio including its much more famous sisters, the Great and Small Skelligs. The three form a straight line leading into the Atlantic from the Iveragh peninsula.

Standing 20 metres above the water, when viewed close-to it is dramatic. I photographed it at sunrise on a fine spring morning.

The Skellig monastery shelters beneath the jagged precipice of the North Peak at sunrise.