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COUNTY DUBLIN
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We start our Irish photography tours near Dublin with images of the Baily lighthouse, above, and Howth harbour at right. |
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Dawn on the first full day of all my Irish trips finds my groups at Malahide Harbour north of Dublin. One never knows what the light might do, but in the British Isles one can count on clouds to make things interesting. Below, a similar effect in nearby Skerries harbour.
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Back to Malahide harbour, but a different trip, for this Gray Heron.
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COUNTY DOWN, NORTHERN IRELAND
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1 of 3: Northern Ireland's Mourne Mountains in County Down were immortalized in song, and in this image the dark peak of Slieve Muck dominates at 2,700'. The mountain slopes are a patchwork of dry-stone walls, whitewashed farmhouses and yellow Gorse. There was no foreground included here so it's a simple matter of using an aperture of around f.5.6. to f.8. |
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2 of 3: More mood in the magnificent Mourne mountain range, and ideal light for the white-washed farmhouse sat under the dark Slieve Donard peak.
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The stone walls of the Mourne Mountains, County Down. Throughout the British Isles stone walls are distinctly different in respect of the type of stone and building technique. Sometimes the variations are within a few short miles of each other.
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3 of 3: An overcast dawn turned into this within 30 minutes. |
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Nothing unusual about this sight in the British Isles as a farmer in County Down wanders about checking on the well-being of his flock. Consequently when my groups stop to take pictures the sheep don't stampede away from us as they do in some other countries. |
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OK, perhaps I should explain this! It's clients on one of our Ireland trips photographed in the reflection of a giant silver ball on the Newcastle promenade.
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COUNTY ANTRIM, NORTHERN IRELAND
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| While traversing the narrow and spectacular Torr Head road, again on the Antrim coast, we happened upon farmer Paul McCormick inoculating lambs. Such 'happenstance' is part of any trip, and the group took a series of pictures to record events and then Paul also afforded us some great portraits of himself. |
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The simplicity of the British Bluebell enhanced by the yellow background of out-of-focus Gorse.
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My group had taken the healthy walk out
to the Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge under sunny skies, but then the clouds gathered as we returned. A short, sharp shower was followed by this rainbow which we shot in earnest. The body of water is Rathlin Sound off the Antrim coast.
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The coastal town of Ballycastle in County Antrim receives some dramatic light.
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This flower grows along rugged coasts over most of the British Isles, and is a personal favourite. The Brits call it Sea Thrift, but it is also known as Sea Pink and California Thrift. The technique is a favourite of mine too, i.e. selective focus. It almost doesn't matter if your subject is moving in the wind as a wide aperture will give you a fast shutter speed.
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1 of 2: The daylight view of Dunluce castle, County Antrim. It has a fascinating history, and you can read about it here. |
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One of the many sunset views of Dunluce that have been amassed over the years. |
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1 of 3: The first of three Giant's Causeway shots on the coast of County Antrim.
It's a special place, but sometimes when one shows up at dawn the light is rather flat . . . |
. . . . but at other times, once the sun has cleared the rocky ledge to the northeast, one can get some very nice side lighting. |
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The Giant's Causeway is a collection of 5-sided rock pillars tightly knit together in a mosaic of granite. There is a similar strata straight to the north at Fingal's Cave in the Scottish Hebridean islands, and legend has it that a giant, one Fionn mac Cumhaill [Fingal McCool], laid down the rock on the sea floor as a method of 'commuting' between Ireland and Scotland.
Photographically speaking, my method for close-ups on the ground that 'face up' is to use a tripod and 200mm lens to frame the subject tightly.
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Back to the REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: COUNTY DONEGAL
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2 of 2: Another variation on the postal theme with this one being spotted in a remote village in County Donegal.
Get a 'square on' as you can with these type of shots. |
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Unspectacular perhaps, but very typical of some regions in Ireland. This spot is in County Donegal.
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A Lobster pot on a stone wall with a white-washed cottage looking on through the mist. It was taken in the rain on a dour day, but even so I love the 'Irish mood' that this shot conveys. |
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Close-up details of how a thatched roof is held in place on a building that is some 500 years old. The thatched roofs last anything from 20 to 80 years, with most lasting closer to twenty years when harsher weather is prevalent. |
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The first of a 'bicycle pair', and one really does get the idea that the locals leave out old bicycles just for us photographers sometimes! This one was shot at Glencolumbkille in County Donegal. |
The juxtaposition of a Celtic standing stone, and village church in Glencolumbkille, County Donegal. The name derives from St. Columba whose influence stretched from Ireland to the Isle of Iona in the Scottish Hebrides. |
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Irish wool at a mill in County Donegal.
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Fulmars on the cliffs in County Sligo. Catching birds in flight is a tricky business both in terms of exposure and sharpness. The background is changing all the time, so I suggest manual exposure for the bird in flight. However, using manual focus for the moving bird is almost impossible to catch just right, so the use of automatic focus in 'tracking' or 'servo' mode is recommended. |
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Serendipity in Mullaghmore, County Sligo. |
1 of 2: Somewhat in the middle of nowhere in County Sligo one can find post boxes such as this built into barn walls. Rural life in the British Isles has resisted many of the changes that have afflicted many other cultures in recent decades. |
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England's pub names lean towards names such as 'The King's Head' and the 'White Horse', but in Ireland they're often the owner's name. 'Matt Molloy's' can be found in Westport, County Mayo.
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A Celtic design on a cape worn by a young Irish dancer. The 'C' in Celtic is 'hard' and pronounced 'Keltic'.
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Another dawn shot at Fahey Harbour in Connemara, and this one has the moon reflected in the water. |
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This unpretentious home had a thatched roof until recent times, but is still photogenic. Two of the 'odd-shaped' boats in the background sitting in Fahey Harbour are known as a 'Currach' boat.
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A Connemara pony and foal oblige in cute fashion on the Sky Road near Clifden. |
Every few years it rains in Ireland *cough*, and with it comes fresh photo opportunities such as raindrops gathered on the stalks of the wild Iris. |
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Then back to Fahey Harbour at dawn where the Currachs and other boats are part of the stillness.
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Late light drama in the peaks of Connemara, County Galway. |
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Hidden among the deciduous forests of western County Galway is Kylemore Abbey which is Tudor-Gothic in style and dating to a 'young' 130 years old. The building has been occupied by Benedictine Nuns since 1920 who operate an international girls school there. Wide-angle, about f11-f16 and then wait for the light to hit just where you'd like it to hit.
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The delicate red Fuchsia which dots the western coasts of Ireland. Raindrops catching a bit of light add to the 'sparkle' as it were.
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The Connemara town of Clifden on the west coast in County Galway, above. When there are no cranes on the skyline it's well worth the short uphill amble when the late light is at it's best.
At right, Clifden harbour with a foreground of Oxeye Daisies. The technique here was an aperture of f.22 with my focus on the Oxeyes, and then wait for the breeze to die down.
I also used a graduated gray/split neutral density filter on this one, but upside down to darken the foreground.
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A classic view in terms of Connemara which features on postcards and artwork regularly. However, there are power lines running through the scene so some careful 'manipulation' is needed to remove the distraction. Front lighting of the trees is OK, but I prefer this view with the trees in silhouette and the base of the mountains in sun. Couldn't be better! |
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The town of Galway has long been a center of Irish grass-roots culture but in recent years a new Galway icon has developed. It is the myriad of Mute Swans that linger in Galway harbour year-round, and provide many photo opportunities for my groups.
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Celtic artifacts dot the Irish countryside, and this gravestone is to be found, or maybe not, in a remote spot out on the Burren in County Clare.
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Out on County Clare's rock-scape known as the Burren one can find the Poulnabrone Dolmen. It is a portal tomb sitting upon a limestone plateau and
dates to around 2,000 years BC. It is now exposed after the earth in and around the tomb was washed away over a period of many centuries. I love nothing more than getting down low and shooting such subjects with some kind of foreground interest.
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Serendipity in County Clare. If I anticipate a shot like this I'll get the van either ahead or behind the subject so that you have time to get out and catch the moment. It helps to know your camera settings well, and be able to change to an 'action' mode at a moments notice. |
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A cluster of signs that suggest that
you're 'not in Kansas anymore!'
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1 of 2: The view that everyone comes to see at the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland. It does help however to stay late and hope that you're blessed with light and shade for image above the ordinary. |
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The setting sun out on Galway Bay makes a stark silhouette of O'Brien's Tower that sits atop the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare. The tower was constructed in 1835 as a viewing point for Victorian tourists. |
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Another image from the Cliffs of Moher as a Gannet banks left in search of a roosting spot for the night.
I personally find such shots quite striking and have an awful lot of appreciation both for the sunset and the Gannet that 'performed' so well for this shot! |
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Ireland isn't particularly noted for it's thatches in the manner that England is, but Adare in County
Limerick does boast a classic collection in the heart of the village. Thatched roofs generally last 20 to 80 years, and the Irish love their coloured window frames.
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To the west of Killarney, County Kerry, is the old multi-spanned Beaufort Bridge over the River Laune.
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A County Kerry still-life. These shots can be found just about anywhere, but you have to 'see' them first. As a photo-trip leader it is my job to find these shots and make it happen. You'll never hear me say "there is nowhere to stop"! |
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Shock, horror it actually rains in Ireland . . . so one has to turn up the 'creativity level' to get round it. It's then I encourage my groups to look for color through the wet windows.
I find that manually focusing somewhere between the window and the subject works best.
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It can be really wild at Slea head on the Dingle peninsula, when even the gaps between showers yield wonderful light. On this occasion though the cloud fog added a little something. |
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The MacGillycuddy Reeks mountain range in Ireland's County Kerry.
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Remote Glen Cummeenduff and the road very much less travelled. Perfect for photography in so many ways, especially when the light is constantly changeable.
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A boat on Lake Cummeenduff that has seen better days, but can still offer something for the photographer.
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In the Gap of Dunloe, a jaunting cart skips through the valley providing another quality photo tour opportunity. |
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COUNTY TIPPERARY . . . it's not that far really
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On the last full day of the Ireland photography tour we cross the country diagonally on our way back to Dublin to take in the impressive and moody Rock of Cashel, above. Then below, a Celtic cross inside the Rock of Cashel looking out at a nearby derelict abbey. A fitting and iconic conclusion to a great trip.
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Ireland by Becky Latson | Ireland by Michael Carlucci
Ireland by Jane Ashley | Ireland by Carmen Sewell
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