Donkeys in the Rain
The rain is back! After weeks of blistering sun we’re getting a dose of ordinary Irish weather again except the rain is warm. Four donkeys in a field gathered around, curious to see me on the road with an umbrella held precariously over my head, protecting my camera. I hope they have some shelter in…
Unseen Movement
The bollard is the only thing in the frame that stayed put in this long exposure of a floating pier in Ballycotton Harbour. Everything else is moving, relative to it.
Rods Out at Ballycotton
Seven anglers had the end of Ballycotton pier to themselves, rods out over the water, while the sun went down behind the far shore. I was there for the sunset and happy to photograph the fishermen looking for fish.
Drifting past the pier
Two jellyfish drifted past the end of the pier at Ballycotton, less than a metre under the surface but in the warm light of a setting sun the water grew dark quickly with depth.
Last Light at Ballycotton
The three of them had the pier to themselves, rods out over water that had gone completely flat. I was there with Blarney Photography Club, and sunset is always an attraction there. It had already happened somewhere behind the headland, leaving a band of yellow along the horizon and nothing else lit. Not one of…
Sunset over the trees
The sun was already below the treeline when I took this, so all that was left was a band of orange above the horizon. The trees on either side close in far enough to frame the sunset on a lovely warm evening.
A Song Thrush at Dusk
The thrush was sitting on a branch in a cherry tree in the grounds of Blarney Castle late in the evening, and it stayed put long enough for a few frames. The next photo is a blur as the bird looked the other way, and the following photo is of a bare branch. The thrush…
Blarney House at the End of the Drive
Blarney House lies about 500m from the famous Castle, but I bet many of the tourists that come to visit the castle never go over to visit it, or walk around the grounds.
The tree on the ridge
I took this from the Coachford Greenway, shooting through the ditch instead of over it, which is why you’ll see the frame of dark leaves and grass. The sky was flat grey and heavy. A few minutes later it started raining, but I had an umbrella, and I had a couple of nice photos. Worth…
Feeder traffic at Carbery Cottage
The feeder at Carbery Cottage Guest Lodge on the Sheep’s Head is inside a rusted steel cage, so I couldn’t get a single photo without bars in it. It also stops crows and larger birds getting at the food! The great tits were juveniles, still yellow in the cheek and a bit ragged about the…
Bumblebee on a cardoon
The cardoons in Blarney Castle Gardens have been left to flower, which is what you do if you want bees rather than dinner. This one was about the size of my fist, and the bumblebee had worked its way into the lower edge of it, half buried in the purple. I shot it zoomed in,…
St. Patrick’s Night on the water
The fireworks went up from a barge moored out in Cobh harbour, and the launch point sits right there at water level, a small fountain of sparks and smoke below the main burst. Unfortunately the barge drifted with the current, and it ended up quite far down the town, probably away from the main crowds!