The Tide Pulls Away at Kilfarrasy
Getting a shot like this is half luck and half persistence. You have to wait until the incoming tide is about to retreat to take the photo. This one was at Kilfarrasy Beach in Co. Waterford in 2017. Blarney Photography Club was visiting the area and this was on the itinerary for the the evening…
Evening Falls on the North Side
The tower of St. Anne’s Church has recently been renovated but this photo is from 2022, when it was still gritty. It looks all shiny now but I think it looked better back then. The clock faces all got a nice lick of paint though which is welcome!
A Pandemic Smoke
Mask pulled down to the chin, cigarette on the go is the small, very 2022 contradiction I couldn’t resist framing.
The Patient Hour at Santa Cruz
As I climbed up the rocks from the beach I spotted a lone fisherman in the distance. He hadn’t caught anything yet but in the bright sunshine I caught a nice silhouette. It was Santa Cruz in Portugal, and a lovely day to be beside the sea.
The Quiet One on the Bench
A man on a bench at Coventry station, fully absorbed in his newspaper while everyone else strides past with suitcases and rucksacks, making for the platform. He’s wearing a shirt, shorts, and a shoulder bagwhose strap cuts across his chest. A huge Paul Hollywood stares down from an advert for the “only baking book you’ll…
Sorry, no diesel
I walked past Blarney Autos this morning and clocked the “SORRY NO DIESEL” sign on a car blocking the diesel pumps there. The fuel protests have been rumbling on around the country for days now, refineries are ringed by placards, and the knock-on is landing on forecourts like this one. It doesn’t help that roughly…
Rain Won’t Stop the Mascletà
Fist in the air, beer in the other hand, in defiance of the rain that had been hammering down earlier. This is Las Fallas distilled into two men and a moment. I caught them mid-chant on one of the streets near the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. The man on the left had gone full traditional, with…
Iron Bones
I nearly walked straight past it. You’re on the South Bank, dodging cyclists, and there’s this railway bridge overhead that most people treat as a ceiling to hurry under. But look up and the underside of Blackfriars Railway Bridge is a riot of riveted iron girders fanning out like the ribs of some enormous mechanical…
1864 Meets 2026: Old Iron, New Glass
Look up and notice that 160 years of history are stacked vertically in the same sightline in London. At the bottom of the frame is the ornate ironwork crest of the London, Chatham and Dover Railway, dated 1864, sitting on its stone parapet like it’s been there forever (because it basically has). And rising directly…
Cool and Curly: Two Strangers on the South Bank
Just after we walked across Millenium Bridge in London I came across these two people watching something behind me. I think it may have been two women who had a couple of dogs with them. An interesting pair. I couldn’t resist making a candid photo of the moment.
Let the Good Times Flow (Eventually)
If you’ve been anywhere near Grand Parade in Cork lately, you’ll know the scene: hoarding, fencing, traffic cones, and that slightly bewildered look on everyone’s face as they try to work out which footpath is still open this week. This is what it looked like 2 weeks ago when a sewerage pipe was laid across…
Curves and Concrete in Black and White
The City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia is a sight to behold, but look around and you’ll find graceful ramps and gardens nearby, and a service road for vehicles.