The Working End of Gardening

Weathered orange metal storage cabinet or locker with chrome handle standing among coiled black hoses and red plastic chairs at Ballincollig Regional Park allotments, showing rust and wear from outdoor use.

The allotments next to Ballincollig Regional Park need storage for various things, but I doubt the cabinet in the photo above is used for much any more.

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Window on the City

From the car park on North Main Street, Cork, you can Bruce College and St Mary’s Dominican Priory. I liked how the stark lifeless concrete frame of the multi-story car park contrasted with the variety of materials and colours in the world outside.


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Carey’s Lane After Dark

I was out with Blarney Photography Club during the summer and one member of the club kneeled to photograph Carey’s Lane. I went high and lifted my camera over my head to get it from a different perspective!

Carey’s Lane is one of Cork’s oldest medieval streets, originally part of the walled city that dates back to the 12th century. The narrow width and cobblestone surface are remnants of medieval urban planning, designed for foot traffic and horse-drawn carts. The modern drainage channel follows the same path that medieval gutters would have taken, showing how some aspects of urban infrastructure remain remarkably consistent across centuries.


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Ballycotton’s Beacon on the Island

The lighthouse on the island just off the coast by Ballycotton is always a nice subject for a photo. The night we were there, we hoped to photograph the moon rising behind the lighthouse but a large bank of cloud covered the horizon.


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Biking Home After Dark

Someone was going to be cycling home after dark from here in Kinsale.


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ÉALÚ emergency exit

An emergency exit sign spotted in the first floor window of a building in Kinsale, Co Cork. Despite the shadows, the sign gives a clue to the internal floor plan of the building. It looks a bit out of place, but it has to be there.

Georgian sash windows like this one were originally designed as a fire safety feature themselves. The large panes and sliding mechanism made them easy escape routes during emergencies, which is why many Georgian buildings have windows that open directly onto the street rather than requiring ladders to reach. The modern exit sign is actually continuing a 300-year-old tradition of prioritising safe evacuation!


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Dingle’s Dykegate Street Mural

Large-scale street mural on blue wall showing portrait of woman with flowing blonde hair and blue eyes with a bow and arrow made with a sycamore-seed tip. A red car parked in the foreground on Dykegate Street, Dingle, Co Kerry

On Dykegate Street in Dingle you’ll find a spectacular mural.

The mural was painted by artist, Ciara McKenna. You can find out more about it in this Irish Independent article.


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love sweet love

A doorway in Kinsale saying what we all hope for in this crazy, violent world. Free Palestine.

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Shadows of North Main Street

A month ago, Cork City Council acquired 4 eyesore buildings at the top of North Main Street in Cork. They are in a prominent location and not used for much over the years – I remember a shoe store in one, a clothes store in the place next to it and a retro goods store too. They’ve been mostly derelict for a long time.

Hopefully they’ll be demolished and we’ll see something decent done with the location.

North Main Street sits on one of Cork’s oldest thoroughfares and was actually built on reclaimed marshland. The street runs parallel to what was once the original course of the River Lee before extensive land reclamation in the 18th and 19th centuries. Many of the Georgian buildings here were constructed using limestone quarried from local Cork quarries, which is why they’ve developed that distinctive weathered patina that photographs so beautifully in black and white.


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Father Mathew Quay Torn Up

Father Mathew Quay is a road that is definitely closed. The tarmac has been torn up to be remade into something better, hopefully.


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Black and Blue

A striking blue wall on Dykegate Street caught my eye, especially in the bright sunlight that cast a stark shadow across it.

Dingle is located in the heart of the Kerry Gaeltacht, one of Ireland’s officially designated Irish-speaking regions where Irish is the community language. The bilingual street signs throughout the town reflect this status, with the Irish name “Sráid an Daighide” appearing first, followed by the English “Dykegate Street.” The tradition of painting houses in bright colours in Dingle dates back centuries and was originally practical – helping fishermen identify their homes from the sea. Today, these colourful buildings have become one of Dingle’s most distinctive features, with strict planning guidelines ensuring that the tradition continues while maintaining the town’s unique character.


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