Where the Lizandro Meets the Sea
A surfer, fresh out of the water, with her body board while a couple nearby walk and photograph the beach. What you might notice from the waves and the way the dress of the woman on the far left is whipped about is the wind. No wonder surfers love this part of the world! This…
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…
The Log That Caught the Sunset
A single weather-beaten log, marooned on the foreshore. It was nudged back and forth by the waves coming in and out but in the moment this photo was taken, the sky was reflected in wet sand and the log was beached. Safe from the incoming waters.
Youghal’s Wooden Sentinels
Groynes in the sand as the water rushes away to do battle with another wave coming in. The ever-present push and pull of the tide, defeated for some time at least by these wooden posts.
Horse, Dog and a Quiet Hour on Silver Strand
We visited Sherkin Island more than ten years ago and walked the narrow road to the other side of the island, to Cow Strand and then on to Silver Strand. I’ve been back a few times since but I think this is the only time I saw a horse on the beach. It was a…
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.
Three on the Sand at Foz do Lizandro
Foz do Lizandro is one of those beaches where the Atlantic doesn’t let you forget it’s the Atlantic. Even on a bright spring day, the surf comes in heavy and the water is properly cold. I caught this little scene from up the beach: mum framing the wave on her phone, dad watching, holding a…
Silk and Stone: A Long Exposure at Santa Cruz
I scrambled out onto the rocks at Santa Cruz in Portugal taking photos of various views and then climbed up to a rock platform where I was greeted with this view in front of me. I had an ND filter, but no proper tripod, only a small “plate tripod” that just about did its job…
First Light at Cappagh
Cappagh Beach at half-six in the morning is colder than I’d planned for. We’d driven down to Kerry the night before and I was up in the dark, heading out the door and shared the journey from Dingle with Freddie at the wheel. I forgot my wellies, but while I cursed my lack of preparation,…
Where the Dingle Coast Meets the Swell
Clogher Beach in early March is not what you’d call hospitable. This little cove on the Dingle Peninsula opens straight onto the Atlantic, and the swell hits the slate head-on; the spray goes up twice as high as the wave itself. I was there with Blarney Photography Club, all of us strung out along the…
When the Atlantic Catches Fire
The cold at Cappagh Beach the morning I made this photo was the sort that makes you question every life choice that led you to a dark car park before dawn. The sunrise wasn’t that great but shortly before we left, the sun cracked through a gap in the cloud and turned the entire Atlantic…
An Fear Marbh Through the Storm
On a calm day you can sit on Clogher Beach and see An Fear Marbh lying peacefully on the horizon, its profile supposedly resembling a body laid out in repose. On a day like this, though, you’re lucky to see it at all. The swell was stacking up in layers, each wave tall enough to…