Blue hour in Dublin, photographing the city's modern riverfront skyline.

The River Liffey east of the city centre has changed substantially in the past 15 years. Formerly the quays here were flanked by red-brick Victorian warehouses of only a few storeys high as can be seen in the middle section of the image here.

Now, new buildings line the river and, although not lofty, their scale does eclipse those old warehouses.

The colour here from the buildings suiting the blue hour's natural tones.

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I have written about Torc Waterfall in County Kerry before, my last visit was during the winter on a trip to the Kingdom that saw me photograph snow on the mountains and visit some of the finest sections of Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way.

Here, what is probably Ireland's most photographed waterfall, Torc cascades from behind a natural green curtain of foliage, notably brighter than in the winter image featuring only the darker shades of evergreen holly.

For the landscape photographer, waterfalls are an essential subject matter at any time of year but I think Torc looks better in summer than in winter. What do you think?

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A recent photography tour in County Donegal brought us to the edge of a mountain to photograph the landscape of Ireland's most northerly county.

The weather was overcast, torrential rain had put an early end to photographic pursuits the previous evening, so despite a long journey across the country we headed off to photograph at least a few of the scenes missed.

Just off the boggy path, sodden from the recent heavy precipitation, we spotted a relaxed sheep just sitting on the edge of a rock. 

With a smile it watched our every move, unperturbed by our presence and the glass of our long lenses pointed right at it.

No doubt finding mirth at our clumsy perambulation across the narrow, slippy track.

For a time this was the most photographed sheep in Donegal, and the most accommodating, as it continued with its perfect pose for some time.

A moment of utilitarianism.

On we went in search of waterfalls and ancient ruins.

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On a recent photography tour in Cobh, County Cork we stopped to photograph the town's best known features - the hilly seaside street with colourfully-painted houses known as the Deck of Cards, and the lofty Saint Colman's Cathedral.

It was my first time visiting the seaside town since before the lockdown began in March 2020 and within moments it became obvious that something had changed since I took my last image. The previously colourful street had lost much of its character with recent colour changes.

From yellow, orange and red - bright, bold colours that clash with the blue and turquoise just a few doors away - to grey, beige and some other indescribable colour; becoming almost identically non-descript.

It's almost as if the owners hate their homes being photographed so much that they have decided to paint them some horrible colour to discourage the camera-wielding tourists.

It doesn't seem to work, even Tourism Ireland are posting images of the Deck of Cards houses approximately once per month on their social media channels - of course using the older, more colourful versions. As we photographed here, more than 10 people arrived with cameras pointed in the direction of the houses and Saint Colman's; most unaware that their images won't turn out to be as bright and colourful as the tourist literature suggests.

I think it's a shame, if you're going to go to the bother of painting the whole front of your house, on a street of iconic houses, then why choose these colours.

At least the blue house painted their varnished door to a new shade of blue.

The Deck of Cards, 23 houses each built on their own level and painted different colours (albeit many of them now not very interesting or colourful) on a hill known as West View, were built in the 1850s and it is said they resemble cards set together in an upside down V, also that they would come tumbling down like a deck of cards if the bottom one fell.

So, would I go to photograph the Deck of Cards again? Yes, but only out of curiosity to see if bold colours have returned. Would I go out of my way to photograph the Deck of Cards? I'm not sure, I definitely would while passing but at the moment I don't think the colours visible from the viewing point are interesting. On a dark, grey day indeed these colours almost blend in to the general background atmosphere.

Think about how a rainbow stands out on a rainy day, the colours are bright, vibrant and clashing.

And would I go to Cobh to photograph? Absolutely, the people are amongst the friendliest you will find in Ireland and the town has a strong history, fine buildings and plenty of scenery around to make it a worthy visit.

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