There can be no doubt that the west of Ireland is as scenic as any other place in the world.

Here is one example, a small coastal mountain capped with cloud, struck with bright sunshine on its lower slopes giving a portion of the countryside a bright, vibrancy.

Bright and characterful sunset sunlight on Ireland's Atlantic Ocean.

This image comes from the western edge of the Emerald Isle as the late evening sunlight fades behind rain-bearing clouds to give dramatic lighting on the ocean's surface.

As we waited for the same sunlight to strike the Cliffs of Moher we turned our cameras toward the west and were not disappointed.

After my post yesterday showing the beauty of the lake and mountain on which Kylemore Abbey is situated here is a more focused image of the building, once the home of a wealthy London Doctor called Mitchell Henry.

Kylemore was built in the late 1860s and Mitchell Henry later went on to become MP for the area, in 1875 after the death of his wife who was from County Down he spent less time in Connemara. He built a memorial church for her which is still there today hidden amongst the woods.

In fact, Kylemore comes from the Irish Coille Móire meaning large or big wood - an unusual sight around these parts.

One of Ireland's most famous buildings, Kylemore Abbey is situated in a scenic position at the foot of a mountain surrounded by lakes.

More to come on the abbey and its history in my next post - see here: https://panoramicireland.com/photo-tours-blog/kylemore-abbey-connemara-galway, for now enjoy the fine landscapes and reflections from Connemara.

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The lanes of Ireland are a favourite photographic subject of mine.

Here, the final leaves of 2018 were falling - covering the ground with russety autumnal colour as the bright sunlight shines, casting shadows and making the whole scene more enticing.

Here are a few more of my favourite laneway scenes that I have photographed over the years:

https://panoramicireland.com/blog-ireland-guide/an-irish-laneway-with-mountains-in-the-distance

https://panoramicireland.com/photo-tours-blog/ireland-midlands-laneway-colour-sunset-sky-landscape-photography

https://panoramicireland.com/photo-tours-blog/irish-laneways-look-colourful-as-autumn-gives-way-to-winter

Join me on a photography day course at Northern Ireland's fine Giant's Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Learn more about when to use various settings on your camera - Av / Tv or S / M and how to choose which settings given the conditions.

Learn how to use filters, specifically for coastal landscapes and how to plan for the weather.

The schedule is varied depending on the season, weather on the day and due to other factors but we will organise the day to suit each of these elements.

I took a walk around Dublin's Merrion Square recently, finishing at the Oscar Wilde statue, see the video here on Instagram's IGTV.

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Merrion Square, Dublin. Statues and memorials including the Irish flag and Oscar Wilde's statue. . . #travelgram #neverstopexploring #beautifuldestinations #adventureculture #earthpix #instagood #nakedplanet #bbctravel #natgeotravel #travelblog #AdventureVisuals #Irish #panoramicireland #vsco #lifeofadventure #vscocam #vscotravel #tripadvisor #ireland #hikingadventures #dublin #urban #irishdefenceforces #architecturelovers #canon #architecture #getoutandexplore #merrionsquare #oscarwilde #lovedublin

A post shared by @ panoramicireland on Dec 12, 2018 at 2:55pm PST

I have been photographing rainbows a lot of late, with the recent stormy weather here in Ireland.

Here is one of those rainbows from a recent post from Dublin's Portobello: https://panoramicireland.com/photo-tours-blog/rainbow-portobello-dublin

And here another from Dublin in this Facebook post:

Here you can see the colour range that we get with rainbows - Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet

Enjoy the rainbows.

Sometimes, as here in this image the journey is as scenic as the destination.

On our way to a photography workshop in the west of Ireland, heavy rain arrived - contrary to the forecast for the day, so we stopped to photograph what was only one of many scenic roads on our Wild Atlantic Way drive.

This section of narrow, twisty road was perfect as it was lined with trees and radiated fresh green colour on the overcast day.

This brings into focus, excuse the pun, what to do when the weather forecast doesn't go to plan - be ready to adapt.

The West of Ireland is a perfect location for landscape photography, thankfully it's a place that I know very well.

Rugged mountains, wide open landscapes and plenty of interesting sky as well as the culture and heritage of the western seaboard make this area worthy of a visit but specifically for the photographer it has everything to offer.