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Darren McLoughlin
Irishman and International travel photographer in search of the best bits of Ireland. Leading photography tours and experiences in Ireland.
Contributor to New York Times / Sunday Times / Irish Times / Echtra Echtra and Eonmusic
Cancer survivor.
Ask me about travel in Ireland or about photography in Ireland.
Good Friday in Ireland
The Irish pub, scene of many a good evening but traditionally not on Good Friday one of only two days of the year when pubs are not allowed to open in Ireland - until now.
2018 sees the end of the ban on pubs opening on Good Friday due to the amendment of a law from 1927.
Pink Sky at Sunrise
Sometimes the early morning just gives more than you expect.
Making the effort to get out early for sunrise makes a lot of sense, especially on the east coast of Ireland.
On this occasion I knew the tide would be out giving the opportunity to get a wet sand foreshore that will reflect the sunrise sky's brightness and vivid colours such as here in this image.
What is harder to predict is the actual sunrise, but it is always worth making the effort to get up and get out with camera ahead of the arrival of a new day.
What we look for in sunrise skies are some high level clouds, blue sky and a clear horizon. That allows the early morning sunlight to shine across the sky and landscape catching the edges of those clouds above and any buildings down here on the ground.
On this morning the perfect combination - just look at that colour!
It doesn't have to be epic, just appropriate and the sunrise will make it beautiful.
A Walk in the Woods
Spring is here at long last.
The traditional beginning of spring in Ireland is St. Brigid's Day on the the 1st of February, in the meteorological calendar spring starts on the 1st of March and often the passing of the Spring Equinox on the 20th/21st of March is regarded as the true beginning of the season that sees the hedgerows and woodlands of Ireland erupt into life with fresh green carpeting the countryside and urban parks of the Emerald Isle.
Moody and mysterious, the coast of Ireland at dusk
The coastline of Ireland comes in many different forms - the sandy beaches with turquoise waters, rocky headlands and coves, pebbles and stones. All of these elements make up the ever changing and ever beautiful coast of the Emerald Isle.
Here I made this image from a visit to the north coast, the rocky peaks just offshore look a little like a film set especially when seen against the post-sunset sky with its pinks and oranges fading into blue.
I have added a little post-processing to give a more mystical, moody feel to this seascape.
Join me on a photography tour and learn how to make images like these, from €220 for a private one-to-one workshop.
Photography Workshops Ireland Sunset Photography
Here in this west of Ireland sunset is one of my favourite images from 2017, as seen in my YouTube video here.
For over ten years I have been organising photography workshops and tours here in Ireland.
The sunset image is one of the most lambasted, often cited as a hackneyed subject matter in photography but actually, photographed correctly (like here from this Panoramic Ireland photography workshop), the sunset can be enticing, mesmerising, one of two potential perfect moments in a 24 hour period for lighting and colour.
Learn how to photograph the sunset in any conditions on a private photography workshop by contacting me here.
Join me, Panoramic Ireland, for a photography tour and workshop in the west of Ireland to learn how to photograph scenes like this.
Ireland's Wild and Rugged Coastline
The wild, stormy and rugged coast of Ireland varies from sandy beaches to rocky headlands.
Here seen on one of the many stormy days driving wave after wave onto the coast, swirling white water draining over black rocks.
I often get asked about bad weather and photography such as is it possible to photograph on stormy days, what about 'bad' weather.
What is 'bad' weather? Weather affects the feeling of an image, there really is no such thing as bad weather in photography. A sunny image with calm seas can lack impact, even lighting is not as interesting as contrasty conditions typical of a stormy day and the motion of the ocean upon the shore is one of dramatic interest.
Storms bring waves, Ireland being a small island where you can only be 80 miles from the sea means a trip to the coast as seen in this image is very easy and worthwhile.
The challenge of landscape photography is of course to deal with the elements, anticipate the weather using knowledge and the forecasts and be ready to adapt to what local conditions are like.
Stormy days sometimes bring sunny weather between the windy, wet weather such as here on the Antrim Coast.
Join me on a photography workshop on the coast of Ireland, contact me for dates and locations for Panoramic Ireland's coastal photography workshops in Ireland 2018 and 2019.
Dingle, Looking Different
I have been photographing and leading photography workshops in Dingle, County Kerry for many years now.
On a recent visit we made more than one stop at the famous Dunquin Harbour out on the west of the peninsula, close to Ireland's (and Europe's) most westerly point.
Seen here is one of the images created on that workshop, can you spot what makes it different to the typical view of this iconic Irish location?
Send me your answers in the comments section below or via the contact page.
Join me on one of my Dingle Photography Workshops, read more about a previous visit to Dingle.
West of Ireland Landscape, Mountains and Sky
The West of Ireland is full of landscapes like this Connemara panorama with rugged mountains and rough pasture.
It is also home to locations like this one at Pine Island.
On a bright winter's day the west is full of character for the photographer and visitor alike.
Shamrock, Raindrops and Sunshine - Lots of Green in Irish Spring
It has been a strange old winter and early spring here in Ireland. We have had a few storms and lots of snow, now it's time for some green as we enter the Irish spring.
Here an image of shamrocks, one of the famous symbols of Ireland in an Irish spring, with fresh raindrops after a light shower with sunshine and shadow.
Shamrocks are said to have been used by Ireland's patron saint, Saint Patrick who used the triple leaf to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish during the fifth century AD.
Each leaf is one but made up of three separate leaves, there are many species of small plant that grow in Ireland that could possibly be the shamrock that is referred to in the Saint Patrick story.
Find out more about my photography tours in the Irish countryside, including photographing plants and natural scenes.
Dublin's Four Courts and River Liffey
Dublin's Four Courts reflected in the River Liffey.
One of the city's finest buildings the Four Courts is seen here with reflections in the River Liffey at sunset.
Dating to the end of the eighteenth century, the fine building was begun by architect Thomas Cooley who designed the Royal Exchange, which is now City Hall; it was finished by Dublin's most famous architect, James Gandon in 1784 after Cooley's death.
Gandon also designed the Custom House in Dublin.
At the centre of the building a 19.5 metre diameter round hall topped with a large dome that makes for an unmistakable presence in Dublin's skyline.
The buildings were extensively destroyed in 1922 before being brought back into use in the 1930s.
And it was here that so many of Ireland's centuries-old records were lost during the Civil War - parliamentary records, parish and civil records and more. This is why it is so hard to trace Irish ancestry, so many documents were all held in one place with no copies held elsewhere, a lesson that we are all too careful of in the digital age.
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