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.

A long day of travel, part way through so here's one of lovely fresh green and raindrops in the sunshine. Suitable for Saint Patrick's Day of course. . . . . . . . . . . . #irish #AdventureVisuals #natgeotravel #travelblog #travelgram #lifeofadventure #canon #vsco #vscocam #natgeo #bbctravel #instatravel #vscotravel #journey #green #nytimestravelshow #saintpatricksday #travelingourplanet #stpatricksday #wheneveryonewantstobeirish #filterra #landscapephotography #nature #natgeolandscape

A post shared by @ panoramicireland on Mar 17, 2018 at 1:47pm PDT

Find out more about my photography tours in the Irish countryside, including photographing plants and natural scenes.

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.

Follow Panoramic Ireland on Instagram: https://instagram.com/panoramicireland

Dublin's Four Courts hasn't looked like this in a while, bound by scaffolding. Seen here with reflections in the River Liffey. Dating to the end of the eighteenth century, the buildings were extensively destroyed in 1922 before being brought back into use in the 1930s. . . . . . . . . . . #travelgram #neverstopexploring #beautifuldestinations #adventureculture #earthpix #instagood #nakedplanet #bbctravel #natgeotravel #travelblog #AdventureVisuals #Irish #panoramicireland #vsco #lifeofadventure #vscocam #vscotravel #tripadvisor #ireland #hikingadventures #dublin #urban #liffey #architecturelovers #mycanon #architecture #getoutandexplore #enjoythecity #reflections #lovedublin

A post shared by @ panoramicireland on Mar 12, 2018 at 4:50pm PDT

This is a door that I have photographed often, having featured in my first book Portrait of Armagh.

It is the entrance door to Saint Patrick's Church of Ireland Cathedral in Armagh, Ireland's ecclesiastic capital.

The snow that fell during the Beast from the East and Storm Emma was quite surprising, unlike anything in recent years and it added to the character of this area seen here, the flakes so big they almost obliterate the view of the architecture itself.

Join me for a photography tour of Armagh here.

Street photography comes in all styles, shapes and sizes.

Here during the current snow storm to hit Ireland, known as Storm Emma and the Beast from the East, a man shielded by an umbrella walks up the steep, snow-covered Dawson Street in Armagh, Ireland's ecclesiastic capital.

Armagh's Church of Ireland cathedral, dedicated to Saint Patrick, seen here during the snow storm known as Beast from the East and Storm Emma in March 2018.

Join me on one of my photography tours of Ireland as we photograph every subject from street photography to landscapes, snow to sun and food to architecture.

Don't forget the pine martens of course, that's nature and wildlife.

A few weeks ago I was hiking in the Irish mountains covered with snow and thought to myself that this is probably the last time until the end of the year that I will be able to photograph snow.

Not that snow is impossible to have in Ireland, at high ground especially snow may last into April. 

Winter isn't over just yet, despite the traditional start of spring in Ireland being 1st February - the feast day of Saint Brigid, the whole of Ireland is now covered in snow on March 1st and today March 2nd caused by the so-called Storm Emma and 'Beast from the East'.

This image is from Armagh City, the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland, being the site of an ancient fort, Navan Fort, and the place where Saint Patrick established his principal church in Ireland in 444 AD.

The snowdrop is one of the most precious of any flower to grow in Ireland. It is one of the first signs of new life awakening before the winter has even finished.

With its delicate white flowers hanging on the end of pure green stems, often growing in clumps both in the wild and in gardens throughout the country, the snowdrop signals the start of longer days and the beginning of a new year, a new cycle of life.

Winter can often be described as a season without colour and lacking in sunshine, but it isn't usually the case at all in Ireland.

Recent weeks have seen plenty of sunshine and snow in the mountains, see some of my last posts for these here.

Not very high, the mountains of Ireland are nevertheless full of character and are actually often dusted with snow in the winter.

At 1,038m, Carrauntoohil is the highest point in Ireland; we don't have much in the way of high altitude but in the winter there is snow at 300m and above in many of the mountains for some of the year.