It's no secret that the West of Ireland is one of Panoramic Ireland's favourite places.

Join me in 2024 to photograph in the beautiful scenic surroundings of Galway, Mayo, Sligo and Donegal.

Here, the first sunset of 2024 in the west as the sun heads for the horizon. 

We've had the solstice on December 22nd, 2023 and around now, early January we see the mornings getting brighter earlier here in Ireland.

The winter solstice marks the shortest day of the year and from then on the sunset gets a little later until the start of January when sunrises also become a little earlier. 

So, lots to look forward to even though January and February are the coldest months on average in Ireland.

The days continue to get longer.

Panoramic Ireland's photography workshops and tours are running right through the coldest months, the spring and the warmest months of the year in Ireland - all year round - Join me when you visit Ireland.

Lots of colour in places as we head towards the end of October, the recent good spell of warm weather is over and colder, more usual, temperatures have followed.

A proliferation of non-green colours, but actually there is still plenty of green after a summer without extreme heat or an overabundance of sunshine.

It's an incredibly scenic time of year here in Ireland and perfect for photography even if we can't guarantee the weather it's always possible to photograph interesting scenes in the right lighting.

Join Panoramic Ireland to photograph in Ireland, in autumn, winter, spring and summer.

Autumn is on its way here in Ireland, as we stopped to photograph the woodland stream beech leaves were falling constantly, not in large numbers but solely and constantly like the lightest snowfall.

Seen here, the bright reds of those fallen beech leaves lying on rich green moss-covered rocks alongside the woodland stream.

I'm sure there is some statistical analysis that can be done to predict whether a leaf will fall from its petiole, 20 metres to the ground, to land and become part of the photographer's image or be swiftly carried along by the stream which is fast-flowing and narrow, wide and slow in places, to flow towards the sea.

Or indeed to be thrown on to a rock and deposited there as higher water recedes.

The green moss here vibrant from recent wet weather, the same precipitation that feeds the stream and helps to bring those dried leaves to the ground.

And it's a scenic sight, reds and greens saturating this small corner of the Irish countryside.

Join me, Panoramic Ireland, to photograph in Ireland's woodlands in autumn, spring, summer and why not in winter too - literally all year round; improve your landscape photography on location.

I did say that Ireland is a scenic place in October in a recent post here and I did promise more from the October archives as well as current images from October 2023 as I travel throughout Ireland.

Here, a small woodland in rain and mist with autumnal foliage in a scene that could be from any era of photography.

The challenge on this morning was to keep the camera dry, but amazingly the afternoon turned to bright sunshine and all with a warm breeze.

Join me, Panoramic Ireland, to find scenes like these in different parts of Ireland from Antrim, to Cork, to Dublin to Galway.

Ireland's fine scenery, as in a recent post looks as good in grey and cloudy weather as in sunshine and blue skies.

A case in point, here in the northwest, in County Donegal this landscape of granite mountains covered in a soft, boggy carpet with just delicate highlights and shadows across the empty scene.

This, a glaciated valley features steep sides hundreds of metres in height.

Join me, Panoramic Ireland, to photograph landscapes like these.

Are you visiting Ireland out of season? While most head to the Emerald Isle during the longer days of summer when temperatures are higher, the autumn, winter and spring offer much more interest photographically.

Recently I was asked what Ireland is like in October, is it worth coming to for photography and of course my answer was indeed it is worth visiting in October.

Here are some of my favourite images from Octobers over the years, a small selection but waterfalls and woodlands make up a lot of the locations.

Ireland is not short of fantastic coastlines and of course as an Irish landscape photographer seascapes make up an important part of my collecton.

It should come as no surprise too that for the workshops and tours that I organise throughout Ireland, I recommend the coast often and get asked about the coast.

Here, a scene from a cloudy evening. After finishing up photographing some more well-known scenes from the Irish coast we set our sights on a tranquil scene of a calm Atlantic Ocean.

This image is one of my favourites from the evening's workshop.

Join me, Panoramic Ireland, on a photography workshop to Ireland's sometimes wild and sometimes serene coast all year round.

Not as famous as the better known stretches of coastal cliffs, this seascape is still a worthy contender for one of Ireland's most scenic.

An empty quarter scenic, with no one to be seen at all, it was relaxing to sit and watch the calm Atlantic until sunset clicking the shutter on our cameras every so often.

Join me, Panoramic Ireland, to photograph Ireland's cliffs and scenic seascapes.

Sidelighting in Ireland's Wicklow Mountains.

The scenic wilderness of the Wicklow mountain landscape is quite unlike anywhere else in Ireland, especially when combined with unusual cloud and weather patterns.

Here, sidelighting from late evening sunshine breaks through high cloud and illuminates the remote valleys.

2023 is a good year to visit Ireland, join Panoramic Ireland to photograph in Wicklow as well as Connemara, Dingle and Antrim's Giant's Causeway.

There can be no doubt that the best times of day to photograph are around sunrise and sunset with the combination of colours and gentle light.

But if I had to choose one of these, it would be sunrise.

The day is just getting started and there is a sense of privilege to be had when standing in the countryside or by the coast welcoming the warmth of the morning sun. Birds are chirping and chattering, calling to each other and on most occasions there are so few people around it's a solitary pleasure to view and photograph.

Even in the city sunrise can be a good choice.

It does obviously depend on what you want to photograph and its location, whether sunrise or sunset works better but sunrise is definitely my preference.

Of course, some locations really do suit only one or the other, Ireland's famed Cliffs of Moher one.

And it doesn't always follow that east is for sunrise and west is for sunset. Direct light from the sun is not always required for a colourful sunrise photograph.

Sunrise photography does involve getting up and getting out early, or sometimes in summer, staying out during the night for the early light in Ireland's northerly latitudes but it's always worth it.

Join Panoramic Ireland to photograph in the Irish countryside at sunrise.