A serenely scenic morning photographing at the lake at sunrise as the Sun rises over the small wooded island with its ruined tower reflecting in the calm waters. 

You never know what you will get with a sunrise, the weather plays a big part in how a location will look and in this case it was worth the effort to make sunrise on this photography workshop.

On this occasion the sky was clear before sunrise but a gentle, consistent breeze started as the daylight began and brought cloud across the lakeside scene.

Afterwards it was on to photograph bluebells in the Irish woodlands.

Join me to photograph in Ireland throughout the year, from sunrise to sunset.

Located deep within the widest of the nine Glens of Antrim, Glenariff, the lesser known of the falls on the section is Ess na Crub, which means Fall of the Hooves. This name refers to the thunderous roar of the falls even when there isn't much flow, it's incredibly easy to locate by its sound.

Glenariff comes from the Irish, Gleann Aireamh which means Valley of the Ploughman or Arable Valley. Each of Antrim's nine glens has a distinct feel and its own character and is an area well known to Panoramic Ireland.

I have been to Ess na Crub and Ess na Larach numerous times over the autumn, winter and spring 2024/2025.

Why not join me to photograph here in one of Ireland's finest waterfall locations in summer?

Golden Hour Dawn Swim in March at the Forty Foot, Dublin, Ireland

Early morning is a time to experience the true beauty of the world, daylight builds before sunrise to bathe landscapes in golden hour colour.

I've written about this location before, it's the Forty Foot in Dublin and doesn't need a lot of introduction if you've been a regular visitor to the site. 

There is a special serenity to the morning, an ephemeral liminality as the short-lived golden light moves into bright daylight.

And at this time of year, it's getting bright around 06:00, with sunrise under an hour later.

Join Panoramic Ireland to photograph in Ireland throughout the year, especially at sunrise.

Are you planning to visit Ireland's famous Cliffs of Moher in 2025?

If so, keep an eye out for path closures at the stunning Wild Atlantic Way site. Currently, as of February 2025 only the paths around the visitor centre are open so it's impossible to walk from or to Doolin on the northern section of the trail at the moment and it's not possible to walk on the southern section of the trail to or from Hag's Head.

The surfers' path is still open on the northern section but not as far as the visitor centre.

With over 1.5 million visitors every year, the paths, which at times are close to the edge of the Atlantic, can be uneven and unfenced and have seen a number of unfortunate deaths in recent years.

To create new, safer sections of path the trails will be closed for most of this year, 2025 but with different sections open at different times.

The visitor centre remains open with viewpoints still accessible.

Check here for more information.

When you think about Ireland in March, the first thing that often springs to mind is Saint Patrick's Day, the 17th of March. And no wonder, it's one of the world's most famous holidays with festivals and parades held in every continent. 

I have already written about visiting Ireland out of season, the summer months can, like any part of Europe, be incredibly busy and the autumn, winter and spring can offer the photographer much more in terms of access to Ireland at its best. 

Ireland in March can be warm, cold, and everything in between and I often get asked if March is a good time of year to visit. Yes is always the answer.

Colour begins to arrive in the hedges and certain trees, but snow can blanket the countryside turning green to white.

Here, below, are some of my favourite images from the month of March in Ireland over the years.

So if you are planning to visit Ireland in March or the other off season months, check out Panoramic Ireland's photography tours and workshops and enjoy the gallery on this post below.

It might make more sense to post the first sunrise of a new year from New Year's Day rather than the first sunset. But where I am, in the west of Ireland, with wide views to the west and high ground to the east, sunset is a more appropriate time of day for photography. 

So here, a scene from the colourful west of Ireland at sunset. 

Indeed, my last post of 2024 was of one of the final sunrises of the year - weather and aerial perspective suited here.

Keep an eye out for more posts here on Panoramic Ireland, or come to Ireland to join me and learn how to photograph in the landscapes of the west of Ireland.

Come and join Ireland and the world enjoying one of the most amazing human-natural spectacles, the winter solstice sunrise into the burial chamber at Newgrange, Ireland.

I have written about Newgrange before here on Panoramic Ireland, the ancient burial mound that should rightly be considered Ireland's greatest.

Older than the pyramids (by 600 years!), older than Stonehenge and much superior to that monument in terms of its construction, Newgrange covers more than an acre and it's possible to climb inside on a guided tour - by lottery on the days closest to the winter solstice on 21st December.

For approximately 17 minutes on the shortest day of the year, and a shorter amount of time on the days either side, the chamber receives direct sunlight - if there is any to be had.

In 2024, the solstice will be the morning of the 21st of December at 09:20 when the Sun is directly overhead the Tropic of Capricorn and hence at it's lowest latitude relative to Earth. From here on the days get longer.

So for 2024 the livestream from inside Newgrange will be on Saturday December 21st from 08:40 (Irish Time, obviously) and will have voiceover by Dr Clare Tuffy and Dr Frank Prendergast. It's available to watch in these places:

• RTE Player
• OPW (Office of Public Works)
• Heritage Ireland
• OPW - YouTube

If you're in Ireland for the winter solstice or beyond, Panoramic Ireland (that's me) create photography tours in Ireland for photographers and anyone interested in seeing more of the beauty of Ireland including our wonderful landscape and heritage.

For more information contact me via the contact page.

It was an early start, here on location already at 05:05 on 06/06. A still morning, high on the Quiraing, a landslip ridge on the north end of the famously beautiful Scottish Isle of Skye. Awaiting the sunrise

I was in Scotland to photograph puffins and landscapes and on this morning I photographed in the blue hour light, a stormy purple at this moment, rather than the classic view of this location as I wanted to save that for the golden hour

Imagine my surprise when a ship should enter view out on the Atlantic, I recognised her shape and sure enough, after a quick Google search I found that Swan Hellenic's SH Vega was indeed in Skye at that time.

I had been on board the small polar class cruise ship last year when she made her first visit to Dublin and Ireland. At that time I said "I hope to see her again soon." And here, now in Skye photographing in the most scenic of scenes.

The view along the ridge was spectacular, I can only imagine how this scene looked from one of the 76 staterooms on board the ship; seeing the Quiraing slowly lighting up with the clearing sky and shadows across the rocky ridge.

It has been a strange year, 2024. A lot has happened over the past number of months, not least the opening up of new social media site Bluesky.

I have at last joined, along with millions of others - a number which is growing daily.

Anyway, here is my account https://bsky.app/profile/travelimages.bsky.social so if you're there stop by and say hello.

A cloudy summer's day in the west of Ireland, 2008, and the crowd enthusiastically await the arrival of the cyclists in the Tour of Ireland.

Salthill, on the edge of Galway City marked the end of stage three of the five stage race and the world's greatest sprinter, Mark Cavendish, was making sure of a third win out of three on the flat sprint finish.

This cyclist, from the Isle of Man, a 35-stage winner of the Tour de France, more than any other in the race's 111-year history has retired after winning his final race in the Tour de France Prudential Singapore Criterium.

The previous day, in Loughrea, County Galway, a pair of excited fans declared "The world's greatest cyclist is racing right here in Loughrea!" And that accolade coming only three years after turning professional, having won four stges at the Tour de France a month before.

I had the privilege of photographing Mark Cavendish, known as the Manx Missile, in 2008 on the Tour of Ireland and again in 2015 on the Tour de France.

The cycling world will miss one of its all time greats.