A return to the Lough Corrib sunset for long exposure photography

After the spectacular pre-sunset light scattered by the clouds in the skies over Galway Bay that I captured from Salthill Promenade yesterday, this evening was always looking to be a winner when it came to sunset – have a look here.

It was cold and free of clouds all day, by evening cars still had a discernible layer of frost over their windscreens and anyone working outdoors would have known that winter was making its presence felt.

Mayo and Galway - my favourite part of the west of Ireland, is it yours?

I have written recently about leading photo tours in the west of Ireland and it being one of my favourite places on the island of Ireland. By the west of Ireland in this case I mean Galway and Mayo as distinct from the southwest which is Cork and Kerry or the northwest which comprises Donegal and Sligo.

Galway is Ireland's second largest county after Cork and Co. Mayo isn't small either. Driving across both of these counties you really do get a feel for their large size. The differing landscapes between Ballinasloe in the east of Co. Galway and Clifden, capital of Connemara in the west are obvious to the traveller.

A Panorama of the Mourne Mountains at Sunset

A panorama is defined as an unbroken view of the whole region surrounding the observer. It is also a term used to refer to an image with a wide aspect ratio, in other words, an image with a ratio of more than 2:1 - twice as wide as it is high.

A spherical panorama is also known as a 360-degree panorama and an example can be seen here of a 360-degree panorama of Trinity College's Long Room Library in Dublin.

I often create panoramas and find the wider aspect very pleasing and it also solves some problems when subject matter is too wide for even a wide lens to comfortably take in.

On this evening I was headed to 'Where the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea'.

Take a Photography Experience in Galway

Panoramic Ireland are now taking bookings for our residential photography courses situated in Galway in the west of Ireland.

Book now for €1550 for our popular four-day workshop, half-board in a lakeside house with a maximum of three participants.

Itineraries will change depending on the weather, but every day here in the west of Ireland brings at least one great photo opportunity, and what an experience it is to spend a few days in the region, to really get to know it, and to improve your photography.

Day courses are available for €330 and longer courses can be tailored specifically for you.

Photo Tours in Dublin and Ireland

It's fun and exciting to lead photography tours in Dublin, meeting everyone from professional photographers to those who just enjoy taking photos.

Everyone has the ability to create a good image, and that is the basis of our photo experience in Dublin or your chosen county in Ireland.

A good place to visit on a Photo Tour, Workshop or Photo Walk. Make that an essential place to visit on a photo tour of Dublin.

Getting close to the action is sometimes necessary to get a better perspective when photographing, in any circumstances whether it be landscapes or street photos. In this case it involved getting wet feet, and a wet filter on the front of my lens.

Dublin Photo Tours at the Coast

Leading photo tours around Dublin is interesting and often challenging, there are no two days the same. Despite visiting the same locations over and over again, it's hard to become tired of it. 

Connemara or Conamara

The western part of County Galway, situated west of Lough Corrib, is known as Connemara.

It's a land of bog, mountains, sea and sky. This image is taken from a single track bog road on the way to the edge of Ireland, the edge of Europe on the Atlantic Coast.

As I made my way across the bog towards the small lake pictured in this image, I was shadowed by the vertical flight of the skylark hovering in the clouds above me, warbling its distinctive call.

On a recent evening spent photographing in 'the West', that's the west of Ireland, Connemara to be exact, after sunset I was looking for something extra to capture. A small babbling brook, or something other than the scenic landscapes that had made up the bulk of my subject matter hither to.

I happened upon a small harbour on the edge of a lake, with a boat moored and some great reflections but I thought this location would be best photographed in the morning and it was now 22:00 in late June, bright but with no direct sunlight.