Here are some photos I took this year. 2020 wasn’t a year for travel, so most of these shots were taken in or near the 5km zone around the house. Inevitably, I kept on returning to the same subjects: Ballycotton and Garryvoe in County Cork. This reduced range forced me to consider new ways of looking at the same things. It was also the year I got a 400 mm lens, giving me much more visibility of objects in the far distance.
Wishing you all a better year ahead. Stay safe.
In this sometimes stressful year, I often let my eyes do the talking for me. Here are some of my favourite photos from 2014. I hope you like them. Click on any of them to get a better view.
January of 2014 was incredibly stormy, with high winds lashing the coast at least once a week. One compensation was the wonderful cloudscapes such as this one above, taken in Garryvoe, Co. Cork.
2014 was the Chinese New Year of the Horse. On my first ever trip to China in February I came across this wonderful display in the city of Shanghai.
The annual 19km Ballycotton Cliff Walk is one of my favourite hikes, as it marks the approach of spring and the end of winter. This photo was taken on March 16th.
The wonderful gardens of Garnish Island in West Cork are full of surprises. This photo, from April, was perhaps early in the year for full bloom, but the flowers of spring always have a special place in my heart.
John F. Kennedy Park in Co. Wexford holds plenty of surprises too. During our visit in April I came across this wonderful display as a rhododendron bush shed its flowers.
A quick walk up the hill gives me a wonderful view over south Munster, from the Celtic Sea all the way to the Knockmealdowns, the Comeraghs and even the Galtees in the far distance.
By July, we had finally accepted that this was going to be one of the great summers. That’s worth jumping around for.
Bumblebees were everywhere this year. They go about their business with no real interest in us – focused on one thing only: nectar. When they have too much, they fall asleep, putting up a leg if you come too close. Mad about them, I am.
Well, the Internet is all about cat photos, right? Right?
With the nights lengthening in October, I caught this morning sunrise in Glounthane, Co. Cork.
I took this during a day trip to Dublin in October. It captures many of its iconic structures quite well, I think.
I won’t forget the 26th of November too quickly. I had taken a few days off work and I rose early to discover a fog-shrouded landscape. What followed were some of my favourite photographs of the year. This one was taken from Belvelly Bridge near Fota Island.
After Cobh, I drove to Midleton, where I came across this scene. My parents had a painting at home that reminds me of this photo.
Then on to Castlemartyr Resort, where I took this photo as the sun was rising. Sometimes, you are just in the right place at the right time.
After buying a macro lens for my iPhone in late November, I came across this little fellow climbing around a dandelion clock.
This photo is from the 16th of December, taken during my morning commute. Though the sun had not yet risen, I just had to stop my car and start snapping.
I took this photo on Garryvoe beach just yesterday. It’s like the boys are running from a nuclear explosion.
Taken just this morning, this photo again saw me leaping out of my car. The sun was perfectly positioned over Ballycotton Island. Just glorious.
If any of you are interested, I post regularly to Instagram, and less often to Flickr. Maybe I’ll see you there.
One of the real attractions of Ireland (if we get the weather for it), is our long summers. The sun rises at 5 am and sets at 9 pm with darkness taking its time to arrive, if it does so at all. Our latitude is so high we don’t actually have a proper night for 2 months.
This year has been wonderful. The summer evenings have thrown up a variety of coloured skies and cloudscapes. I took a few photos close to home that give a sense of it all.
Flock of crows by Ballymacoda beach
Haystacks
Sign from the skies
Giant Haystacks
Eerie happenings in Shanagarry
Ballywilling Beach, close to Garryvoe but far more isolated and deserted, is a marvellous place to go for walks, relaxation and photographs, particularly as sunset approaches. Here are some of the photos I have taken there over the past few weeks. I really like how many of these shots came out. I first shared a few of them on Instagram, but I’ve gone back and re-edited them from the originals to see what I can do with different software.
Last month, just before the sun rose in the east, I parked my car beside Loughaderra Lake, taking a moment to exit from the busy line of commuters rushing towards the city. An engaging mist was rising slowly off the water and swans lazily paddled through the ripples. It was a gentleness quite in contrast to the busy N25 road alongside it that streaks its way through East Cork.
I took a short walk down to Garryvoe beach today. It was a calm, cold October day with plenty of sunlight bouncing off the sea and the shoreline.
The red and white stones, sandstone and limestone, make Garryvoe a favourite of Cork daytrippers.
We had to walk quickly as the approaching clouds heralded a big change in the weather. As I am posting this entry it is raining furiously outside.
On Sunday I participated in an annual charity walk from Ballycotton to Ballinrostig in Co. Cork. It’s a pretty special occasion because it is the only time in the year that walkers are permitted by the local land-owners to hike the route. As the video below will testify, the scenery is quite stunning. It’s not the easiest of walks – you have to negotiate quite a few barbed-wire fences – but the end is definitely worth the effort. The weather on Sunday was unseasonably good, which helped greatly.
So here is the video. Enjoy!
Passive Impressions 
