Northern Lights Over North Cork

You don’t expect to stand in a field north of Blarney and watch the northern lights, but here we are. Last night the aurora put on a show visible well into southern Ireland. Bands of pink and magenta hung across the sky, bleeding into that unmistakable green glow along the horizon. To the naked eye nothing could be seen, but the camera pulled out colours that made the whole scene look otherworldly.

A passing car lit up the bare trees on the ridge at just the right moment, backlighting them with a warm glow that played off the green aurora behind. It was one of those happy accidents you couldn’t plan if you tried. Even the electricity poles added something, a reminder that this was a country road in Cork, not the Arctic Circle. These events have become more frequent as we near solar maximum, so keep an eye on the Kp index and have a dark-sky spot in mind, because the next one might be even better.


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#2026 #astrophotography #aurora #auroraBorealis #Blarney #Cork #geomagneticStorm #Ireland #nightSky #northernLights #Photo #Photography #ruralIreland #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7RV #stars

Masked Normality: Life in Cork One Year After COVID-19

A year after COVID-19 hit Irish shores and people were still being extra careful, even wearing masks outside where there was little risk of infection.

Better to be safe than sorry.

Here we are in 2026, and people are still denying that COVID-19 was a problem, while there’s a screenshot going around of a tweet by an “MD” who predicted that everyone who got the vaccine would be dead by the end of 2025. We’re still around. LOL.


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#2021 #Cork #CorkIreland #covid19 #documentaryPhotography #faceMasks #Ireland #lockdownIreland #March2021 #pandemicPhotography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #socialDistancing #SonyA7III #StreetPhotography #urbanLife

Future Stars at Cyprus Avenue

The students of Cork Academy of Music took over the stage in Cyprus Avenue last week for a fabulous Christmas concert. For most of them, it was their first time on stage and it was electrifying. The crowd went wild supporting their friends and family and everyone was dancing and having a great time!


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#2025 #concertPhotography #Cork #CorkAcademyOfMusic #CyprusAvenue #gallery #Ireland #liveMusic #performance #Photo #Photography #rock #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7RV #stageLighting #youth

The Global Warning Guy

If you wander down St. Patrick Street in Cork on a Saturday you’re sure to bump into this gentleman who is there in front of Murray’s with his global warning sign. He’s been there most Saturdays since at least 2016.

It turns out he has nothing to do with global warming, the very real danger all of humanity faces. He’s part of an evangelical Christian movement warning about the end times and judgment coming to the Earth.

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#2025 #apocalypticBeliefs #cityEvangelism #Cork #endTimes #evangelicalChristianity #GeorgianArchitecture #Ireland #Photo #Photography #propheticMessage #religiousActivism #religiousLeaflets #religiousWarning #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7RV #streetEvangelism #StreetPhotography #streetPreaching #streetWitnessing #urbanMinistry

Cork City Walks Past Fashion Giants

Advertising goes unnoticed as people hurry past on Opera Lane, Cork.

Did you know the rugby shirt, with its bold stripes, was first popularised in the 19th century?

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#2025 #Candid #cityscape #Cork #fashionAdvertising #Ireland #OperaLane #pedestrian #Photo #Photography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7RV #storefront #StreetPhotography #TommyHilfiger #urbanLife

Urban Geometry in Valencia

An interesting building that caught my attention on the C. del Mar in Valencia. Just around the corner from the Placa de la Reina.

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#2023 #Architecture #balconies #brickBuildings #cityscape #courtyard #modernHousing #Photo #Photography #residentialComplex #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7III #Spain #StreetPhotography #urbanDesign #Valencia

A Golden Moment

The wide pavement of McCurtain Street is where I spotted a young woman putting the lead on her patient Golden Retriever. He sat there patiently as she fixed the lead in place and continued on their way down the street.

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#2023 #BlackAndWhite #Cork #dog #hoodie #Ireland #McCurtainStreet #pavement #pet #Photo #Photography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7III #StreetPhotography #Urban #woman

A Four-Legged Historian

Bishop Lucey Park in Cork is surrounded by hoarding with text describing the history of the area. But you don’t want to read about that, do you? That cute little doggy is all any of us wants to see. 🙂

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#2024 #archaeology #BishopLucey #Cork #dog #history #informationPanel #Ireland #medieval #Photo #Photography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7RV #StreetPhotography #streetScene #urbanExploration

Polka Dots in Málaga

A woman photographing a colourful mural turned out to be the perfect subject for a street photo.

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#2023 #a8ctravel #Malaga #Photo #Photography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7III #Spain #StreetPhotography

Luminescence in Azure

When you walk into the Oceanogràfic de València in (guess where) Valencia, you’ll spot large glowing tanks of water. They’re underground, presumably to help keep them cool in the hot Spanish climate and unfortunately, most people just walked straight past them.

Now, I’m not a huge fan of jellyfish, but they’re a beautiful animal to watch from a safe, non-touching, distance. So, of course, I took a bunch of photos of them. 🙂

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#2023 #jellyfish #LOceanogràficValencia #Photo #Photography #SamyangAF24mmF28FE #SonyA7III #Spain #Valencia