Every year since 2014 I create and curate a yearly calendar of SIAR original photos to help us get through the year. Sometimes the calendar is all landscape images, other years it has been county Clare only or a mix of Clare and Cork - it's very holistic, as it really is a collection of my favourite images from the year before. We made a forced design choice this year to omit the locations of each photograph to maximise the space for each photo, so we wanted to share each month's location and a little on the story behind the shot here.
January - Loop Head Lighthouse, West Clare. Shot through the gate on a fine summer's day in county Clare. Unfortunately due to Covid-19 the lighthouse was closed to the public.
February - Burren-scape, near Black Head, county Clare. Detail shot of the textured limestone that makes the Burren a truly unique landscape.
March - Crookhaven Quay, West Cork. The view of Crookhaven fishing village from a quay built to serve a now abandoned quarry built into the hill above it.
April - Donkey, near Liscannor, county Clare. This guy posed perfectly when we pulled over the car during a Sunday spin back west.
May - Three Castle Head, West Cork. Quite simply a spectacular sight of castle ruins perched between sea-cliffs and a mountain lake - this photo does not do it justice! A hidden gem near Mizen head, accessible via a short hike through a sheep farm. More information at: https://www.threecastlehead.ie/the-castles/
June - Holy Island / Inis Cealtra, on Lough Derg, co Clare. Our first ever SIAR sa Spéir (SIAR in the Sky) aerial photography shot. It's on my bucket list to get the boat over to this lake island with a history that dates back to 520AD.
July - Brow Head, West Cork. The view from Marconi's now ruined Wireless Telegraph Station looking back over West Cork and the Atlantic.
August - Spanish Point Beach, county Clare. We were blessed with fine weather during our late Autumn lockdown in Ireland, a shot taken on a drive to take in the sea air.
September - Lone Ranger, West Clare. A lone cow in a field by Liscannor took interest in me as I took in the views near the Cliffs of Moher.
October - The Poulnabrone Dolmen, county Clare. One of the world's best known portal or dolmen tombs in the Burren, it dates back to megalithic times. More info at: https://www.burrengeopark.ie/discover-and-experience/geosites-discovery-points/poulnabrone/
November - Mullaghmore, the Burren, county Clare. The rocky landscape of the Burren, as you can see from this shot, not much grows around here! So the juxtaposition of the tree and Mullaghmore caught my eye.
December - The Cliffs of Moher, county Clare. The view one foggy, early morning of the Cliffs from the Goat's Trail end. A lone thistle provides colour on this Winter day.