A few images from a shoot earlier this week.
It’s not an easy life being a farmer, but if it’s in your blood it’s in your blood.
…And you can’t beat Kerry for dramatic mountains.
John Foley – Farmer, Glencar Co Kerry
Posted in Creative Portraits
Tagged canon 5d mark2, farmer, mola dish, personal work
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Paul Cooper – Howth Coast Guard
Image from last week’s shoot with Paul Cooper of Howth Coast Guard
Posted in Creative Portraits
Tagged canon 5d mark2, deep octa, elinchrom, howth coast guard, personal work
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Simon’s Global Cycle Race – for Epilepsy
When I heard about 24 year old Simon Hutchinson's plans to take part in a global cycle race I was impressed and wanted to help him, so I filmed a little promo for him.
The race started in London on the 18th February last and won't end until sometime in July. As of today, the 20th April 2012, Simon is currently cycling across the the Nullarbor plain in Australia.
It's been a tough old slog at times with sickness in India that required hospitalisation, and a road traffic accident in Perth, Australia.
BUT he's still going and is making good headway. He's totally on his own out there with no support other than the goodwill of people he meets. So go on send him a hug. I wish him well.
He's racing for, Brainwave, the Irish Epilepsy Association, so to make a well deserved donation please visit:-
http://www.simonsepiccycle.com/
Also check out the race at worldcycleracing
I also shot some stills which you can see below:
Posted in Motion
Tagged canon dslr, cinematography, film, filmaking, global cycle race, motion, promo
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Sports-Squash-Madeline Perry
Here ‘s an image of Madeline Perry, professional squash player.
Madeline, from Northern Ireland, boasts at least 13 national titles.
She also reached a career-high world ranking of World No 3 in April 2011…..and she’s still there.
There are many reason why squash should form part of any future Olympic programme so lets hope it’ll form a part of the 2020 Olympics.
Posted in Sports photography
Tagged athlete, madeline perry, sportraits, sports photography, sportsperson, squash player
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Crow Jane-Roller Derby-Sports
This is Rhona ‘Crow Jane’ Flynn. She’s a skater and head coach with Cork City Firebirds. They are a flat-track roller derby league in Cork, Ireland. They train 4-5 days a week, about half on-skate, half off-skate.
So yes they’re serious about the sport. In fact very serious. Crow Jane also skated on the Irish national team at the Roller Derby World Cup in Toronto in December 2011. Check out a recent story on them in the Irish Times about how they fared here.
Roller Derby is a full-contact team sport, played on quad roller skates, on an oval track. Since the birth of the modern sport ten years ago, there have been over a thousand teams formed worldwide. In Ireland, there are teams training in Cork, Dublin, Belfast, Limerick, and Greystones, with more forming around the country
A game is made up of bouts called jams, in which each team has an assigned jammer, a player who can score. The jammer scores points by lapping the opposing team around a track, so both teams try to assist their own jammer and block the opposing jammer.
The result is a competitive and very physical sport, with ice-hockey levels of bruising contact.
But as they say on their facebook page:
A little violence never hurt anybody.
Sports Photography-Ursula Jacob-Camogie
I recently photographed Ursula Jacob, who as captain of Wexford’s Senior Camogie team, helped retain their All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Title. Not bad for a day’s work, and her efforts were rightly recognised in the Irish Times Sportswomen Awards of 2011.
Images below:
Posted in Sports photography
Tagged athlete, camogie, personal work, sportsperson, ursula jacob, wexford camogie
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An extra 200lbs of fuel for the wife & kids
” We add an extra 200 lbs of fuel for the wife and kids”
Excuse me? Let’s rewind a bit.
I photographed Senior Aircrewman, Alan Gallagher, last week. He’s an operational winchman and a winch operator with CHC Search & Rescue. In other words he’s the man who fishes you out of a raging sea or a wind-blown mountainside.
The shoot took place at CHC Search and Rescue HQ, Dublin Airport. CHC operate the largest commercial helicopter company in the world, and have been providing Search and Rescue services on behalf of the Irish Coast Guard since 2001. The images below were taken as part of a bigger photographic project I am working on.
One of their biggest concerns on a sortie is fuel use and calculation. A huge proportion of their time planning a sortie is spent on fuel calculations, trying to consider all the angles such as wind speed and any unexpected situations that may occur, and quite often when they come up with a figure, they add a little bit (generally around 200 lbs)…..“just to make sure you get back to see them again”. 
…And you think your job is stressful….?
Posted in Creative Portraits
Tagged chc, coastguard, dublin airport, elinchrom, maxi lite reflector, personal, personal work, searchandrescue
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Dominic Munnelly – Personal Trainer
Want to get fit? Dominic’s your man!
Below are some images from a recent shoot with Dominic. He’s a busy man. An early shoot and I had less than 50 minutes to get the imagery and move locations and set up lights again.
Phew!
If you feel like getting fit Dominic’s website is here
Posted in Sports photography
Tagged athlete, canon 5d mark2, deep octa, personal trainer, personal work, sportsperson
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Alan Kinsella
An image from a recent shoot. This is my good friend Alan. He recently got the acting bug which is just as well because he’s great. Trust me I’ve seen him. I’ve been meaning to take his portrait for some time so it was great to finally do it.
There were two locations. One outside, and you can see those images here.
The other was shot in the studio. I love this image. One profoto zoom reflector with a grid and barn doors and a softbox for fill. I love creating drama with small pools of light.
I think I was having a bit of a Twilight/Moon/Breaking Dawn moment also
Can’t stress enough how important personal work is.
Sports Photography-Derek Burnett-Olympic Shooter
There would be no escape.
I was in a lonely field in Longford photographing a crack shot. If the images displeased him…well…..:)
He’s Derek Burnett, an Irish sports shooter who specialises in the trap. A veteran of three Olympic games, his best ever finish being in Athens 2004, when he came in 9th overall.
London 2012 now beckons. This is likely to be Derek’s last Olympics so definitely fingers crossed for him.
He’s got great sense of humour too. Oh how he laughed when I looked at him expectantly, and told him I was looking for a hill.
Hills in Longford! Ha!
Well we did find one eventually. A little lump of a hill with a lonely old tree. In fact the area we were standing on and surrounded by was made up of Fairy Forts . Perfect.
Great shoot but between watching as the wind knocked down a few of my lights (fairies?) and then cattle in the field licking my car (yes licking!), I was exhausted by the end of the shoot.
For photographers:
For this shoot I used a combination of elinchrom lights with 1100w ranger pack and lumedyne lights with 400w pack. Elinchrom lights were used with either the deep octa (with and without baffles) or the maxi light reflector. The lumedynes, when used, were used with their reflectors or gridded.
