This story / page is available in:
German
Ireland Photo of the Week: Every Tuesday, our friend Kevin Balanda is sharing a special photo from Ireland and telling its story here on Irlandnews. Kevin worked in Dublin for many years and now lives in West Cork. He enjoys taking his camera with him wherever he goes. This week we look at sunsets in West Cork.
Why these sunsets in West Cork at the edge of Europe?
This photo was taken on a Winter’s evening looking over Bantry Bay out to the Atlantic Ocean. The Bay is framed by Sheep‘s Head Peninsula on the left and Beara Peninsula on the right.
The conditions were perfect. During Winter the sun falls directly between the two peninsulas. On this evening the water was still; providing surfaces that reflected the sky’s vibrant colors. The broken clouds in the sky dispersed the light and bounced it onto the shimmering water Later in the evening, halos form around the rugged mountains which eventually became silhoettes under a deeply coloured sky.
West Cork in Ireland is blessed with a vast number of spectacular peninsulas, bays and smaller coves. North of Beara Peninsula are Iveragh and Dingle Peninsulas; to the south of Sheep’s Head Peninsula is Mizen Peninsula. Because of their location in the south-west of the island, the sun seems to move along the coastline. Facing the wild Atlantic Ocean; weather conditions are constantly changing and guarantee that no two sunsets are ever the same. From an aesthetic perspective, then, it seems that the West Cork coastline replicates many of the conditions needed for such uniquely beautiful and magical sunset experiences.
For the meteorologically minded, moisture and fine dust particles in the lower atmosphere produce these violet displays.
Photographic specifications: This photo was taken on an early Winter’s evening with the lens set at a 24mm focal length. Camera settings were ISO 400, f/2.8/ 1/90 s. It was edited in Lightroom.
© Kevin Balanda 2025
This story / page is available in:
German
Leave A Comment