Learning to Fly – Inishowen // Donegal // Ireland

Speaking at the LTF retreat // Donegal // 2018

After the trip to Ireland I thought I should write something down quickly. I was motivated and enthused, ready to be a better photographer. 5 months on and I’m only just getting around to it.  But the truth is, the motivation is still there, and this trip will stay with me for a long time. Photography is one of those things where you can easily get wrapped up in the technical stuff and forget what it is we’re supposed to be doing. As professional photographers,  we sometimes need to slow down, breathe and focus not on what we do, but why we do it.

Last October I travelled to Inishowen at the very north of Ireland for a photographers retreat called ‘Learning to Fly’. I didn’t learn to fly, but I spent time with other photographers, talking, shooting and having some good old craic. We told stories, sang, made new friends, did some yoga, jumped in the sea and ate scones. All the while thinking about life and work, what we do and why it’s important. In the days of amazing cameras, easy to use software and two card slots, it’s easy to forget the value and impact a photograph of a person can have. Photographs are not only a record of a person’s existence, but a little window into the personality and character of someone’s father, mother, child, friend or lover. Something that will be cherished for many years and even many generations. This is something that really hit home with me on this trip and it was a real pleasure to meet so many others and hear their stories.

I went to Donegal to talk about my photography and hopefully enthuse others about being creative. I came away with my mind more focused on how I want to take my photography forwards and inspired to do better. This retreat is the brain child of my friend and fellow photographer Jay Doherty, who has really created something special here which is a result of his own passion for photographing people.

This year’s Learning to Fly retreat is in October. There’s a great line up of speakers and there are still a few tickets left. I would highly recommend this to anyone who owns a camera. You can check out the info here. https://www.learningtofly.ie/ and a wee video here:

And here are a few images from the trip, some from my demo, some from the shoots we did at dawn and dusk, and a few more in between.