Author: Paddy
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Humbled by their Sacrifice
On a recent trip to continental Europe, I made the point of visiting the American War Cemetery in Luxembourg. The cemetery and memorial, based just outside Luxembourg City, is where over 5,000 serving Americans have been laid to rest following the second World War. It’s all too easy to not really appreciate the loss of…
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Martin Ffrench & The Low Brain PS13
I was asked late last week to fill in for someone who was meant to document Martin’s exploits at Punchestown, and seeing as it has been over a year since I last covered a full drift event, I could hardly say no. What was meant to be a relaxing day off instead started with a…
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The Hemizon
There’s not really a whole lot more than can be said about the Hemizon, that hasn’t been said already. It doesn’t really make any sense as a build, but that’s sort of the point. When was the last time you done something just because you could? Further to that, when was the last time you…
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A Trip Through Wales
Sometimes the stress of everyday life can take its toll. We all have our ways of relaxing and letting off steam but my personal favourite is a spirited drive across a familiar piece of tarmac. Earlier this year I was introduced to the A4069 in Wales whilst on assignment for Speedhunters. Although I was working…
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The Nordschleife Collection in Print
This is something I’ve been trying to put together for quite some time, but can finally share with you that I’ve just released my first collection in print. Thanks to the good folk at Photobox, I’ve just launched an online gallery where you can purchase prints from as little as £19.99. Choosing images to publish…
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A Classic – The Players Golf MKI
Since the article has just been published on Speedhunters, I can finally share the results of this shoot which took place last month outside London. Rather than try to repeat Ben’s words from the article, I thought some of you might be more interested to read about the photography side of things. With the extended…
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The CleanCar Experience
Anyone who knows me, will probably have noticed that I’m a just a tiny bit obsessive about keeping my car clean. With the poor weather (and even worse roads) we are blessed with in Ireland, trying to maintain a daily driven car to a high standard is an uphill battle to say the least. That’s…
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Fire Up the Quattros
The recent Ultimate Dubs show, held at the Telford International Centre, was your typical UK VAG show. That is, a gathering of the cream of the UK VW & Audi scene under one roof. Although there were plenty of cars present which caught my attention, it was these three Audis that stole my heart. An…
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Kremer Porsche 962C-K6/03
It’s not often that someone throws open the doors to their collection and tells you to pick whatever you want, but this was exactly the situation I found myself in earlier this year. I shot an overview of the facilities at Mondello Park last year, including an overview of their racing collection which included this…
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My Life with the Sony NEX-5
I’m sure a lot of other photographers will relate to this, but the last thing you want to do when you’re on holiday or ‘off the clock’ is to lug your DSLR around with you. At the same time, being a photographer is something you can’t switch off so it’s always best to have a…
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Photos of the Year 2012
It’s actually quite difficult to write a review of a year whilst trying to avoid every cliché available. I guess it is always good to take the time to look back and appreciate things and learn from mistakes. Speaking personally, 2012 was a bit of a hit and miss year. Although there were certainly some…
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Toyota GT86
Early last month I picked up Toyota Ireland’s GT86 for a week of ownership. The two litre naturally aspirated FR coupe has been gathering a lot of attention since its release earlier this year, along with being lauded by the motoring press. I was lucky enough to shoot the GT86 earlier this year for CAR…
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The Goodwood Revival
Every September, something amazing happens in the south of England. About an hour outside of London, a place called Goodwood – famed for its annual Festival of Speed – is transported back in time, for what is probably the greatest automotive show on earth. Even describing the Revival as a “show” is an injustice. It’s…
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The Nordschleife
Is there a more important place on earth for petrol-heads? I’ve been to the ‘ring several times, but on each visit I’m always humbled. I don’t know whether it’s the size of the place, the location, the history or a combination of them all but it’s not a place you’ll forget in a hurry. I’ve…
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Erik Jonasson’s Datsun S30
When life deals you lemons, you make lemonade. Or so they say. One of the toughest aspects of being a photographer is often having to shoot in less than ideal circumstances. I arrived in Sweden back in June to find that my 5D MKII had died in transit. Of course I was well armed with…
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A GT86, AE86 & The Drift King – A Shoot for CAR
We all have dreams and goals in our lives. Some are big, some are small but with enough work and dedication everyone of them is achievable. You just need to want it bad enough. Throughout my photography career, I have and continue to work towards two goals. 1) Shoot a full season of Formula One…
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Gatebil Mantorp Park
Following some recent health issues, I’ve been out of action for the last few weeks. On the plus side, I’ve a couple of interesting shoots and stories to share with you. After the Bavaria City Racing Dublin event, I took to the skies once more. Destination? Sweden for the annual Gatebil show at Mantorp Park,…
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McLaren in Dublin
If you only ever do one thing in your automotive life – make sure you experience the sight and sounds of a contemporary Formula One car. Nothing can prepare you for the feeling that hits you when that 2.4 litre V8 revs to 18,000RPM for the first time. Despite comical organization and an almost impossible…
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Nissan 180SX RPS13
The Irish modified car scene is a strange one. On one hand, you have lots of people who only follow the pack, scared to move outside of their comfort zones. On the other hand, you have people like Keith Wheldon who prefers to go his own way. You can check out the full and in-depth…
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Prodrift Punchestown
I owe a lot to Prodrift. What started as a small series quickly expanded into one of the most respected and innovative drift series’ on the planet. Although the recession has hit Ireland hard, the quality of driving at Prodrift events has show no sign of dropping off. From the amateurs to the pros, the…
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Nürburgring 24HR ’12 – Part Three / The Race
I’m sure I’ve certainly said this before, my year revolves around the Nürburgring 24HR. It’s the centre of my world, an event that I dream of during the winter, look forward to in the spring and reminisce about during the summer and autumn when it’s over. It’s an event that has everything, and I mean everything…
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Nürburgring 24HR ’12 – Part Two
Apologies for the slow updates, but as silly season is well and truly underway at the moment one must concentrate on priorities. I’m not forgetting about here though and have quite a backlog of work to share over the coming weeks, not least the rest of the N24 event. This particular post highlights some of…
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Nürburgring 24HR ’12 – Part One
I’m quite a lucky person. I’m working in my dream job, traveling the world and photographing fast cars. I honestly couldn’t ask for more. Even the variety of events that I attend is often breathtaking, there’s never a dull moment. When you have it so good and yet one event still stands out above all…
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Berg Cup Eschdorf
I’ve always admired the Berg Cup from afar, having been introduced to it at an Autosport show some years back and more recently when visiting KW’s factory in Fichtenberg, Germany. One of the unfortunate things about the series, is the lack of coverage outside of mainland Europe. With such a vast variety of cultures and languages crammed…
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The Lady in Red
Earlier this month, I met with a local Ford connoisseur to feature his car for a Speedhunters story. Whilst you can read the details over on SH, I thought I’d just share a couple of images here too.
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Project 4848 – Part Two
I’ve just landed in the door from a truly epic weekend in Luxembourg, where I was covering the first round of the Berg Cup for Speedhunters. Shortly before I left, I put the final touches to my own car and grabbed a couple of quick snaps to share with you. Since part one, I’ve made…
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Circuit of Ireland
Last weekend gone saw Northern Ireland play host to the annual Circuit of Ireland rally which was also the third round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. After years and years of listening to relatives talk about the Circuit of old, I was looking forward to the challenge of my first rally in nearly a year.…
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Irish Escort Club Clare Run
I recently headed out west to cover the Irish Escort Club’s annual Clare Run, which tours some of the most scenic parts of this country. I was shooting and writing for both Speedhunters and Classic Ford Magazine so it was quite a busy day but an immensely enjoyable one none the less. Be sure to…
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Masters of Dirt
With the start of my 2012 season rapidly approaching, I needed to get to an event to setup two new cameras and blow some cobwebs off my own skills. The Monster Energy Masters of Dirt show, which took place in City West this weekend gone, proved to be the perfect event for this task. Subjects…
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D-Mac’s Carina of Doom
I made a quick visit to Formula D competitor Darren McNamara last week to check in and see what he has been up to over the winter months. Darren is a huge Toyota fan so it comes as no surprise that he always has a couple of interesting projects on the go. His Carina project…