LIving in Dublin, Ireland, Fionán O'Connell produces quality alternative photography which accurately depicts life in his native city and Ireland generally in a rich, colorful style. Carrying a discrete camera with him at all times gives Fionán the creative, spontaneous edge, generating portfolios of distinctive photographs - in color and black & white. Eschewing the obvious, he travels the back lanes & side-streets of Dublin and thoroughfares of small towns in Ireland, finding quirky images at almost every turn.

From store windows displaying clothing, used books, flags to street signs, closed up shops and graffiti, the photos tell the story of the place. Zoning in on the often garish colors which make Ireland so visually distinctive, there's a humor which somehow breaks through many of the images, drawing the viewer in to look more closely.

Moving between cities, towns and villages, the beautiful landscapes of Ireland cannot be ignored. More usually shot in pristine, sunny conditions, O'Connell often records the mountains, rivers, lakes,  seas, beaches and horizons in their far more interesting, moody guises - overcast, rain, threatening skies all contribute to confirming the mystical reputation of Ireland.

O'Connell is drawn to including things which help to fix and image in time - cars and tractors with their time-pinning registration plates, gas stations with their prices emblazoned on signs high over the road and even the clothes the people who subtly populate his images wear all help to fix these places in time.

It's obvious that he has favourite counties - Dublin, Kerry, Wicklow, Waterford, Cork, Clare and Galway, but nearly every county in Ireland is represented in his work, if subtly. Sometimes it's the places which we drive through in our haste to get to the next attraction which yield the most compelling images.

It's no great surprise that O'Connell's work has graced countless books, CD covers & magazine editorials. All of the images you see in these  galleries are available for direct online purchase for one-off use and the photographer can be contacted via email for larger run print use - book, magazine & CD covers, website etc.