PHOTOGRAPHER AND FILMMAKER Donal Moloney has shared an image with TheJournal.ie audience every week which reflects a small piece of Ireland that resonates with us all. 

Looking back the year that’s ending, Donal writes:

2018 saw Stephen Hawking, Aretha Franklin, Burt Reynolds, Anthony Bourdain, Dolores O’Riordan, and Stan Lee leave for higher ground. The planet’s humanitarian crisis got worse and Trump still has me checking the news headlines first thing every morning to make sure he hasn’t pressed any crazy buttons. We enjoyed a very entertaining World Cup. Our own soccer team are gone to the dogs but the rugby team to the races.

I celebrated my birthday last week. I can’t say I enjoy getting older and no amount of motivational phrases or cheesy cliches will turn back the clock. It seems the more middle-aged I get, the more invisible I become. Time was when people would look me in the eyes, now it’s my feet.

However, it’s not all bad news. I’m feeling more creative and excited about future projects now than at any other time in my life. I’ve just completed a hard hitting short documentary. I’m also a year into a feature documentary that excites me greatly. Many will remember two heterosexual guys who got married a year ago to avoid an inheritance tax bill. They’ve put their faith in me to tell their story. There’s so much more to these two guys that’s intriguing.

Photographically, it was exciting. In March I discovered an abandoned listening tower from WW2 on the outskirts of Berlin.

In June I attended the magnificent ‘Calcio Storico’ in Florence and crossed off another dream event from my bucket list.

August took me to a 30,000 strong tomato fight (‘La Tomatina’) in Spain and in between I attended numerous events around Ireland in search of interesting characters. Ireland rarely fails to deliver.

Doubtless the gyms will be seasonally busy now after all the festivities and many will have the summer physique in sight but don’t forget to keep those eyes match fit and camera always at the ready. I sincerely hope you all have a healthy New Year.

Donal Moloney  is an award-winning photographer and videographer. See his work at DonalMoloney.com and on Facebook

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