ABOUT
DONAL
If you want to take better photos or grow a photography business, I’m here to guide you.
As a child I was given my first camera for my 7th birthday and spent the summer snapping away. At 11 years old I was gifted a pinhole camera by my godmother and my poor mum had to be worked with when she realised that I turned our hot press into a makeshift dark-room. The chemicals peeled the paint off and destroyed most of the contents of the room.
I studied business and marketing at University in Edinburgh and in Sweden. While at university I used my grant to buy a digital camera and proceeded to take as many photos as I could, now I wasn’t restricted to having to buy film.
My career saw me working on marketing and PR for some of the world’s best known brands, and took me to London where I worked on the 28th floor of the Gherkin. I took a City & Guilds night class in photography for the year, having just acquired a Canon 350D and fell in love, snapping everything from a squirrel on the way to work to my semi-obliging friends.
I went on to work on a masters in Communication, Advertising and Public Relations while setting up my own multi-award winning agency. While I really enjoyed the work I yearned to follow my passion, photography.
An invitation came from a friend to shoot their wedding in Australia, and straight-away I thought, “GULP – I better not mess this up!”.
I spent months learning everything I could before Tom and Lorelie’s wedding. It was on that day standing in a vineyard, South of Melbourne, sun splitting the sky, getting to be creative and capture photos of a couple very much in love, that I decided I wanted to be a photographer!
Over the last 15 years I have been blessed to photograph weddings around the world, portraits, landscapes and commercial work, winning numerous awards in the process.
I launched a training company to teach other photographers how to market their business back in 2014. It was awarded the best training company in the field and saw me teach thousands of photographers online.
During the pandemic my business shut down, like many others, and while I was full time looking after my daughter I wanted to do something to occupy my mind. I spent the time getting a MSc in Professional Software Development from University of Ulster and then was asked to help my brother with a covid testing company he was starting. I worked with him as the Marketing Director for the last two and half years and the company became the largest private testing company in Ireland.
I have also been involved in training other photographers, in-person through workshops, at international conferences, through my writing in photography magazines and online. Over the last few years many students have urged me to turn the beginners course that I have been teaching for the last ten years into an online course so more people could benefit and that was a key motivator in developing the Photography Masterclass course and this website.
I have been named as one of the top wedding photographers in the UK by Photo Professional Magazine and have been published by some of the industry’s top publications including Brides, Getting Married In Northern Ireland, Wedding Journal and many more.
You may have always loved photography, or you’ve just picked up a camera for the first time, perhaps you have a business and want to showcase your products. Whatever the reason you have landed here… Welcome!
I look forward to helping you unlock your creativity and gain skills to create photographs you’ll love!
I live in Derry with my daughter, Sophie, step-daughter, Jenny and our Yorkshire Terrier, Milo!
WHAT I DO
I am here to help you to get images you’ll love. Through my experience I have created a step-by-step system which can enable you to make a quantum leap forward with your photography. Through my online course which is launching soon you’ll not only learn the skills you need, but you will join a friendly community of other photographers.