Journal · Location Guide
Bull Island — Dublin Bay at its most cinematic
Dublin Bay · Sea light, sand dunes, open sky
The Location
A coastal nature reserve, minutes from the city.
Bull Island sits in Dublin Bay, a narrow barrier island reached by a wooden causeway from Clontarf. It is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve — home to salt marshes, sand dunes, migratory birds, and some of the finest coastal light in Ireland. And it is twenty minutes from the city centre.
What makes Bull Island remarkable for photography is the openness of it. The sky takes up half of every frame. The light bounces off the water and the sand in a way that is naturally flattering — diffused but directional, soft but full of depth. On overcast days the bay becomes a silver mirror. On clear evenings the whole island turns amber and the city disappears behind the glow.
I have photographed love story sessions, maternity shoots and portrait sessions here in all seasons. The island never gives the same photograph twice, and it suits couples and families who want something coastal and real rather than a studio or a manicured garden setting.
Bull Island · Dublin Bay
Maternity & Love Stories
Coastal · Year-Round
What makes Bull Island work for portraits
Coastal light is different from woodland light. It's broader, more expansive — there are no trees filtering it, no canopy creating pools of shade. This makes Bull Island particularly good for maternity portraits where you want the bump, the couple, and the sky all in the same frame. The sand dunes on the north side of the island also act as natural windbreaks, giving shelter and a backdrop of golden marram grass that photographs beautifully in long light.
The wooden boardwalk at the causeway entrance is one of my favourite starting points. As the light builds through the late afternoon, we move further out along the island toward the sandflats, where the low tide exposes mirror-flat pools that reflect the sky and double the frame. It sounds like a cliché but it genuinely never gets old — every session at Bull Island produces frames I couldn't have planned.
The island is accessible year-round and free to enter. Summer brings long evenings and the possibility of golden hour extending well past 9pm. Winter sessions have their own particular drama — low light, long shadows, the city twinkling across the bay. There is no bad time to shoot here, only different versions of beautiful.
Planning a Bull Island session
Bull Island is reached via the Causeway Road from Clontarf, on Dublin's northside. There is a car park at the entrance near the golf club, and the island is a short walk from there. The wooden boardwalk section at the entrance is a reliable first location — sheltered, with interesting textures from the weathered timber and the marram grass on either side.
Sessions typically run 90 minutes, starting in the dunes and moving toward the bay as the light builds. For evening sessions I recommend arriving an hour before sunset — the light on Bull Island changes very quickly as the sun drops toward the horizon, and some of the best frames happen in the final twenty minutes. I like to end sessions at the waterline with whatever the sky offers.
Bull Island works in all weathers. A clear summer evening is exceptional, but overcast days produce an even, neutral light that is particularly flattering for maternity portraits. Wind is common — which actually adds energy and movement to photographs rather than detracting from them. If you live in Dublin or are visiting the city and want a portrait session that feels genuinely Irish rather than generic, this is the location I recommend most often.
