Press photographers exhibition opens in Ballina

An exhibition of breathtaking images showcasing the stellar talents of Irish press photography was launched in Ballina.

The Press Photographers Ireland CLG annual exhibition is on display in Ballina Library until July 26.

The exhibition was officially opened by Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary on Thursday.

The exhibition features 110 images capturing life, both at home and abroad, during 2024 and showcasing the very best of Irish press photography. It also includes winning imagery from Mayo photographers, Conor McKeown, who picked up first prize in the Nature and the Environment category, and Michael McLaughlin, who won first prize in the Portrait category. Conor and Michael, who are both from Westport, are frequent contributors to the Western People and their success in winning awards in such a fiercely contested competition was a great endorsement of the work of regional press photographers.

Michael and Conor were present for the launch and were joined by the AIB Press Photographer of the Year 2025, James Crombie of Inpho Photography.

Minister Calleary lauded the talents of Conor and Michael. Michael won the Portrait category for his photograph, 'Forging Friendships'. He captured master blacksmith Ben Burke from Foxford with ‘Penny’ his partridge perched on his anvil.

Conor took first place in the Nature and Environment Category for 'Feeling Blue', which showed a swimmer braving the elements at The Point in Westport.

“Who else would stand on a cold January day in the bay in Westport under a snowy Croagh Patrick to take a picture. And then find someone else as mad as him - a swimmer," noted Minister Calleary. "The pride of his home place combines with his skill in this picture.

“Then you see the picture of Ben Burke, who is here tonight, captured by Michael. There are hundreds of stories in that one frame. I don’t think there is any other art form that can tell hundreds of stories within a millisecond."

The press photographers exhibition has been a part of the Ballina Festival programme for many years and the late Henry Wills worked tirelessly to promote the event, which was held in the local AIB branch for many years before moving to the library. Henry was a former president of Press Photographers Ireland CLG.

Minister Calleary paid tribute to the late Western People photographer.

“The exhibition was always the start of the festival and you could be assured that Henry would be running it with an iron fist. Two of his greatest loves were work, his skill and his art and his festival. Those loves came together for this showcase.

“I think we are so lucky to have this constantly with us in Ballina. I hope we never take it for granted. I hope for as long it comes here we will always remember Henry and everything he brought not just photography but to the town,” said Minister Calleary.

“As we move into festival week, the week that we celebrate the best of Ballina, we put on our best bib and we celebrate this town. We are proud of this town. There was no person more proud of Ballina, no person more proud of his art, of his Western People, of his family, than Henry Wills. As we celebrate festival week, let’s have the spirit of Henry, the ambition of Henry, and the pride of Henry in our town,” he added.

The Minister said he hopes the advent of smartphones and artificial intelligence (AI) do not see us lose our admiration for the incredible skills of our press photographers.

“In this mad, crazy AI world we need to ensure that real life photography continues and is defended,” he added.