Best man Michael was so relieved that his speech was over at his mate Colm’s wedding to bride Deirdre, that he decided to follow the couple up the iconic Blackrock Diving Tower at the Salthill Promenade in Galway, Ireland, and take the plunge, so to speak, himself.

“The couple wanted to go for a walk and enjoy the sunset,” explains photographer Paul Duane, who is known for his fun and candid wedding coverage.

“Colm and Deirdre take part in a lot of outdoor swimming competitions, and spend time diving from these boards during the year,” the photographer continues. “They even honeymooned in a triathlon training camp in Thailand.”

Duane says that as Deirdre and Colm got up to the top diving board here, Michael stripped off and produced an amazing dive. “He actually did it three times to give me three different perspectives.” 

As this is a busy diving spot, the swimmers and divers who were there stayed off the boards while the photographer got the shots he wanted.
“I stood back on the pathway leading to the rocks to make the most of the straight lines leading to the boards,” he says.

Duane won two awards for the image to date—a bronze award from the IPPVA (Irish professional photographers and videographers Association) and a Learning to Fly Irish Wedding Photography award for best wedding couple

(Photographed with a Sony A7 III, 85mm f/1.8 lens and natural light.)

Check out more Photos of the Day, and email submissions to rangefinder@emeraldexpo.com.