Journal · Location Guide
Brittas Bay — where the light runs all the way to the sea
Co. Wicklow · Wide sand, pine dunes, Atlantic golden hour
The Location
Five kilometres of wild beach, one hour south of Dublin.
Brittas Bay is Wicklow at its most elemental — a long sweep of pale sand backed by pine-fringed dunes, the Irish Sea stretching west and the Wicklow Mountains rising behind you. It is the kind of beach that photographs itself. You simply have to show up at the right hour.
That hour is golden. In the two hours before sunset, the light on Brittas Bay runs horizontal and low, bouncing off the wet sand and the surface of the sea in a way that fills every frame from beneath. The dunes cast long shadows across the beach. The pines at the back glow amber. Couples and families who have never been photographed before relax immediately here — there is something about open water and open sky that makes people feel less watched, more themselves.
Below are three sessions from Brittas Bay: a maternity self-portrait at sunset, a love story between two people who came to the beach and forgot about the camera, and an engagement that ended with a proposal as the sky turned gold.
Brittas Bay · Co. Wicklow
Maternity & Love Stories
Year-Round · 1hr from Dublin
What makes Brittas Bay special for photography
Unlike many Irish beaches, Brittas Bay has real depth to it — the strand runs for five kilometres, which means you can walk far enough from the car parks to have the beach almost entirely to yourselves, especially on weekday evenings. The dunes on the northern end are tall enough to provide shelter and a textured backdrop of marram grass, wild flowers and twisted pine. The southern end opens up completely to the sea horizon.
The light here is coastal but softer than Bull Island — perhaps because the mountains behind filter the afternoon sun before it reaches the beach, giving a warmer, more golden tone even earlier in the evening. For maternity sessions in particular, Brittas Bay is extraordinary: the wide horizon gives a sense of scale and stillness that feels right for that particular chapter of life.
Getting there from Dublin takes about an hour via the N11 to Arklow, exiting at Jack White's Inn. I recommend arriving at least 90 minutes before sunset to walk the dunes first, then move to the open beach as the light turns. Parking is at the main beach car park off the R750, which is free outside peak summer months.
Planning a Brittas Bay session
Sessions at Brittas Bay typically run 90 minutes to two hours, starting in the dunes and moving to the open beach as the light builds toward sunset. I prefer to arrive at least an hour before golden hour so we have time to find the right stretch of beach and settle into the session before the light turns.
The beach is at its quietest from September through May — even summer weekends see the crowds thin out by early evening, which is exactly when the light is best. If you're visiting from Dublin or further afield, the drive down the N11 through Wicklow is part of the experience: the mountains open up and the sea appears at the end of a long valley and the whole thing feels like an arrival.
Brittas Bay works beautifully for maternity sessions, couples portraits, engagement shoots, and family sessions. If you're planning a session anywhere along the Wicklow coast, I'd love to hear about it.
