Links or parkland?

On a golf discussion forum, the question was asked whether golfers visiting Ireland should only play links courses.

Brought up in St Andrews, I love links golf, but it's also great to mix it up on a tour - to say, Ireland - with in-land courses because it provides a contrast, especially if the weather isn't great. I recently went to Northern Ireland and played Royal County Down and Royal Portrush, which were just brilliant. Two of my favourite courses in fact. But I was pleasantly surprised to discover Malone Golf Club which is a cracking parkland layout that is fun and challenging.

The shelter provided by the trees was a welcome change to the unforgiving exposure that often accompanies links golf. Don't get me wrong; I much prefer the style of play demanded by the sandy soils and salt-laiden winds that define links golf, but a parkland course can offer up something different which can be a welcomed change.

By unimaginable co-incidence, you can see images of all three courses on my website.

Views of a hole

Here's my thoughts on how to compose an image of a golf course. I voiced these ideas on a great website - www.golfclubatlas.com

Great to know what you think.

As a golf course photographer, I like to take both tee-to-green and green-to-tee shots because they offer an entirely different view and, as such, serve a different purpose.
The green-to-tee shot is appealing because you have the flag and the undulations of the green in the foreground. You can also feature the bunkering and the run-off areas. The fairway is secondary but very much part of the image.
Tee-to-green shots (or landing-area-to-green shots) provide a different perspective. I like to take my photographs from the player's perspective so they can imagine the club selection they would have to make or which bank or ridge to use to get the ball close. As a result, tee-to-green shots provide that realism.
To add another fly to the ointment, I don't restrict myself to these two variants. I often shoot a hole from a number of different angles, possibly high on a hill using a long lens or to the side of the green showing off the slopes. One angle doesn't do it all. For me, it's about providing my clients with choice.