A group of 47 Norwegian photographers leaves Galway this morning carrying thousands of images collected during an intensive week working in the west. They include some of Norway's top press and professional photographers, as well as a number of committed amateurs who came here to work with Norwegian photographer Morten Krogvold.
Mr Krogvold, who has an international reputation for his portraits of politicians, artists, writers, composers and musicians, gave a series of master classes during the week in the Irish-language theatre, Taibhdhearc na Gaillimhe.
According to Anne-Lise Flavik, who shares a studio with Mr Krogvold in Oslo, this is the third successive year the group has come together for the classes. Last year they travelled to Tuscany and the year before they went to the Greek island of Symi.
"Ireland is considered a must for all photographers," she said. "There is a very special light here, a super soft light which makes photography here a very special and unique experience."
Some might consider the timing of the visit to be rather unfortunate; the photographers arrived in Galway the same day as the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. Not so, according to Aase Gundersen, a lawyer who is also a keen amateur photographer.
"In one sense you could think it would be the worst of times to come. But Morten Krogvold said that for us it was the best of times, because this is how we learn to approach people.
"If you are going to take photos of people at these times, you just have to approach them in the right way - to be polite and show respect for them. Otherwise you won't get in contact with them."
Ms Gundersen said some people were wary at first about the large number of foreign photographers roaming the city. They experienced no hostility, however, despite the circumstances of Princess Diana's death.
"The people I have been speaking to have been very friendly, very nice. They like being the centre of attention," she said. "Some asked `are you paparazzi?' We just said, `no, we're not'. And then we had a conversation."
The logistics of the operation were daunting: three container lorries of equipment, including four enlargers, dozens of lenses and cameras, and a large quantity of film and paper for printing.
The photographers exposed an average of 100 rolls of colour and 100 rolls of black-and-white film during each day of the visit. Some of them worked through the night to develop the film in a temporary darkroom they set up in the Galway Arts Centre.
Apart from the classes in photography, the group spent about nine hours a day searching for suitable subjects for their photographs. They were also exposed to a wealth of Irish poetry and music, including a tape of William Butler Yeats reading from his own work.
The musical fare included selections from Tideland, a collaboration between traditional singer Dolores Keane and Norwegian folk singer Rita Eriksen. The trilingual CD explores folk themes common to the two maritime nations. Already available in Norway, it is due to be released in Ireland next year.