Michael Porter

29/10/2026

29/10/2026

🌅 God's Own Masterpiece | Sunrise over Büyükada, Princes' Islands, Istanbul 🇹🇷

Anyone who knows me knows I'm not a morning person. In fact, the only time I normally see the sunrise is when I've made a series of questionable decisions the night before.

And that's pretty much how this photograph happened. 🍻

Thankfully, I'd been out for a few pints the night before, because otherwise there's not a chance in hell I'd have been awake to witness this.

And what a sight it was.

I've always believed that God gave us a beautiful world. Not just to live in, work in, worry about or spend our lives rushing through, but to occasionally sit back, be still and simply admire.

To remind ourselves that there's something far greater than us. That amongst all the noise, the chaos, the mistakes we make and the nonsense we put ourselves through, there's extraordinary beauty all around us.

And sometimes, we forget to look.

Standing there on Büyükada, watching the sun rise over the Sea of Marmara, I couldn't help but feel grateful. Grateful for life, for the places I've been, the people I've loved and the opportunity to witness something as magnificent as this.

I'm not particularly good at sitting still. I'm even worse at getting up early. But every now and again, life gives you a moment that makes you shut your mouth and appreciate what you've been given.

Which, considering I make a living talking sh*te, is something of a miracle in itself.

The most beautiful sunrise I've ever witnessed.

I think you'll agree, God did a pretty spectacular job with this one.

And all I had to do was stay out drinking long enough to see it.

Good morning, and God bless. ❤️

📍 Büyükada, Princes' Islands, Istanbul, Türkiye.

26/10/2026

Some highlights from another SOLD-OUT weekend at the Cellar! With host
We were delighted to have headline the club with

We're close to selling out tonight also tickets in the bio !

25/10/2026

🌈 A little splash of colour from Istanbul! 🇹🇷

I think this has to be one of the most colourful streets I've ever wandered down in my life.

Welcome to Balat, Istanbul. A neighbourhood where apparently nobody could agree on what colour to paint their house, so they just said, f**k it, we'll have them all. 😂

Pink, yellow, blue, green, red. It's like someone dropped a massive box of crayons down a hill and decided to build houses around them.

As someone who has a terrible habit of oversaturating his photographs, this place was an absolute dream. For once, I could point the camera at something ridiculously colourful and genuinely say, that's actually what it looks like!

I absolutely loved wandering around this part of Istanbul. Narrow streets, beautiful old buildings, little surprises around every corner and enough colour to give a Dulux salesman an er****on.

Sometimes you don't need dramatic mountains, sunsets or fancy photography tricks. Sometimes a beautiful little street is more than enough.

And Istanbul certainly knows how to deliver. ❤️

📍 Balat, Istanbul, Türkiye 🇹🇷



Hit like / follow for more

23/10/2026

LET THERE BE LIGHT ☀️

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day."

— Genesis 1:3–5

"And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day."

— Genesis 1:8

"And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good."

— Genesis 1:9–10

"And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also."

— Genesis 1:16

"And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good."

— Genesis 1:31

Good morning, and God bless. ☀️🙏

May your day be filled with light, peace and blessings.

📍 Princess Island

22/10/2026

Good morning! ☕🍂

Autumn from a different perspective. 📸

Did you know you can actually convert an old camera into an infrared camera?

It's a completely different way of looking at the world, and something I've really enjoyed experimenting with over the years.

Infrared photography captures light that the human eye can't see. Grass and foliage can turn almost white, and with a bit of editing, you can create some pretty surreal colours and atmospheric scenes.

I've taken the same photograph and edited it in three completely different styles to show you just how creative you can get with infrared photography. Same location, same photograph, three very different moods.

For one of them, I decided to go with a slightly spooky autumn theme. 🍁
It looks a bit like stranger things

This was taken at the Balerno entrance to the Pentland Hills, on one of those freezing, misty morning walks where the air is crisp, the forest is silent, and you're questioning every f**king decision that brought you there.

The person walking through the forest was added afterwards. I felt the scene needed a little something extra. Someone wandering off into the mist seemed appropriate. Possibly never to be seen again. 😂

There's something I really love about these cold autumn mornings, though. The colours, the atmosphere, the stillness of everything.

Of course, getting the photograph meant dragging myself out of bed and freezing my f**king balls off.

And trust me, at 43 years of age, getting out of bed is already a considerable achievement. Never mind voluntarily wandering into a freezing forest like some sort of unemployed Victorian ghost hunter.

But I think this one was worth it.

So you're welcome. I've suffered for my art. 😂

Anyway, I'm really enjoying getting back into photography, experimenting with different styles and seeing familiar places from a completely different perspective.

Sometimes all it takes is looking at something a little differently. 🍂

Swipe through all three edits and tell me which one you prefer — 1, 2 or 3?

21/10/2026

🏍️ Monte Verde, São Vicente, Cape Verde 🇨🇻

800 metres above sea level... on a Quad bike!? What could go wrong!?

I slept on the sofa for a week after this.... Still worth it. 😅🤣

21/10/2026

🍂 Seasons bring change. Apparently, so do midlife crises.

I've decided recently that things need to change. Or maybe I'm just having a midlife crisis. Who f**king knows? 😂

Either way, things could be better, and this autumn photograph got me thinking about change, growth, and finally just being myself.

So, new Instagram page. A bit more personal this time. Less trying to be what I think I'm supposed to be, and more just being the slightly damaged Irishman I've always been.

Expect more photography, more comedy, a bit of life, a bit of growth, and possibly some cooking videos. F**k it, I'm actually quite good at cooking. Might even become a life coach. Imagine taking life advice from me. 😂

Anyway, ADHD and brain damage. Where was I?

Oh aye. The photograph. 📸

This is an older shot from my collection. During lockdown, when there was absolutely f**k all else to do, I spent so much time editing photographs that I think I actually edited the enjoyment out of photography itself.

I pushed the colours, the contrast, the saturation, and probably my own sanity to their absolute limits.

Looking back, some of those photographs have been through more trauma than I have. And that's saying something.

But recently, I've started falling in love with photography again. Going back through old shots, stripping away some of the ridiculous edits, and remembering why I enjoyed taking them in the first place.

Some of these older photographs might still look a wee bit overprocessed, a wee bit too smooth, or a wee bit mental.

But it's Instagram, not the f**king National Geographic photography awards. Who cares?

I'm growing. I'm changing. I'm finally learning to be comfortable being myself. It's taken me long enough, but better late than never. Whether this is personal growth or a full-blown midlife crisis remains to be seen. 😂🍂

So here's to autumn, new beginnings, personal growth, and whatever the f**k comes next.

If you enjoy my photographs, give them a wee share, follow along, and see where this goes.

And good morning, by the way. ☕😂