The Huawei Snapys, Ireland's most popular Instagram photography competition, took place during a glitzy ceremony at Dublin's Mansion House in November. There were over €10,000 worth of prizes up for grabs and a range of categories, including Family, Fashion, Health & Fitness, Dublin, Wild Atlantic Way, Best Community, Selfie, Beauty, Food, GAA, Huawei P9, Ireland, People, Pets, Travel and Weather. 
IrishCentral was delighted to chat with the winner of the Ireland category, Ina O' Murchu about the thinking behind her winning photo. 
1. Congratulations on your win! How does it feel? 
It feels great! Delighted to have won the category. Many thanks to Connector.ie and Huawei for organising the event at the Mansion House in Dublin. There were a lot of entries overall for the event (over 35,000) and the Ireland category was very competitive. Having such a competition now in Ireland for budding photographers via Instagram - is a fantastic for sharing content and is a wonderful platform for displaying talent.
2. When and where did you take the winning photo? 
 
The photo was taken from the Claddagh side of the River Corrib. It's a well know location for pictures of the Long Walk. One of the locals recently told me that there is an average of 50 plus photos a day taken of their homes, especially during the Summer months. I took the photo last July as the tidal view at the time was particularly stunning. The view is in constant motion due to the sunlight, the tides and the ever changing beautiful skies. The quaint colourful houses on the Long Walk have a long history peculiar to them and to medieval Galway and is really photogenic.
 
3. What inspired you at the time? Did you know it would be a special photo? 
 
At the time I was totally inspired by the magnificent lighting, the full tide and the calm evening. No two days are the same on the West Coast of Ireland with the clouds constantly rolling in from the Atlantic and the ever changing light. It was just one of those fabulous evenings in Galway. The sunset was particularly spectacular that evening. After a few shots I knew that I had captured a striking colourful photo and I decided to submit it to the Huawei Snapys competition. The picture itself has been developed into a first collection of contemporary physical cards, developed by a small Innovation Lab company inside in The Portershed in Galway's Tech Innovation District area. They can be viewed on the website they developed www.galwaycards.com

4. What are some of your favourite spots in Ireland for taking photos? 
 
In Ireland we are spoilt by magnificent scenery all around the country. The West of Ireland in particular with it's dramatic coastline makes for some really interesting photos. Scenes vary on a regular basis depending on Atlantic winds, rain and light. It can be so different from region to region - from gentle sloping hills to sheer cliffs and the dramatic landscapes and the verdant greenness of every county in Ireland. 
 
5. A someone who specializes in the Social Web, do you have any tips for taking and sharing great photos? 
 
Having a great camera on your Smartphone is a good place to start. The best phone that I have used so far for photography has been the Huawei P9. The camera on their phone was co-engineered with the German manufacturer Leica. It has a dual lens and shoots in RAW format. The phone is pretty amazing as the battery just lasts and lasts -which is really important when you are in the middle of taking spur of the moment pictures. My approach is to take as many images as I can. Having a great app to assist in the upload of images automatically like Google Photos also helps a lot. That way you can document and share as many images as you like instantly.
You can follow Ina on: iomurchu on Instagram
Check out her contemporary card collection at http://www.galwaycards.com