After a couple of days in Edinburgh, walking from the hotel to the shops wore thin. So, onto a tour bus and to indulge further in the touristy thang. The Botanic Gardens was the first stop on our whirlwind tour, best part of which was the very large series of glasshouses. Condensation tried it’s best to get the better of my lenses, but I managed to get a few shots in between swearing at the hot/cold/humid/dry rooms. Damn nature, whyRead More
Taken from somewhere near the top of the Sir Walter Scott Monument (which was stupidly difficult for me to get to the top of), this is.. well, Edinburgh. Posting is going to be light for the weekend. Think light like non-existent. That kind of light. I’m off up north-west to do ‘the vimto run’. This basically involved getting in the car, driving from Sligo to Enniskillen and popping into Asda for an unhealthy amount of Vimto. Mmmmmmmhmmmm!
A tag screwed onto the woodwork on board the Jeanie Johnston at the maritime festival in Dublin at the start of June. I’ve lately been re-educating myself that the details we sometimes miss in our everyday lives can prove significant. Why, you could even be passing a certain spot for years without noticing what’s hidden in the finer detail. Stop and take a look. You’ll only regret it later if you missed it and it’s gone forever.
Walking to the lighthouse at Sheeps Head in West Cork. Stick to the path, you’ll finally get there. Or, stray from the beaten path and find something more exciting. Or maybe you’ll just end up stepping in sheep shit. Sometimes you just have to take the risks to get the rewards.
An old shed in a field next to the graveyard in Glendalough. I can only presume (having watched so many horror films down through the years) that this is where the local psycho slasher type person does all his dismembering and storing of his collection of corpses.. Mwah ha haaaaa… A lovely peaceful spot. Other than the horror and all…
Perhaps the most fascinating alleyway I’ve ever seen. It was like a labyrinth of perpendicular stairways and doorways. This was taken shortly after discovering a little goldmine of pubs, restaurants, take aways and other goodies right down the street from the hotel. This time I was a tourist.. Obviously!
…upside down, so the world can kiss my ass! In fact, don’t bury me at all. Incinerate me with next weeks recycling and scatter my ashes wherever you want. A graveyard on the edge of the hill at Glendalough. A lovely spot in the middle of Wicklow that is, for several months of the year, infested with tourists. One of which I am quite obviously not. Obviously.
My first time in the Sally Gap in Wicklow. Really quite an amazing place. I’ll be going back there… many many times. Had an indescribably fantastic time driving around there. Next time I go back, I’ll probably take a left instead of a right at that junction that I probably won’t be able to find again. Map I think… definitely map required.
The most MG’s ever in Lismore? We were passing through the town on a whistle-stop tour of east Cork & Waterford and came across a whole load of MG’s, new and old, in a car park just off the ‘main street’. Obviously, there must have been some kind of owners club meeting happening nearby!
The Honan Chapel on the grounds of University College Cork is (if I’m not mistaken) probably one of the busiest wedding locations in Cork. But hold on now, before you go booking the picturesque setting for your big day, you have to be either a student, a graduate or a staff member. It’s probably the most ideal location as far as wedding photography is concerned. A thirty second walk from the church door and you’re within spitting distance of allRead More
Where I was going to go today but ended up drinking beer & watching TV instead. A lovely relaxing Sunday; I was due one. This is your bog standard landscape really, I just thought it was particularly postable right about now given that the weather doesn’t really know what it’s doing from one day/hour to the next. Now, there’s a bottle of Hoegaarden in the fridge with my name on it. I’ll be off. Actually, Donncha is organising another photowalk.Read More
Having ensured both his callers understood the jist of the game of blackjack, Rick proceeded to deal the cards. Why blind mans blackjack? Well.. Err.. Radio!?! This second in the ‘Rick 2008’ series (I’ll have enough to open a gallery with by the time I’m done) is brought to you today purely because I\’m in people photo processing mode. I’ve been processing a wedding (hereafter to be known as ‘work’) for the evening so it made sense to post aRead More
The one o’clock gun fired at Edinburgh castle in Scotland. This is the second shot in a quick series. The first one is quite blurred. Why? Because I took it as a result of the shock I got when the gun was fired. It frightened the holy hell out of me, my hand tightened up and my finger pressed the shutter! Thankfully I managed to get this one before the smoke cleared too much. I really didn’t expect it toRead More
A field of rapeseed grows near Garretstown. Fields like this are a common sight at this time of year and are dotted throughout the country, some providing fantastic photo opportunities. The field of bright green next to this bright yellow was irresistible. Well, it looked better in person than I was able to capture on camera. Ah well.
As per usual, standing in the middle of the stream with my tripod holding my camera mere inches above the water. It’s something that no matter how many times I’ve been to the woods at Gougane Barra, I can’t seem to get away from. At least this time I had the good sense to reclaim some land and build myself a little peninsula before stepping into the unknown. Good day today, wedding went off without a hitch thankfully. Beautiful weatherRead More
First trip out to see the bluebells in Currabinny woods. It was getting late and the light was beginning to drop off fairly rapidly so we didn’t spend long down there. Must take a spin back down there over the coming days to catch some more. Speaking of taking a spin, I was quite looking forward to heading to Dublin this evening/tomorrow morning for the rare meetup of photobloggers that’s taking place. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) I’m at a weddingRead More
Waste plywood strewn on the old tracks at Mogeely train station in east Cork. It’s days like we’ve had recently that make me wish I was self-employed again. Back then, if the sun suddenly came out I could conveniently ‘go missing’ from ‘the office’ and jump on the bike with camera in hand. Those days led to many great trips around west Cork and many a fun time was had. Now, some years later it’s all changed. Now I haveRead More
During golden hour in west Cork. Driving over the mountain on Goats Path on the way back from the lighthouse on Sheeps Head. For a brief moment, a ray of light burst through the cloud.
Leave the car running? A wedding car sits in wait outside a west Cork church. The wedding season has officially come back into full force and free Saturday’s are a thing of the past. Well, until October anyway. Really must get working on that portfolio/website.
Down in Currabinny, about 10 minutes from my front door, there’s a wonderful pier that stretches out in the direction of Crosshaven across the water. Crosshaven may sound familiar to some as the host town for the Ford Yacht Club event. Currabinny may sound familiar as the place across the water from it. There’s a nice stony beach and a wonderful storehouse down there too. Never fails to offer some kind of photographic opportunities.