02.10.2017

Its been a while since my last post.

Heres one from the archives.

1968 Volkswagen Beetle: A Design Classic

Recently spotted during the mini heatwave, parked outside a local pub. The engine is air-cooled but the owner obviously needed liquid cooling.

Beautiful colour, good condition, lovely maroon leather interior, and the retro roof-rack is a nice finishing touch.

A design classic.

“Drinking The Fix”, PhotoIreland Festival 2014 Exhibition.

Three of my images have been selected to show at Drinking The Fix Exhibition, which is part of the PhotoIreland Festival 2014. The show takes place at In-Spire Galerie, 56 Lower Gardiner Street, Dublin, and runs from 10th – 25th July.

Delighted to be – once again – part of the wonderful PhotoIreland Festival.

The photos are part of a body of work made during a two year period in central Finland. These three were taken during the final throes of Winter, April/May, 2010.

Wexford Shopfronts: Mary’s Bar

The beginnings of a new project documenting the traditional and not so traditional shopfronts/pub fronts of Wexford town.

Poultry Section

Photo taken at the Bannow & Rathangan Agricultural Show 2010 – on one of my long expired last rolls of Kodachrome (1993). At the time I was under the influence of street photography, looking for interesting situations that maybe included an element of humour.

I still have a few rolls  of Kodachrome left in the fridge. I only wish I had shot loads more with it while it was still processed by Kodak.

 

Horses on Show

Bannow & Rathangan Agricultural Show, Ireland, 2010.

Prints available on request.

 

Storm Surges at Kilmore Quay

The fishing village of Kilmore Quay is taking a real hammering lately. In fact, coastal towns all along the South and West coast of Ireland are suffering the effects of winter storms and huge swells that seem to be timing their arrival in synchronisation with spring tides. The result: Amazing display of the power of mother nature.

I knew a set of big waves was coming in but I was too busy trying to get a good photograph. This one gave me a good soaking.

The surges were so powerful that I couldn’t help but think of the Tsunami footage from Thailand in 2006.

A local fisherman watches, and waits.

Never before have I seen such powerful torrents inside the harbour. Huge amounts of water swirled and flowed, while the boats and ropes heaved and groaned.

The image above is a 100% crop of the previous image. The small Saltee Island lies approximately 4km offshore. I don’t know the height of its peak, but the breaking wave looks to be at least equal to the height of the Island, which I’m guessing is around 50-100m high. The wave in the foreground is probably around 5m high.

We are due another storm this weekend. Batten down the hatches….

November Morning Beach Walk

Sunday morning is the perfect time to go for a walk, and if you have a dog there is no better place to let them off the leash and chase the birds.

I have fond childhood memories of going for long weekend walks with my own family on the local beach and dunes.

The beach is ever changing: Somedays it’s calm, others its crazy wild. Sands shift upwards and downwards of 2 metres, revealing and concealing. Storms eat away the land, and bring in flotsam from all over the world. Last weekend I found what looked like a transmission engine from a motor car. How does something like this get carried in the sea, and from where?

And of course, if you have a dog, there is nearly always a big of doggy socialising to be done.

Coastal erosion at Bastardstown beach.

Low tide.

Washed up motor – approx 2ft long.

Ever changing light.

One of many empty summer houses.

A bit of doggy socialising.

Wordless Wednesday – almost

Walled garden at Johnstown Castle, Wexford, Ireland.

 

One thing I really don’t like about digital photography is the way it renders greens. Having primarily used film for the past few years I love the way Kodak Portra ‘captures’ greens – plant life in particular, but maybe it’s also true for textiles, etc. The greens in digital files just don’t quite cut it when it comes to plant life. Yes, they are vibrant, bright, and saturated, but to my eyes, they look slightly unnatural.

So, I am always experimenting in Photoshop to try and emulate the film look. I think I may be closing in…. What do you think?

Spring Tide: Saltee Islands & St. Patrick’s Bridge

Spring tide at St. Patricks Bridge, Kilmore Quay, Ireland.

View to Saltee Islands from St. Patrick’s Bridge, which is a naturally occurring stone causeway that extends out to the Islands. It has been the ruin of many a seafaring vessel.

I think I’m gonna have to climb up on someone’s roof down there to get a higher vantage point.