A ladybird in the grass of my back garden.
Taken with my Panasonic FZ5. Almost run out of pre-prepared images. I’ll need to fire up the GIMP this weekend.
| Aperture | ƒ/4 |
| Camera | DMC-FZ5 |
| Focal length | 6mm |
| ISO | 80 |
| Shutter speed | 1/400s |
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High Rise Crane
A view of the crane helping in the construction of a new office block behind Cork City Hall. This is from the lobby of the carpark next door.
Other views of the same site: Building a City Sunset, Craning to See the Sky.
Aperture ƒ/6.3 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/320s -
Purple Sky
After shooting the Tenacious I looked behind me and smiled as I saw a great reflection of the beautiful sky on this car.
Wisps of cloud filtered the sun momentarily as I captured this image and a bit of post-processing helped to make the reflection stand out!Aperture ƒ/9 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/160s -
Tenacious in Cork
The sailing vessel, Tenacious, docked in Cork a few weeks back. I spotted the top masts over the buildings of the quayside while we went home so I had to stop!
She’s a beautiful ship and apparently the largest wooden tall ship built in England in the last 100 years! She also has facilities to allow disabled people access to her, even ascending high up among the sails! She was featured on a tv programme last night with footage taken in Cork.
Tenacious was built in Southampton and is owned by Jubilee Sailing Trust a, “charity that aims to promote the integration of people of all physical abilities through the challenge and adventure of tall ship sailing.”
Donal has a great picture of the Tenacious lit by the setting sun.
Aperture ƒ/6.3 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 16mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/800s -
Non-photography day
Today was Non Photography Day! The aim of the day is to enjoy the moment instead of trying to record it for posterity. Luckily I wasn’t doing anything wildly interesting visually today!
Paul Butzi writes that he is half-sympathetic to the cause being championed by Becca Bland. I have to admit she has a point too, but it’s a hobby, and a safe, enjoyable one at that. If I had something interesting to photograph I would have!
Maybe we should call “enjoying the moment” by another name? Call it “taking a non-photograph” instead. Enjoy the sun, and the peace and quiet or watch the world go by as you sit down with your lunch.
Did you take a non-photograph today? -
Queen at the Ballet
Queen at the Ballet is a ballet accompanied by the music of Queen. It features an on-stage orchestra, and two charismatic vocalists sing and act as ringmasters for the action on stage. It played for the last two weeks in the Point Theatre, Dublin, Ireland, but it’s moving on now. If the show comes to your city make sure you go!
I’m a big fan of Queen music, so seeing this show was an emotional and amazing experience for me. Jacinta loved it too, soaking up the music and the visuals with me as we were awestruck by the performance! Easily the best show I’ve seen!
Thanks to the generosity of Ken Guest and Aisling and Proinnsias and Sinead we were able to go see the show. We’re still fairly broke so soon after our wedding and I really must thank them sincerely for making this happen!
It was remiss of me to forget another three important people who helped us greatly! Donal and Celine took care of Oscar for the weekend. My sister Mairead helped too, bringing him for a walk in the lovely sunshine! Thank you all!Photos were taken with my Panasonic FZ5 from about 20m away so please excuse the poor image quality! Besides which, I didn’t feel like using the camera much because I was enjoying the show so much.
Surprisingly, “God Save The Queen”, was part of the show. A performer appeared on-stage waving two tiny Union Jack flags as the orchestra played the anthem of the United Kingdom.
He looked sheepishly out at the audience, put the flags back in his pocket and unfurled the Irish tri-colour waving it about to cheers and applause before wrapping it about himself as the lights went down and the music faded.
Aperture ƒ/3.3 Camera DMC-FZ5 Focal length 24.6mm ISO 100 Shutter speed 1/30s -
Strange on the street
A woman caught in an awkward step by my camera on Oliver Plunkett Street, Cork.
Aperture ƒ/6.3 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/200s -
Surreal in the market
A woman walking in the English Market is the perfect subject for a bit of surreal experimentation with the GIMP!
Aperture ƒ/8 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 1600 Shutter speed 1/125s -
The Grand Parade Construction Site
Another view down the Grand Parade and a look at the construction site that takes up most of the street! Well known shop fronts such as the Singer Sewing Centre are visible in the background. In sharp contrast, the new Soho bar and restaurant is right next to it. It’s all modern steel beams and plate glass.
Since this photo was taken they’ve taken down the fountain in the centre of the street. I presume it’ll be put back again?
Aperture ƒ/10 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/200s -
US Book earns 306,000 Euro for Childline
Last year Ray D’Arcy and his team asked thousands of people all over Ireland to send in photographs to Today FM on October 1st. It was a huge success with over 20,000 photos sent in and eventually whittled down to 2,000. I had a few photos included which you can see in the US Book category on my blog.
30,000 copies of the US Book were sold, and yesterday, Childline were presented with a cheque for 306,000 Euro. That’s a great achievement and hopefully similar projects involving the public will happen again!
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Running Child
Shortly after my previous shot a little girl ran past me. She had a lovely smile and was obviously enjoying the sun! Her mother brought up the rear at a more sedate pace.
Aperture ƒ/11 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/250s -
Begging
Children pass a Romanian woman begging in Cork. She is part of a growing group of gypsies who have come to Ireland as refugees. Unfortunately many of them have realised that Ireland is a land of rich pickings while their application for asylum is processed.
New laws have changed matters but Ireland is still an attractive destination. Statistics available from the Irish Refugee Council show a marked decline since 2002 however.
Ireland is or has been described as the, “land of a thousand welcomes” but you won’t be quite so welcome if you don’t have money to spend. Racism is as rife and widespread as elsewhere.
Aperture ƒ/9 Camera Canon EOS 20D Focal length 10mm ISO 200 Shutter speed 1/160s
Cobh Boats (2006)
Royal purple cider (2007)
Frozen Water (2009)
Cork Street Photography (2016)
The Cat Loves Attention (2018)
Look out Northside (2021)
The Blarney Fun Run 2022 (2022)
The yellow glow of sunset (2023)
Voices for Gaza (2025)