The French Soap Seller

One of the stalls at the St. Patrick’s Festival Market sold perfumed soaps and other crafts. This French gentleman owned the stall and cheerfully told us that he’d be travelling the country until his stock ran out, at which point he’d return home and have to do household chores for his wife!
I think he enjoyed life on the road.

Aperture ƒ/5
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 18mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/60s

A riot of colour from Peru

One of the more colourful stalls at the open air market during the St Patrick’s Festival in Cork!

Aperture ƒ/3.5
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 18mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/125s

The candle seller’s red hat

This man was selling scented candles on a small table in front of the Crawford Art Gallery. The sense of smell is one of our most primitive and releases memories and stirs emotions. He was doing a brisk trade.
When I saw his woolly red hat I had to make a portrait of him!
Pictured during the St Patrick’s Festival Cork.

Aperture ƒ/6.3
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 72mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/125s

Cork St Patrick’s Festival Market

One side of Academy Street was taken up by a long line of stalls populated by an international host of sellers! There were biscuits and cakes from Brittany, soaps and wooden toys from France, clothes and trinkets from Peru and lots more.

I took a few shots of this scene but I like this one because the famous tower of St. Anne’s Church, or Shandon Bells as it’s more commonly known is visible in the top right. Nobody could mistake it for anywhere but Cork. That Barry’s Tea sign is a pretty big give away too of course!

Aperture ƒ/6.3
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 106mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/160s

Such is the wonder of childhood

A young child watches a street performer go through his act on Patrick’s Street, Cork last Saturday as part of the St. Patrick’s Festival 2006.

Aperture ƒ/6.3
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 200mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/125s

Mr Crow performs for St Patrick’s Festival 2005 in Cork

“On the count of three you pull!”

Mr Crow is crazy, there’s no question of that. First of all he introduced his ex-girlfriend’s head, which he swung around his own head while juggling 3 doll heads! He “helped” a girl from the audience juggle, and finally he climbed up onto an unstable platform and asked two men to pull supports from under him.
Then he juggled knifes. *gulp*
Pictured in Daunt Square, Cork at the St. Patrick’s Festival.

Aperture ƒ/7.1
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 40mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/125s

Feed The Birds!

This was taken yesterday in my back garden. We had some beautiful light after a very dull start to the day and I took advantage of it.
I used the Canon 75-300 IS lens but the bird feeder is about 3m away from my backdoor so I can’t get as close as I’d like. This is a very close crop of a much larger image. The original crop is 1188×1188 pixels but I really like how this came out.
There is purple fringing on the highlight around his mouth, and in his eye but it’s not too bad thankfully!

Aperture ƒ/7.1
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 300mm
ISO 200
Shutter speed 1/400s

Bent

Walk by the River Lee in Cork City and you’ll come across vertical bars embedded in the river wall. Here’s one that was bent out of shape by some force, possibly a long time ago. In the background is the Cork Opera House.
The texture and grain of the bar appeals to me. It’s not new and shiny and polished. It’s old and worn and has a history.

Aperture ƒ/5
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 40mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 1/60s

Get There, Go Anywhere

Bicycle locked up and bus arriving on the Grand Parade a few nights ago.
It’s been quite a while since I used either forms of transport.
What caught your eye first about this image? The poster, the foreground or the bus?

Aperture ƒ/3.5
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 18mm
ISO 1600
Shutter speed 1/40s

On the beach at Youghal

Last weekend we visited Youghal in Co. Cork. I haven’t been on the beach there for years and I had quite forgotten how big it is! It was nice for a walk, but we were frozen from the cold wind.
I was just in town. Big Brother were supposed to hold auditions from 9am on the Grand Parade but there was no sign of them. Still, I used the opportunity to buy flowers and they went down very well with Jacinta! 🙂

Aperture ƒ/8
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 88mm
ISO 200
Shutter speed 1/200s