Mind is like a garden

The murals and graffiti on the hoarding on Sullivan’s Quay, Cork changes all the time and the evening I shot this it bore the text, “Mind is like a garden”. You can see a mural in the background that I posted yesterday, and two women walking past.


Apertureƒ/8
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length75mm
ISO250
Shutter speed1/500s

Fiery Red Hair

The fiery, red hair of the mural on Sullivan’s Quay contrasts with the blue and dark background of the picture. I like the “no parking” sign, even if it’s distracting. I like the way the shadow of the pole and sign lies on the wall, duplicating the solid in the 2D world of the wall.


Apertureƒ/1.8
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length75mm
ISO100
Shutter speed1/4000s

A Sunset ICM

The colours of a sunset captured in the sweep of an ICM photo. Dark to bright orange and a bit of dark at the bottom where the roof of a house was.

I wish Adobe would use their AI to do an automated spot healing tool. My sensor needs cleaning and there were lots of specks that needed to be cloned out in this photo. They can already highlight them. They just need to go that one final step…


Apertureƒ/25
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length130mm
ISO100
Shutter speed1/2s

A mural on Tucky Street

Behind a closed gate, you’ll find a lovely mural on a wall in Tucky Street. Look more closely at the pillars beneath it, and you’ll see they belonged to the library a long time ago!


Apertureƒ/8
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length75mm
ISO4000
Shutter speed1/500s

Qween at the Regatta

Qween rocked Cobh on Sunday night, the last night of the Cobh People’s Regatta 2023. They’re an outstanding Queen tribute band, and they played all the hits, and soon had everyone singing along, dancing and cheering to the music. A short break in the middle of the set was required for the fireworks at 10pm, but the music started up shortly afterwards to the delight of everyone around.

Alas, I had to leave then. I was up early the next morning, but I can’t wait to see them play again!


Apertureƒ/5
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length58mm
ISO5000
Shutter speed1/500s

The fireworks of Cobh People’s Regatta 2023

The Cobh People’s Regatta took place last weekend and the town was hopping. We enjoyed the live music, getting up close to the stage to watch Qween rock the place.

Shortly after 10pm, the fireworks went off, and we rushed over to the water’s edge by the pier to watch the spectacle.

I didn’t have time to set up my camera, tripod and remote release, so I watched the fireworks for a few moments, enjoying myself. Not content with being a passive watcher, I decided to have a go at shooting them handheld.

The exposure time couldn’t be too long, or the photo would be very shaky, and the sensor had to be sensitive enough to capture the light of the explosions in the sky. I decided on the following settings:

  • 0.5 to 1 second exposure.
  • f/4 to f/6.3 aperture, depending on zoom.
  • ISO 400 ensures the sensor picks up the light.

The fireworks were only just offshore, so maybe 200m away from me, and I found these settings worked really well! I kept one eye open and that helped me see what the camera was capturing and see what was about to happen. I shot handheld, so I was able to adapt more quickly to low or high fireworks and I really enjoyed the illumination!


Apertureƒ/6.3
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length128mm
ISO400
Shutter speed1/2s

The Eiffel Tower at Sunset

The Eiffel Tower garden is thronged with people watching the sun set behind the massive structure. The sky was clear and it was a hot night. People were sitting in almost every available space waiting for the light show that made the Tower sparkle on the hour.


Apertureƒ/8
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length31mm
ISO100
Shutter speed1/8s