2023 – Page 23 – In Photos dot Org

Construction of the Camden Quay Hotel

Construction work on a building site in Cork City. A tall yellow crane is visible under a sky half full of clouds. Tiny figures of men can be seen on the building site working on laying down steel supports.

The old site of the hotel on Camden Quay is being redeveloped. It’s gone through many phases over the years, and it’s soon to be a 3 star hotel.

Aperture	ƒ/2.2
Camera	Galaxy S23 Ultra
Focal length	2.2mm
ISO	50
Shutter speed	1/5800s

The Shein Lines

A Shein popup shop opened in Opera Lane recently. It’s only open for a short time and huge lines of people have gathered waiting to get in there.

Camera	Galaxy S23 Ultra
Focal length	2.2mm

The view from St. Peters in Munich

The view from St. Peter's Church in Munich. You can see the roofs of buildings, and the gothic church, Frauenkirche.

St. Peter’s Church, or Alter Peter, in Munich is the tallest building in the vicinity. Local regulations prohibited building taller buildings except for a few years a while back when ugly glass office blocks were built a few kilometres away. That’s the Frauenkirche, a large gothic church in the middle distance.

So, you get a great view of the city, and it was nice to go up there to wait for the sunset. Unfortunately, the sky was mostly clear so the eventual sunset wasn’t that amazing but I loved seeing the city from this vantage point.

Beware, it takes 4 minutes to walk down. I didn’t record how long to get up. My legs were like jelly afterwards!

Aperture	ƒ/8
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	24mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/250s

A kite at the Basant Festival

A kite flying in the sky. It's a colourful two string one with red ribbons flying out the back

I visited Carrigaline yesterday for the Basant Kite Festival. It was a lovely day, and the forecast rain stayed away for most of the afternoon. Here’s one of those kites flying high over the bandstand in the town. There weren’t many kites flying but it was lovely to see them!

I asked Bing to generate an image for me of people flying kites at this festival and it came up with some odd looking ones. DALL-E really is nowhere near as good as Midjourney, but this was the best one.

Aperture	ƒ/9
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	240mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/1600s

A Collie in Gougane Barra

A collie walks across the narrow road next to the lake at Gougane Barra in Co Cork, Ireland. The chapel can be seen in the background.

When I went to Gougane Barra with Blarney Photography Club a few weeks ago, I met the cutest collie ever. He was so chill and friendly, and he had this gorgeous white and brown fur that matched the scenery perfectly. I think he works at the hotel nearby, but he didn’t charge me for his cuddles.

Aperture	ƒ/1.7
Camera	Galaxy S23 Ultra
Focal length	6.3mm
ISO	80
Shutter speed	1/180s

Dawstown Point to Point, 2023

A horse and jockey jump the fence, with others before and after him

A horse and jockey race to the finish, followed closely by others.

A horse and jockey jump the fence, closely followed by others

I had a great time today at the Dawstown Point-to-Point horse racing event! The races started at 2 pm and continued until 4.30 pm, and I went with some of my buddies from the Blarney Photography Club. We positioned ourselves near the second last jump, and it was a super fun day filled with lots of action and photography opportunities. I’m excited to share this selection of my favourite shots with you!

Aperture	ƒ/6.3
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	600mm
ISO	2500
Shutter speed	1/2000s

The eye on the street

Hoarding around a derelict site in Cork City has graffiti on it and an eye looks out of the corner while a young woman walks up the street

If you’re a fan of street art, you’ll love this vibrant and eye-catching hoarding in Cork City. What was once a dull and drab barrier around a derelict site has been transformed into a colourful canvas of graffiti. The hoarding is situated on the corner of Sheare Street and Grattan Street and it’s impossible to miss its bold and striking presence.

While the small one-storey building that once stood on this spot may be long gone, the art that has taken its place is alive with energy and creativity. I was particularly drawn to the striking eye that gazes out at the world from the corner of the hoarding. It’s a powerful reminder that even in the midst of decay and neglect, there is always beauty to be found in unexpected places.

Aperture	ƒ/2.8
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	24mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/1600s

Breathtaking Border Mountains in Germany

Mountains on the German and Austrian border. Dark clouds threaten rain and snow.

Here’s another photo from my recent team meetup in Germany, where we got to see these incredible mountains that span the border of Germany and Austria. We were up pretty high too, around 1500m at Bergstation Herzogstandbahn, which made for a wonderful view.

Of course, the weather wasn’t exactly on our side – those ominous black clouds overhead made it feel like it could start raining or snowing at any moment. But honestly, it only added to the atmosphere and the sense of adventure. It wasn’t too cold at first, but on the way back to the gondola, the weather turned, and it got noticeably colder up there. It was totally worth it to see this incredible natural wonder. I just can’t get over how powerful and peaceful nature can be at the same time.

Aperture	ƒ/6.3
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	172mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/1250s

Exhausted on Snowy Slopes

Two skiers prepare to go downhill, while in the foreground a sign warns "Halt" and "Skilift" pointing to the right but the sign is leaning precariously to the side

We had trudged up and down rugged hills, wearing snow shoes, until we finally came to a stop, feeling sore and utterly exhausted. The sun blazed down on us as we stood at 1500m on a crisp, clear day. Ahead of us loomed another hill, descending a valley and then ascending at a steep incline. At the bottom, we spotted two skiers preparing to travel further down the slopes.

In the foreground, a sign attached to a precarious, leaning pole caught our attention. It commanded us to “Halt”, but the sign pointing to the ski lift pointed upwards towards the sky, which was fitting because the ski lift itself ascended the side of a dauntingly steep hill.

Wisely, I believe, we decided to take a break for lunch instead of attempting that treacherous incline. 🙂

Aperture	ƒ/9
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	146mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/2000s

Reflections at Gougane Barra

The small chapel at Gougane Barra reflected in the lake there in early morning light. Trees are near it and fields and hills in the distance. It's a cloudy day.

So, a few weeks ago, I went with fellow members of Blarney Photography Club to Gougane Barra to catch the sunrise. Sadly, the clouds were pretty thick that day, but we still managed to get some cool photos. One shot I was particularly happy with was the reflection of the chapel on the island. Despite some showers here and there, we were lucky to catch some good light for our shots. Can’t wait to share more of these photos with you all in the coming months!

Aperture	ƒ/11
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	24mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/50s

Howya Derelict Cork!

The window of a derelict building in Cork City with the greeting HOWYA on it.

A building on the corner of Sheare Street and Moore Street in Cork appears to be derelict for a number of years. If you take a look at the location on Google Maps you can go back through the years.

In 2014 it appears someone broke the right hand window as it is covered by wood but in the next photo the window is covered by that paint again. Some time between 2017 and 2019 the front of the building was given a lick of paint. The pavement in front was upgraded in that time too so that might account for that.

There’s a bouquet of flowers outside the building in 2017 making me dread to think what reason it was there. 🙁

Anyway, this building is in a great location. It appears to have been an office. This and other buildings around the city that are underused might find more use as a residential building.

Aperture	ƒ/2.8
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	24mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/1000s

Descending through the Clouds

The view from the gondola station high up over a valley. Blue water of a lake is seen below as well as tiny houses, roads and trees surrounding green fields.

We stood atop the towering mountain, surrounded by billowing clouds, preparing to leave. As I gazed downwards, my eyes traced the steep slope all the way to the tranquil blue waters of the lake below. Tiny houses and buildings speckled the landscape, and a winding road traced the shoreline.

Having just dined at Berggasthaus Herzogstand, a restaurant nestled at nearly 1600 meters above sea level, we were eager to descend. However, the weather had taken a turn for the worse, with rain pelting down and the wind picking up. It was the last gondola ride of the day, too.

As we embarked on the journey, the gondola suddenly came to an abrupt halt. We hung suspended in mid-air for several minutes as the operator communicated over the radio. It turned out that some passengers had been left behind on the mountain, and we realized they were fortunate to have caught a ride down with us!

Aperture	ƒ/9
Camera	ILCE-7M3
Focal length	24mm
ISO	160
Shutter speed	1/30s