Cork – Page 2 – In Photos dot Org

Irish Terrier Practises Street Yoga

Was it yoga, or was there another dog just out of frame and this Irish Terrier wanted to be friends?

Irish Terriers are one of the oldest terrier breeds and are nicknamed “daredevils” because of their famously spirited and fearless temperament. During World War I, Irish Terriers were used as messenger dogs in the trenches, carrying communications between units under incredibly dangerous conditions. They were so effective and brave that they earned widespread admiration. One officer wrote that they were “extraordinarily intelligent, faithful, and honest, and a man who has one of them as a companion will never lack a true friend.” That stretching behaviour you see in the photo? It’s actually a natural “play bow”. Dogs use it not just to stretch their muscles but also as a social signal to other dogs (and sometimes humans) that they’re feeling playful and want to engage. So this little terrier might just be inviting passersby on Oliver Plunkett Street to join in the fun!

Aperture	ƒ/9
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	160mm
ISO	1000
Shutter speed	1/500s

Where Water Meets Light

The sun had set behind the distant hills and the exposure times went up when I took this photo, but that’s what I wanted as the sea was rough and I wanted to make it silky smooth and misty at Owenahincha Beach last August.

Aperture	ƒ/8
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	24mm
ISO	50
Shutter speed	8s

When Recycling Gets Serious

This small garden caught my eye. It would be a nice space if not for the obligatory bins that every household must have. The left wall is a lovely deep blue, matching the colours of the flowers there.

Aperture	ƒ/7.1
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	24mm
ISO	6400
Shutter speed	1/125s

The Summercove Hills

Parking up by Charles Fort is always easier than trying to get through Summercover near Kinsale. The road is very narrow and steep, both ways, if you’re trying to the to the Bulman Bar.

Those yellow diamond-shaped road signs are actually part of Ireland’s relatively recent road signage system. Before the 1970s, Ireland used the older British-style circular and triangular signs, but when the country adopted the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals, they switched to these diamond-shaped warning signs, making Ireland one of the few English-speaking countries to use this continental European style. The “10%” gradient warning means the road drops 10 metres for every 100 metres travelled horizontally, which is steep enough that most driving instructors would consider it “character building” for learner drivers!

Aperture	ƒ/8
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	110mm
ISO	2000
Shutter speed	1/250s

Storm Light Over Owenahincha

Waves broke on the rocks at the edge of Owenahincha Beach a month ago.

Aperture	ƒ/7.1
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	24mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1.3s

A Milkcap in the Galtees

We took ourselves to Kings Yard near the Galtees today, and walked up a nearby trail next to a river. It was lovely there, so quiet except for the sound of the rushing water! There weren’t many mushrooms around yet but we spotted a bunch of them near the end of our walk and I was delighted to get a few photos of them!

Did you know, false saffron milkcaps are mycorrhizal fungi, meaning they form symbiotic relationships with tree roots, particularly spruces and firs? The mushroom helps trees absorb nutrients from the soil while receiving sugars in return. This partnership is so specific that finding these mushrooms often indicates the presence of healthy coniferous woodland ecosystems, making them useful indicators of forest health.

Aperture	ƒ/5.6
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	90mm
ISO	4000
Shutter speed	1/200s

Showdown The ELO Experience at Cyprus Avenue

Two musicians from The ELO Experience performing under intense green stage lighting, bassist on left singing into microphone and guitarist on right, both backlit by dramatic concert lighting beams

The ELO Experience band on stage with spectacular yellow sunburst lighting effect radiating from centre, three guitarists in foreground with Sonor drum kit visible behind, creating dynamic concert atmosphere

Full band shot of The ELO Experience with multi-coloured stage lighting in purple, blue, yellow and red, showing complete lineup of musicians with guitars, bass, keyboards and drums at Cyprus Avenue venue

The ELO Experience played in Cyprus Avenue in Cork last night and they were fabulous, playing many deep cuts as well as The Electric Light Orchestra’s greatest hits. The crowd thoroughly enjoyed the night and they announced their next gig there in May next year!

Aperture	ƒ/1.8
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	75mm
ISO	1250
Shutter speed	1/125s

A colourful sunrise

It was one of those mornings where the sun shone on the clouds from below the horizon and filled the sky with fiery colours!

I’ve been working on a WordPress plugin called Cloud Cover Forecast. It will show you the low, mid, and high clouds for a particular location in a block on your site. It’s inspired by Clear Outside. If you have a blog, take it for a whirl and let me know if it works for you! It’s not on WordPress.org yet, so you’ll have to install it manually by uploading the zip file.

Aperture	ƒ/8
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	41mm
ISO	200
Shutter speed	1/100s

The Passage West to Monkstown Run

Black and white photograph of young man on small bicycle riding along curved road from Passage West to Monkstown in Co Cork, with footpath, street lamps, dense woodland, and rolling hills in background

The bike might be a little small but it got him to Monkstown in the end, I hope.

Aperture	ƒ/5.6
Camera	Canon EOS 20D
Focal length	55mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/25s

Mahon’s Radio Tower

View across water of telecommunications tower on grassy hillside surrounded by mature trees in Mahon, Cork, with stone seawall and rocky shoreline in foreground under clear blue sky

Twenty two years separate the two images here. The first one is a photo of the old radio antenna tower in Mahon and it was taken in 2003. Back then cattle grazed in the field the tower stood in. That tower was dismantled around a year ago. There’s an interesting Reddit thread here about it. The second photo was from earlier this year where a smaller tower with familiar equipment for what is probably mobile phone cell reception.

It’s an old AM / Medium Wave radio tower that used to carry RTE Radio Cork / Radio 1 and at one stage even a relay of 2FM on medium wave, for those who liked their music crackly. It hasn’t been on air rather a long time an I think RTE has a number of transmitters being demolished. They’re doing it as a single contract.

As far as I’m aware that site was decommissioned in the early 2000s, before RTE finally switched off the main Medium Wave (AM) site in Tullamore. The transmitter itself is long gone. All that’s there is the mast.

There’s no prospect of that mast ever being used again.

Old AM sites typically use the whole structure of the antenna as the transmitter. They often sat on an isolated base and the tower height is half the wave length. So you can’t even easily retune them for an alternate AM frequency and they’re relatively useless for mobile phone gear as they are somewhat flexible and move in the wind.

Basically it would cost RTE a fortune to maintain it, even if it’s a local landmark. They’re not going to pay for ongoing maintenance and they’re quite complicated structures with guy-wires and aircraft hazard lighting and all that stuff.

Aperture	ƒ/4.8
Camera	FinePix2800ZOOM
Focal length	22.4mm
ISO	100
Shutter speed	1/550s

The Working End of Gardening

Weathered orange metal storage cabinet or locker with chrome handle standing among coiled black hoses and red plastic chairs at Ballincollig Regional Park allotments, showing rust and wear from outdoor use.

The allotments next to Ballincollig Regional Park need storage for various things, but I doubt the cabinet in the photo above is used for much any more.

Videos I watched recently

Aperture	ƒ/9
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	62mm
ISO	500
Shutter speed	1/160s

Window on the City

From the car park on North Main Street, Cork, you can Bruce College and St Mary’s Dominican Priory. I liked how the stark lifeless concrete frame of the multi-story car park contrasted with the variety of materials and colours in the world outside.

Aperture	ƒ/6.3
Camera	ILCE-7RM5
Focal length	201mm
ISO	1000
Shutter speed	1/1000s