I was there too
It was a blisteringly hot day in Athens when we were walking around the ruins of the old city when I saw this woman in a bright yellow jumpsuit approach.
That yellow colour jumped out at me, but it was only later I noticed the man behind her carrying her bag. Is that a charging cable going from her phone to the bag? Nice to have someone else carry your bag on a hot day, with a battery for your phone too! 🙂
| Aperture | ƒ/8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7M3 |
| Focal length | 16mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
Chicago in 2005 was a city in flux, and nowhere was that more obvious than at the Trump Tower construction site, right on the banks of the Chicago River. I was walking at the edge of the site and took a bunch of photos, some of which I’ve posted over the years.
What you see in front of you appears to be the open area next to the “new” tower. Over to the left is the Wrigley Building and looking at Google Street View gives a good view of what it looks like now, from across the river.
I haven’t been back to Chicago in twenty years. I’d love to see it again.
| Aperture | ƒ/6.3 |
| Camera | Canon EOS 20D |
| Focal length | 18mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/100s |
I last visited Chicago in 2005, when I took this photo of the Wrigley Building, and this “We’re glad you’re here!” banner.
Did you know the clock faces of the Wrigley Building are each almost 6m in diameter? The two towers of the building were completed just over 100 years ago!
| Aperture | ƒ/9 |
| Camera | Canon EOS 20D |
| Focal length | 53mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/160s |
Two young men decorate the underpass on the Line in Blackrock this evening with spray paint. There are fabulous murals on both walls of the underpass!
Fun fact: spray paint, the tool of choice here, was invented in 1949 by Edward Seymour, on the suggestion of his wife, Bonnie.
| Aperture | ƒ/1.7 |
| Camera | Galaxy S23 Ultra |
| Focal length | 6.3mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/60s |
A man carrying a Palestinian flag after the protest rally last weekend. I met him on Nano Nagle Bridge, and he said he comes in whenever he can, to join the weekly rally against the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
| Aperture | ƒ/2.8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 24mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/3200s |
Twenty years ago today, I was walking up State Street in Chicago when I spotted a duck robbing an unsuspecting woman on the street. I was horrified and, of course, immediately took a photo of such a strange incident.
Turns out, it was some sort of advertising photoshoot for Western Union, but the original photo went viral, even appearing in newspapers.
| Aperture | ƒ/6.3 |
| Camera | Canon EOS 20D |
| Focal length | 55mm |
| ISO | 100 |
| Shutter speed | 1/100s |
Advertising goes unnoticed as people hurry past on Opera Lane, Cork.
Did you know the rugby shirt, with its bold stripes, was first popularised in the 19th century?
| Aperture | ƒ/2.8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 24mm |
| ISO | 640 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
Off Monastiraki Square, Athens, along a narrow street filled with small shops, I found a man leaning on the door of his shoe shop.
| Aperture | ƒ/2.8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7M3 |
| Focal length | 24mm |
| ISO | 800 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
A woman inspects a set of playable junior bagpipes that her husband bought in a nearby tourist store near Edinburgh Castle, Scotland.
She smiles, but I’m not sure if she’s happy. 😉
Did you know, the bagpipes, often considered Scotland’s national instrument, actually have ancient origins that trace back to the Middle East before finding their iconic home in the Highlands?
| Aperture | ƒ/4 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 16mm |
| ISO | 200 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
A yellow bus following a yellow Tesla taxi caught my eye on the streets of Edinburgh recently. Most of the Teslas I saw there were white! A bold move by the taxi driver.
I wonder if they have the “I bought it before Elon went crazy” bumper sticker on the back. I presume not. Elon showed his true colours many years ago.
| Aperture | ƒ/8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 100mm |
| ISO | 400 |
| Shutter speed | 1/2500s |
What! You’re looking at your phone! I imagine Deacon Brodie would be amazed at technology today.
Apparently he was a “respected cabinetmaker by day and a burglar by night, making him one of Edinburgh’s most notorious historical figures”
| Aperture | ƒ/3.5 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 24mm |
| ISO | 640 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
Several years ago, I came across Anonymous for the Voiceless in Cork, and I’ve seen them demonstrate a few times since. I saw them in Edinburgh last week when they had a small demonstration, surrounded by young people.
“Anonymous for the Voiceless (AV) is an animal rights organisation specialising in edifying the public on the streets with Cubes of Truth and fostering highly effective activism groups worldwide. We hold an abolitionist stance against all forms of non-human animal exploitation and promote a clear and direct vegan message.”
| Aperture | ƒ/8 |
| Camera | ILCE-7RM5 |
| Focal length | 24mm |
| ISO | 200 |
| Shutter speed | 1/500s |
