Landscape Photography in Kerry, Ireland

February 06 2012, 15°C Ballinskelligs

2012-02-07T00:19:00.000Z

Marie is doing a week of work experience with me to learn a bit photography. The weather was just amazing today, considering that it is about 30°C less in Germany and other countrys in Europe at the moment. The last photo from Ballinskelligs towards Waterville was made with Marie´s lens which is not for full frame cameras made but I found the vignetting effect interesting anyway.

Valentia Island, County Kerry part two

2012-01-22T23:20:00.001Z

I always come back to this special place on Valentia Island, Culloo Rock.
Out of the tourist and angling season, there are just stone, waves, really fresh air and if you are lucky rays of sunshine on the Atlantic Ocean.
To actually go on the rock right now is way too dangerous, you have to be really careful with the high swell of the water.
Further down is a short video I took with my camera, so you get an idea how powerful the water is.
Long shutterspeeds for some of the photos give the tumultous waves a veil - like appearance.

Valentia Island County Kerry

2012-01-21T22:22:00.000Z

I took those photos today on Valentia Island near Culloo Rock.
Heavy swell and a strong salty spray was certainly not easy on the camera and lens but I took the photos with my back to the wind and the frontlens stayed dry for some time. The area is beautiful any time but highly dangerous too. Never walk on any wet rocks and watch what is happening behind you. When taking photos check for emergency exit or place to cover in case of a big wave.
Mind your gear, the salt in the air is devastating on the camera body and lens. Clean all when home. Do not take any risk and do not go to close to the edge, people have died here.
When taking photos try different shutterspeed setting and stay settled to wait for the next nice wave.

January Workshop, review

2012-01-19T00:09:00.000Z

Skellig Birds, part six.

2012-01-05T22:09:00.011Z

All information about birds in Ireland among other things can be found on birdwatchireland.ie
with this alphabetical list of birds

Gannet colony Little Skellig

Puffins Skellig Michael

In October of 2011 RTE, Radio One broadcast a wonderful documentaty about Skellig Michael and its birds, called Skelligs Calling after one of Michael Kirby´s fantastic books about the area of Ballinskelligs, the lif e of fishermen and of course the Skelligs.

Skellig Birds, part five.

2012-01-04T22:37:00.001Z

Puffins

Little Skellig Gannet Colony

Puffins

Razorbills

Razorbills and Puffins

Razorbills

Puffins

Information about Razorbills and Gannets are to be found on birdwatchirelands website

Skellig Birds, part four.

2012-01-02T20:17:00.000Z

Oystercatcher Skellig Michael

Guillemots

Cormorants

Cormorant

Gannets Little Skellig


Fulmar talking

Information about Cormorants and Guillemots can be found on the Birdwatch Ireland website here and here

Welcome 2012, 365 reasons to come to Kerry!

2012-01-02T18:47:00.000Z

I took those photos yesterday afternoon during a walk down the road from St.Finians Bay beach to the pier. The low light and fast moving clouds provided great photo opportunties and the swell at the sea gave me some nice waves when they hit the rocks.
I have a feeling that these photos are some kind of metaphor of what is going ahead of us this year. Everything will change again, thats for sure. Stormy times.
All photos Canon 5d, 70-200 lens.

Skellig birds, part three.

2011-12-31T01:32:00.000Z

Kittiwakes nesting

Puffins

Gannets on Little Skellig

Storm Petrel

Razorbills

Herring Gull

Razorbills

Fulmar

Fulmar flying

Kittiwakes

Information about Kittiwakes can be found here, Birdwatch Ireland.
The Storm Petrel link is here, same source.

Skellig Birds, part two.

2011-12-30T12:03:00.000Z

Puffin

Fulmar

Herring Gull and Little Skellig

Read about the Fulmar on the Birdwatch Ireland website here
The information about the Herring Gull can be found at the same source here

Skellig Birds, part one.

2011-12-29T17:15:00.000Z

All photos taken on Skellig Michael

Puffins are any of three small species of auk (or alcids) in the bird genus Fratercula with a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among rocks or in burrows in the soil. Two species, the Tufted Puffin and Horned Puffin, are found in the North Pacific Ocean, while the Atlantic Puffin is found in the North Atlantic Ocean.
All puffin species have predominantly black or black and white plumage, a stocky build, and large beaks. They shed the colourful outer parts of their bills after the breeding season, leaving a smaller and duller beak. Their short wings are adapted for swimming with a flying technique under water. In the air, they beat their wings rapidly (up to 400 times per minute)^[1] in swift flight, often flying low over the ocean's surface.
source: wiki Puffin

Go raibh Nollaig shona agus athbhliain sona sásta ag gach éinne!

2011-12-24T16:01:00.000Z

A Happy Christmas and a prosperous Year 2012 to all of you and thank you for the support, help and friendship.

Winter Solstice Eightercua, Waterville.

2011-12-21T21:20:00.000Z

Eightercua is a four-stone alignment (stone-row) Megalithic tomb, located 1.5 km south-south-east of Waterville, County Kerry, Ireland. The tallest stone reaches 9 feet in height, and the alignment streaches for twenty five feet in an east-west direction. Surrounding artifacts, including remains of a possible tomb and an ancient enclosure, suggest that the site had a ritual purpose at one time. Eightercua is thought to originate from circa. 1700 BC, and by tradition is the burial place of Scéine, wife of the leader of the Milesian invaders, Amergin mac Míled.^[1]
The site features four tall slabs from 1.8m to 3m high running east and west. From one stone a slab runs south and could be part of a tomb chamber or cist set in an oval cairn 1m high
source: wikipedia

Winter in Kerry as we like it

2011-12-21T14:40:00.000Z

Outside Cahersiveen

St.Finians Bay beach

Lemaon Rock and Skelligs

Cloud over Rossbeigh beach

Dingle Bay Rainbow

Kells

Knocknadobar shower

Outside Cahersiveen

Dingle Bay

Water, Reflections, Sea and Rain in Kerry

2011-12-03T20:26:00.000Z

Reflection at Watzerville Lake

River near Waterville

Waterville Lake

Two photos of a boat at Waterville Lake, the second with Polarizer filter

St.Finians Bay

Big cloud and Skelligs

Shower behind Waterville, from my window.

We are surrounded by water in Kerry. Lakes, rivers, streams, and the Antlantic Ocean with the big clouds coming from South West.
Light and condition can change very quickly but this is the time of the year when you get your daily wash. The rivers are full and clouds bringing more water every day. If you go out, keep youself and your gear dry, and a Polarizer filter is always handy to control reflections. You will be glad you went, always rewarding to go out in to the wild in Kerry. Don´t forget the tripod.

Certificate Night Tech Amergin,Waterville

2011-11-28T11:36:00.001Z

Paddy Bushe introducing the musician

Congratulation to Allen, John, Derarca, Deirde, Eva, Aislinn and Paul for a finishing their Fetac level 5 digital photography course with great results. Again all my students finished with distinction. After the presentation one of the best musicians of Ireland, Brendan Begley took the stage and performed together with his son Brian. Brendan launched his new cd and played and sang some wonderful tunes. You can order the cd on his website:http://brendanbegley.com/

Gougane Barra with the South Kerry Camera Club

2011-11-20T21:38:00.000Z

Gouga

The camera club went to Gougane Barra today to take photos of the lake and chapel and the mountains. The day was a bit overcast but still very good for photos and we all had a good day out. Thanks again Claude to show us the way to Gougane Barra and The Gereagh on the way home. The dog in the photo was not part of our group but a nice addition to the photo anyway. Here is a short copy of a text from wikipedia:

Gougane Barra (Irish: Guagán Barra, meaning "the rock of Barra")^[1] is a settlement, west of Macroom in County Cork, Ireland.
The name Gougane Barra comes from Saint Finbarr, who is said to have built a monastery on an island in the lake nearby during the 6th century. The present ruins date from around 1700 when a priest called Denis O'Mahony retreated to the island. During the times of the Penal Laws, Gougane Barra's remoteness meant that it became a popular place for the celebration of the Roman Catholic Mass.
Afforestation of the area around the settlement began in 1938 and Gougane Barra is now home to a 1.42 square kilometre forest park which is home to a number of mammal and bird species.

Workshop Church Island, Waterville Lake

2011-11-19T22:16:00.000Z

After a couple days of strong downpoor the morning cleared and we went to Lough Currane or Waterville Lake for the workshop on Church Island. Paddy Bushe came with us and gave us again very valuable information about the history of the monastery and Finion´s cell. The day was just perfect and we were all happy about the light and the warm day. A big thanks to Neill O`Shea for the ferryservice to the island. November weather in Kerry can be very unsettled, we were all lucky today.

To finish the day, I went for a walk to St.Finians Bay in the Glen and was rewarded with a great evening of amazing light. My dog was happy too and went for a dip in the sea.

Valentia Lighthouse, Cromwell Point

2011-11-14T18:32:00.000Z

The camera club was visiting Valentia Lighthouse yesterday, my second time. The tower and its surrounding is a wonderful photolocation, not open to the public though.
I took a lot of detail photos and noticed that the other people were all done and I haven´t even managed to go to the lantern and the balcony.
I rushed up, took some photos and some on the way down and changed the photos to blacK&white. Thank you very much Richard for making it happen again, I hope we get another chance.

Saturday, November 12. Sunny, mild, dry.

2011-11-12T21:20:00.000Z

Night over Ballinskelligs

2011-11-03T22:46:00.000Z

The plough

Waterville lights

Ballinskelligs castle at night

Just before the camera club meeting tonight I´ve taken a few photos of the scenery and sky over Ballinskeligs. The half moon was brightening up the clouds and landscape and the stars were very well to see. I took the photos with iso200 and 400, f 1.8 to 2.2 with a shutterspeed of 25 seconds in manual settings. You need to focus manual to infinity and a sturdy tripod is great help, try it in the next few nights, but stay away from the moon, its to bright. South Kerry is a great location for night photography due to its minor light pollution.

Clouds

2011-10-25T17:47:00.000+01:00

Long Shutterspeed

2011-10-22T23:09:00.000+01:00

Here are some samples of photos that I took during the week using long shutterspeed. For landscape photos you need a tripod, to be independent from any lightsituation. The long shutterspeed allows you to show movement of water, clouds, carlights in contrast to static structures like the rocks in the water. The evening time after sunset is a good time to practise long shutterspeed. It is important to know that most cameras have a limit of the longest shutterspeed of 30 seconds. If you need a longer shutterspeed use the B-setting on your camera and a cable release.
p.s. the photo inside the car was taken as a passenger not as a driver, thanks Franz for the chance to try this.

September Workshop Review

2011-09-30T00:41:00.000+01:00

Muckross Park, Greenhouse. Killarney

2011-08-31T23:39:00.000+01:00

The greenhouse in Killarney´s Muckross Park always made some impression on me as a nice piece of architecture. Durind my recent workshop I took a few photos around the building and was quite happy with the results as the images show some character of the building and its purpose. The reason I´m showing the photos here is more to demonstrate how many different angles you get when you work with passion on a particular theme. Its always beneficial to keep things simple, all photos were taken with a Canon 5d mkII and a 50mm lens. I´ve used the live view feature for some shots and all photos were taken freehand with almost open aperture.
If you approach a photo subject next time, take a bit more time to look and try to visualise how your photo is going to look like. Forget all the technical stuff and just enjoy colours, shapes and light. You´ll get different photos, promised.

World Wide Photo Walk Ballinskelligs 2011

2011-08-27T13:48:00.001+01:00

Register now for October 1, Ballinskelligs

Here is the link to the flickr group pool with photos from the 2010 walk.http://www.flickr.com/groups/1511798@N22/pool/

August Workshop, part two

2011-08-26T00:19:00.000+01:00

August International Workshop 2011, part one.

2011-08-16T15:25:00.001+01:00

More to come, all photos Lumix LX3, just sharpened.

Bob Ellis- "House on Fire" photography project at Tech Amergin, Waterville, County Kerry

2011-08-13T20:44:00.002+01:00

Bolus Loop Walk

2011-07-22T23:26:00.000+01:00

Bolus Barracks Loop walk was opened recently, you can start at the memorial for the American Warplane that crashed into Skellig Michael and walk to the far end of Bolus Head, up to the fort at the top and back. If you like to take it easy, its a nice 3 hours walk with breathtaking cliffs and great views to the Skelligs, St.Finians Bay and Ballinskelligs Bay.

South Kerry Camera Club Annual Trip to Skellig Michael

2011-07-14T00:51:00.004+01:00

Skellig Michael

South Kerry Camera Club at Skellig Lighthouse

Puffins

Little Skellig

Richard explaining the history of the road to the Upper Lighthouse

Skellig Lighhouse

Club members on top of Skellig Lighthouse

South Peak, Skellig Michael

Mind the step, Puffin.


Puffins

Little Skellig and photographers

Little Skellig

Gannets, Little Skelligs

Little Skelligs, severe landslide on the left

Skellig Michael and Little Skellig

Detail, Little Skellig

Rock, Little Skellig

Skellig Michael

Gannet country

Rocks and Gannets

Razorbills

Puffins and Little Skellig

The South Kerry Camera Club went to Skellig Michael for a very special day of landscape and wildlife photography. The trip on the boat was the smoothest in years according to our skipper Ken Roddy. On the way to Skellig he stopped for a moment to give us time to admire the sunfish swimming right below surface with the upper fin flapping around. Arriving on Skellig Michael at 10 am we had time on our way to the monastery of Skellig Michael to take photos of the Puffins from all angles and even Razorbills and Sheerwater from a small distance. Kittywakes were still feeding their chicks on the rocks while the Puffin chicks were hiding inside little caves waiting to be fed. The sound of birds was everywhere, and due to the luck that we were the first group we had them all for ourselves. Arriving at the monastery was special as always, it is a feeling as you get it when you enter a chuch or a big concert hall, it must be the energy of the place.
On our way down from the monastery we could take more photos of Puffins, and the view from the higher angle is always different, looking over to Litte Skellig with its Gannets.
Arriving at the bottom of the steps we met our man Richard Foran, the Principal Lighthouse Keeper of Skellig Michael. Richard is a member of the Camera Club from the beginning and a dedicated photographer. He has the fastest camera in the group, a Canon 7d. Richard gave the group a guided tour trough the lighthouse and explained in detail how everything works and the historical background. It was most fascinating to hear all the stories and technical jargon from a man that spend all his life in lighthouses.
Below on the rock were 6-7 seals enjoying the fine weather, while we took photos.
On our way to the old lighhouse we admired the perfection of the walls and road that had been build with the two lighthouses and the dwellings in the 1820s. It was a great opportunity to take a picture of the lighhouse from the higher viewpoint. Coming down from the old lighthouse ruin we had lunch in the lighthouse dwelling room before heading back to the pier where Ken Roddy awaited us with the boat. The final part of our journey was a very slow visit of Little Skellig with its thousands of Gannets and a breathtaking landscape. The rock is almost white at the moment and the sound of the birds is very present. On the way home we reflected already on this beautiful day and the great photos we took.
After arrival at Portmagee it was time to celebrate the day with a pint outside the Bridge Bar, right in front of the harbour.
To make it even more special, Mairead Teahan, one of our club members gave birth to a little girl and her name is Ella today. All the best to Ella and what a day to be born, congrats Mairead. We are looking forward to take pictures of the young model.

Traffic in the Harbour, Valentia Island Lifeboat

2011-07-10T00:43:00.000+01:00

Saving lives at Sea

Part of the King Scallop Festival in Knightstown, Valentia Island.
RNLI Lifeboat and Coastguard Rescue Helicopter display today.

Clouds over Kerry

2011-07-07T00:06:00.000+01:00

After a nice chat with a friend in Knightstown, Valentia Island I went for a walk from the famous slate grotto up to the top uf Geokaun Mountain. The sun was getting low and big fat clouds where everywhere and moving fast. It was a dramatic scene just to stand there and watch the light and the clouds, but I took some photos too. I used a polafilter but I did not apply any changes except sharpening to the raw files, there is no need. You can drive up Geokaun mountain from the other side. After 9 in the evening is a good time at the moment.

Bray Head Mega Cliffs, Valentia Island, County Kerry

2011-07-04T16:00:00.000+01:00

Did you notice the photographer?

Portmagee Harbour with the new anker at night

Our last outing brought us over to Valentia Island and the region North of Bray Head was the target.

In his book "Man and Environment on Valencia Island" the author Frank Mitchell calls it the Mega Cliff. The cliff is rising to a height of 275m and stretches a mile down on the Northside of Valentia. On the way to the cliffs you are passing a big peat ground before arriving at a very rocky landscape close to the sea. To the right is a place called Beenaniller Head, the last home to the sea eagle in Ireland. Several ancient walls and ruins of buildings and settlements can be found in the area. This whole area is a heaven for any landscape photographer and one of the most exciting places in Kerry due to its vast variety of different scenes.

Frank Mitchell´s book can be ordered here: Frank Mitchell - Man&Eivironment in Valencia Island

After a relexed meeting in the Bridge Bar, I took the last photo of the newly arrived anker in Portmagee Harbour.

All photos with Canon 5dII and 17.40mm lens, tripod.100 ISO

Valentia Island, County Kerry, Seascape Photography

2011-06-28T00:38:00.000+01:00

Her are some photos from this part of our "wonderful world" as Louis Armstronng and Robert Wyatt used to sing, and the reason why I missed the first hour of "The Blue of the Night" on Lyric FM . But I´ll be there again Thursday night with the Camera Club.

June Workshop part three

2011-06-17T21:30:00.000+01:00

Portmagee Harbour

Valentia Island; Knightstown Café, Enchanted Garden

Valentia Island, Cliffs

Valentia Island, Knightstown Café, Enchanted Garden, Old Bench

Valentia Island, Knightstown Café

Valentia Island, Knightstown

Valentia Island, Flower near Bray Head

Valentia Island, Cliffs

Macgillicuddys and Lough Acoose

Indian Girl Asha on Skellig Michael doing Yoga

Sugreana Burial Ground

Ballaghoisheen Pass and Kerry Mountain

This is a final selection of photos that I took during my June workshop in the last 5 days with my small pocket camera Lumix lx3.
As you can see, we came around a bit and had a great week in the wilderness . There are a lot of places like Waterville Lake and Puffin Island where I did not take any photos because of teaching and explaining camera stuff. I enjoyed the week and hope everybody else did too.

June Workshop part two

2011-06-16T01:00:00.003+01:00

Here is a selection of photos I took yesterday and today during my workshop. Yesterday was Skellig Day, today we went to the Glen, Ballinskelligs and later to the mountain and lakes behind Waterville.
A very enjoyable day with plenty of fresh air, a bit walking up the hills and a nice meal in the evening in Waterville.

June Workshop Valentia Island

2011-06-14T22:57:00.001+01:00

Here are some photos from my current workshop. We spend the first couple hours on Sunday near and in the slate grotto on Valentia Island and had a great afternoon session near the sea. Monday was sunny and just perfect for a walk around Bray Head. You may notice that I took some photos of a rock from different angles, and I still could´n´t decide which I like most. It is usually a good idea to do have a look from both sides anyway and observe the light and the shapes of the scenery. All photos were taken with tripod and polarizer filter.
Our third day brought us out to Skellig Michael. Photos follow tomorrow.

Skellig Lighthouse, Richard Foran, the Keeper of the Light!

2011-05-25T02:46:00.001+01:00

Here is a display of the story about the lighthouse keeper of Skellig Michael, Richard Foran. The article is published today in the German newspaper "weltkompakt".
Richard is working with the Commissioners of Irish Lights for over 45 years. He has the colour of the sea in his eyes and the knowledge of a lifetime about lighthouses and the elements in his brain.
I can just thank him so much and CIL for the chance to work on this reportage and for all the help I have received.
It was a very special experience, and I´m certain that my photos do only little justice to the real thing.

Caherlehillan, County Kerry

2011-05-16T19:39:00.001+01:00

Caherlehillan is one of the oldest if not the oldest christian site in Ireland. The site was intensively researched and excavated in the 1990s by archeologist John Sheehan and his students, here is a report about the work:excavation.ie
The two standing slabs show very strong carvings, particular the one to the right with a bird, believed to be a peacock.
If you continue walking from the actual church site to the farm ( you need to ask for permission) you get to a wedge tomb, a fort and some ancient buildings or what is left of them. The fields are divided by numerous stonewalls. A wonderful tranquil place, the scenery is permanent changing with the movement of clouds and light.

Water, Stone, Light, Discover Kerry!

2011-04-27T23:31:00.000+01:00

Our Coastline in Ireland is full of interesting places. If you
walk around near the sea, you´ll find all kind of micro landscapes with wonderful simplistic settings. A few stones, a rock that was softened from the waves and those roundish stones everywhere, will get you great photos. You will discover that arranging and organising the different shapes and colour or greyscales in your frame is an easy way to learn composing your images. I have noticed that a lot of photographers forget to turn the camera for a portrait shaped photo but it is actually the easiest way to create something completely different. The options are endless, I´ve reduced the 30 photos of my selection to those 13, all photos were taken in a space of about 5 m² near Whitestrand, Over the Water, Cahersiveen with a Canon 5d, 50mm macro and 17-40 lens, with Polarizer Filter. Tripod mounted.
Be careful, the ground is uneven and if wet very slippery!

Carrauntoohill, County Kerry the highest peak in Ireland

2011-04-21T22:35:00.000+01:00

Carrauntoohil or Carrantuohill^[2] ( /ˌkærənˈtuːl/ — from Irish: Corrán Tuathail)^[1] is the highest peak in Ireland. Located in County Kerry, it is 1,038 metres (3,406 ft)^[3] tall and is the central peak of the Macgillycuddy's Reeks range. There are two other peaks in this range that are above 1,000 m—Beenkeragh (1,010 m) and Caher (1,001 m). The peak of Carrauntoohil is topped by a large metal cross 5 metres (16 ft) tall.

I went there yesterday with my big tripod, Canon 5d, the lot, in the company of Tatjana and Christian. I did´nt how the photos would look like, but one thing was sure for me from the moment I started climbing; they would be black and white. Most photos were taken with the 50mm macro lens, a lens that I use a lot for landscape, until I´m rich one day and can afford a 50mm Zeiss lens. Enjoy!

p.s. I did not go the Devils Ladder, went from Lough Acoose instead, much more fun.

How to make a virtual photo book

2011-04-13T11:56:00.000+01:00

Here is a new version of how to make an e- book with your photos, written by Eva for her Digital Photography Course project, which you can actually download on issuu if you want to.
Since we wrote the article of how to publish your photos with issuu.com they have changed what type of files you can upload. So, on top of pdf files you can now upload word documents and powerpoint presentations (not only by Microsoft but OpenOffice as well).
The powerpoint presentation is a relatively fast way to organise your photos in a book compared to putting your photos on any background in Photoshop.
Still faster and easier is to use the SLIDESHOW MODUL in Lightroom if you have that program.
(I will write about that soon.)

One of the things you need to consider is the size of your photos plus background. The first e- books I made were the ones about the Skelligs and although it is nice to be able to see them big and in a good resolution it takes too much time for the pages to open. When I look at the statistics about how often the single pages in a book were looked at, the numbers decrease with pages further into the book which I think has to do with the slow opening and not the quality of the photos I hope.

Open publication - Free publishing - More e-book

Waterville Beach and Blue Hour

2011-04-07T23:34:00.000+01:00

The South Kerry Camera Club went to Waterville tonight. A calm evening, a slight haze over the sea and a bit fog on the hills. Ideal conditions for all kind of different photos. Left from us were two surfer in the water and while I was standing near the sea an otter passed by, making a noise like a bird. Waterville is hosting a Comidy Film Festival in August because of Charlie Chaplin, who used to spend his holidays here.
The camera was on the tripod, shutterspeed over one minute, I´ve used a ND8 filter for some shots. The blue hour photos were only slightly darkened in Lightroom, no colour change.

Blue of the Night is a wonderful radio show on Lyric fm, starting at 10pm every night until 1 in the morning. http://www.rte.ie/lyricfm/blue/

More Fire and Smoke

2011-03-25T21:45:00.000Z

Even now at the end of March fires are still burning on mountains, fields and forestries in Kerry, like this one in St.Finians Bay last night. The Fire Brigade is out all day trying to prevent the worst, the air is filled with smoke. Birds are nesting already and the newly born lambs are on the fields. Hard to understand the mindset of some people, hope I can provide better news soon.
All photos Canon 5d, 1.2 50mmm

The special light of Kerry

2011-03-21T21:34:00.000Z

March is a fantastic month for dramatic light in Kerry. the days are longer, the temperature a bit more pleasent and nature starts a new beginning. many of reasons to go out and see whats happening in front of your lens. the first lambs walking the green fields and birds like Snipe, Finch and Robin are everywhere. the Blackbirds in our garden searching for worms. Camelia and Daffodil bushes are in full bloom. the South West wind blows the clouds over Kerry towards the midland region, while we are looking in to the sun.
I took a lot of photos with dramatic clouds recently and you will notice that they work as a wonderful filter to prevent reflections. I haven not changed any saturation or used any filter for the photos, just pure clean Irish air, fresh from the sea at the right time of the day. after a couple of weeks with fire and smoke, a great joy.
all photos with tripod and 70-200 zoom, Canon 5d

It´s square, blurry and the colours are faded, but I like it.

2011-03-11T14:57:00.001Z

Years ago everybody had a Polaroid camera and each family had some of those photos in a shoebox. somehow the look and feeling of Polaroid photos has made it in to our autobiographical memory. the results of the Polaroid camera were far from beeing perfect and the square format had its own unique visual appeal. every shot was a solitaire. it was a special moment to see the image developing and always a mix of hope and expectation.
Polaroid is now gone but the film can be still ordered from a company that bought all the machinery and equipment . here is the link Polaroid film .
the photos above are actually not Polaroids but a kind of hommage to this type of photography . somehow this kind of photography means more to me than those perfect and over saturated images that some people admire so much. it seems more of a humble nature and it is a bit like we are: wonderfully imperfect, but not a clone.

Stormy days in Ireland

2011-02-26T22:49:00.001Z

You hear a lot of talk about changes in Ireland recently. I went to Valentia Island today to take some photos of the heavy swell that was mentioned on the radio. there was little wind but the sea blew the salty spray right in to my face and the camera too. I like this place for its roughness and unpredictability. you never know whats going to happen, which is the charakter of photography as well.
the waves were crashing against the rock, wave after wave and the sun moved on. i´m sure the same thing will happen tomorrow, but it will be different. it is good to have some reliable things in life. nature seem to work for me.
not to sure about politics, though.

Rossbeigh Beach, without the landmark tower

2011-02-14T23:56:00.001Z

One of my students in the current class came this morning in with the bad news that the tower on Rossbeigh beach fell last Saturday into the sea. This is a sad day for Kerry, it lost one of his landmark buildings because of the incompetence of the people responsible for the heritage of this county. Nothing more to say, its history, what stays is the memory and some photos see this post

Digital Photography Course

2011-01-31T11:48:00.000Z

A new Digital Photography Course is going to start at the end of February in Tech Amergin, Waterville. It is a Level 5 Fetac Course and it will run for 26 weeks on Tuesday evenings. Some knowledge of your camera and computers would be beneficial.
There are still places left, so if you are interested contact me or Angela in Tech Amergin, Waterville to enroll. (Tel. 066-9478956 ).

We are approaching the final two weeks of our current course and everybody is very busy putting their projects together of which you can see some here later...

A fabulous day in the Kerry Mountains

2011-01-24T00:09:00.000Z

Saturday was cold and clear, so I decided to go to the Macgillycuddy Reeks to take some photos and see if I can prepare a few routes for my upcoming workshops. I walked up towards Caher slowly taking pictures here and there and checking the ground. I´ve made it almost to the top but decided to turn back, as I knew sunset would be around 5 pm. when I arrived back at the car Lough Accoose was just covered with great evening light. all photos taken with tripod.

A Winter´s Day in Derrynane, South Kerry

2011-01-22T10:58:00.000Z

Always an inspiration to walk in Derrynane´s Park next to the O´Connel House.

The frost has destroyed a few plants but worse is the elm disease, I gather some of the old elms need to be cut.

Hogs Head, County Kerry, and a full moon.

2011-01-20T00:15:00.000Z

Lough Acoose, Glencar, County Kerry

2011-01-05T19:33:00.000Z

Lough Acoose is situated between the MacGillycuddy Reeks and Glencar. I had a nice walk there about a week ago with Frank from Dublin. You can actually do a kind of loop walk to go to Carrauntuohill Mountain (1039mtrs) Irelands highest mountain and Beenkeragh (1010mtrs).

I turned some photos in to black&white and left the sunset photos in colour. Here is a link to a B&B and more information about the walks.

http://www.kerry-ireland.com/kerryway/stage2.htm

Thanks Frank for great company and petrol!

Happy New Year 2011,Portmagee,County Kerry

2011-01-01T12:49:00.001Z

President Mary McAleese and husband Martin were our special guests this New Years Eve for the midnight celebration. Ger Sullivan was the New Year and was cheered by a big crowd when he appeared. the best way to start the new year.

Snow on Skellig Michael

2010-12-29T20:37:00.000Z

This is just a week ago, all gone now, soft light and weather now. The monastery on Skellig Michael covered in snow is most certainly the biggest thing I have not photographed this year. Maybe one day. sigh.

Seasons Greatings from South West Ireland

2010-12-25T02:16:00.000Z

A Happy Christmas to all visitors, friends and family, we wish you a peaceful season.

Winter Solstice, Lunar Eclipse and Snow in Kerry

2010-12-21T22:49:00.002Z

This morning on Bray Head, Valentia Island between 7 and 8.30 am...

This last photo was taken this afternoon, snow has eventually reached Cealla Cnoic - much to the surprise of our cat and dog.

Winter Walk in South Kerry

2010-12-04T18:54:00.001Z

With all the cold and unpredictable weather of late you would not think this is the right time for taking landscape photos- but it is!

Together with a photographer from Germany who came here on a photo holiday we both set out yesterday to explore the lovely winter light in the gardens of Derrynane House among other places.
Although it was quite cold we were quite determined to make the most of the dry conditions and absolutely stunning light at times.

Instead of putting single photos here I used Lightroom´s Slideshow Settings to export a pdf which I then simply uploaded to my issuu account and the embedded the "photobook" here!

Enjoy! (And click on the following to see it bigger...)

Open publication - Free publishing - More winter

Rossbeigh Beach, County Kerry

2010-11-29T13:38:00.000Z

Rossbeigh Beach, is part of the Glenbeigh village at the Ring of Kerry. I went there last Saturday with one of my students in the Killorglin Community College, Sean Golden. Sean had shown photos from the Tower on the beach and the poor state of the structure made me interested to take some photos myself. The Tower used to mark the entrance to Castlemaine Harbour and is called also Castlemaine Beacon. The Tower is badly damaged and needs to be repaired urgently or it will fall very soon. I hope the work is carried out soon, otherwise this landmark is lost for good.
In the background is Dingle Peninsula, covered in snow.

If you go there beware of soft sand during low tide, you can sink in.

Bray Head, Valentia Island, County Kerry - Winter Walk

2010-11-28T18:18:00.000Z

Dingle Peninsula in snow

If you drive over the bridge from Portmagee turn left and after passing the monument for the Transantlantic Cable you turn left again and park your car on the left. You walk a nice and easy walk up to Bray Head from where you can see in all directions including the Skelligs and Portmagee.
This is a spot for fantastic panorama shots and the sheep are always close. Be careful at the edge of the land.
This morning we had this wonderful view of the Kerry mountains covered in snow.
Its only a 20 minutes drive from the Ring of Kerry.

Kerry Mountain during the Winter

2010-11-21T23:24:00.000Z

Derriana Lake, Waterville, County Kerry

Stormy Weather - Valentia Lighthouse, County Kerry

2010-11-11T22:20:00.000Z

Storm force 9-10 over Ireland made me going to Valentia Island today. The region around the lighthouse is always a great place to take pictures of waves crashing against the rocks. I had to hold my tripod really tight and selected a setting of my shutterspeed not longer than 1/250 sec. On my way home I managed to take some shots of the sun trying to get through the clouds.
If you are planning to do something similar, spend at least two hours working on your subject, you`ll be rewarded. Because of the strong wind a lot of photos will be out of focus or blurred. Remember to clean your front lens from time to time, the salt in the air lowers the contrast of the photos immensely. Cover the camera and lens between shots. Please do not go to close to the sea, the blustery winds and the waves are highly dangerous.
Clean your gear when you arrive at home!

Killarney National Park, Photowalk 2010

2010-10-31T23:54:00.000Z

Patricia`s perfect histogram

a shot with my lensbaby

Thank you all for taking part in this wonderful walk trough Killarney National Park, unfortunately we had lost half of our group when I had the idea to take the picture at the Govenour´s View. The weather was nice to us and some of us even went to Torc Waterfall, after a lunch and coffee in Muchross House. If you like to take some photos of autumn leaves go there soon, the next storm could blow them away.

Killarney Park Photowalk this Saturday

2010-10-27T21:22:00.000+01:00


Ross Castle,Killarney

Join me for a photowalk this Saturday, October 30, we meet at 10 am at the Ross Castle car park. We take a walk trough the forest to the lake and back to the castle. This should be the right time to get some colourful pictures from trees, leaves and the lake with its ever changing sky and the mountin in the background. Practice your photography a bit and come out for some fresh air. And its all free!!! See you.

The great light is back, part two

2010-10-23T23:04:00.000+01:00

I went for a walk on the beach today and the sky was just amazing. All the wonderful colours are back and the sun behind the clouds is making it a really dramatic experience. If you are going out to take pictures of clouds and sky, point the camera up for the metering and keep the finger on the button half pressed down. Compose your photo and shoot. Go for the afternoon and evening light.

A beautiful day ends in Kerry

2010-10-11T22:30:00.000+01:00

This day finished the same way it started. A sky with wonderful colours and no wind or breeze. It was the first time in my life that I saw the moon sinking into the sea, what a moment. I could hear the sheep in the field near me walking and from time to time the light from Bull Rock Lighthouse appeared, nothing else.
I´ve started teaching in the O´Connell Centre Cahersiveen this morning, tomorrow my course in Tech Amergin resumes and on Wednesday I´m starting a class in Killorglin at the Community College. If you are interested taking part in one of the courses, please contact me soon.

The great light is back

2010-09-22T22:17:00.000+01:00

St.Finians Bay Beach , County Kerry

After some time, I went down the road to St.Finians Bay to take some photos in the evening. I noticed that the clouds are getting the dramatic look again and the light has a different quality now. Except the noise of the sea I did not hear anything, the evening was mild and a soft breeze was moving the air. I´m going to Germany on Friday, I´m sure going to miss this.
If you are after pictures like this stay for an hour after sunset. A tide table is helpful too. the black and white editing was done in Lightroom 3. Try to balance the dark and bright weights in your image.

First South Kerry Camera Club Exhibition

2010-09-14T13:02:00.002+01:00

Angela from Tech Amergin sent me these informations about the opening night of our Camera Club´s first exhibition during Heritage week here in South Kerry.
You are all very welcome!

Promontory Fort or Portmagee Castle

"Just to let you know about Culture Night on Friday, September 24th. This event is organised by Tech Amergin Arts.

7:30 pm - South Kerry Camera club will open an exhibition of photos on an archaeological theme -Opened by John Sheehan (archaeologist)

8:00 pm - Heritage Iveragh will host a talk on archaeology and history of Iveragh - An overview with John Sheehan (archaeologist)

10:00 pm - South Kerry Astronomy group will host a talk and slide show on astronomy followed by weather permitting, an outside telescopic viewing

All events will take place at Tech Amergin, Waterville, Co. Kerry."

Polaroid in Kerry, the Impossible Project

2010-09-12T16:01:00.001+01:00

If you still own an old Polaroid camera and you would like to use it again, I have good news for you. Thanks to some enthusiastic people you can get film for some Polaroid cameras now and enjoy a very different type of photography. The photos are not really sharp, the colours are rather strange ( you can have a kind of black and white film too) and you get only a single image, no negativ and it is rather small. Still, the whole thing is fascinating and the creations are very different from what photographs are looking today and I have to say I love this type of photography. I´ve ordered a sample pack of colour shade film on the website http://www.the-impossible-project.com/projects/ and after some thinking and testing I found a suitable project: the old tractors in Kerry that are still in use everywhere, mainly by farmers to get the turf from the boglands home. Most of them are from the time when Polaroid was still very common, 70´s and 80´s machines with funny names and colours. I´m going to start taking pictures of them from now on and if you like to get your tractor photographed on Polaroid, get in touch with me.

Portmagee Castle Gate House in Reencaheragh

2010-09-08T01:29:00.002+01:00

Last week I went for a evening walk with Elizabeth who kindly showed me the way to this interesting unspoild part of Portmagee. I had the Gate House seen from the boat on the way to Skellig Michael but somehow was never there. It is located near the coast and must have been a good point to watch the harbour entrance in its days. Most of it is badly damaged or gone but the Gate House building is still impressive. On one of the islands nearby is a burial ground visible from the mainland. bring a tripod with you for evening photos as the days are getting shorter now.

Blur and Motion

2010-08-16T19:24:00.000+01:00

You may have seen some photos from sports events where the photographer moved the zoom focal lenghts during the shot to get this blurry, exciting fast speed look.
It needs a bit of practice but you are getting there at some stage, and because we are living in the digital age, you can try as long as you like with no extra costs. However the disadvantage of this procedure is that you may not have a normal image at all in your archiv. Here is a different approach, that you can try with Photoshop or another program for editing photos.
Open the file and go to filter - blur filter - circular blur.
Be careful with the amount of blur you apply, you will still like to recognize what the purpose of this image is.
In this case I made a selection around the surfer and inverted the selection so that he is not blurred. I have increased the contrast as well. Give it a try, its fun. Below is the result, go out and try it yourself.