Killarney National Park in May

Yesterday was a very fine day, with blue sky and white clouds.
I went to Killarney National Park to take some photos of the Bluebells and to my surprise the Wild Garlic was in full bloom as well.
The green of the leaves looked fresh and really juicy and like a new beginning. If you are into macro and flower photography go there soon.  Be careful when you walk in to the forest, I tried not to step on too many of the flowers.
In some of the photos you can observe different depths of field, with flowers especially I really like a kind of shallow depths so that more of your attention goes to details on one or two flowers. Then again I was so overwhelmed by the blue carpet of flowers, that I tried to capture them all with a bigger depth of field also.
Flowers are a great subject for experimenting with all kinds of setups so have a go with your camera in your garden or a ditch or Killarney´s National Park.

The South Kerry Camera Club

If you did not hear from the us, it is time to listen now. We are meeting every second week, ususally in Barbara´s coffee shop in Ballinskelligs, near the beach. We go out taking pictures together and talking about the latest gossip and photography. We are very friendly and everybody who likes taking photos is very welcome.
John, who has a holiday house on Valentia Island , was our guest tonight and so can be you if you are around the region.
We went over to Ballinskelligs Castle to take pictures of the rocks and the seaweed and the clouds. the air was fresh and clean, the light was great and because we had our tripods we could take some great shots. Come along and join us, bring your camera and practice photography, no better reason to leave the house.

all photos with Lumix LX3, again.

Cycling in South West Kerry

At breakfast this morning Eva suggested to go down to the Glen, (St. Finians Bay) to get our Bikes out of the shed.
The day looked just perfect for it and after a bit cleaning and pumping we went ahead. The first thing I did notice was this wonderful feeling of freedom when the wind goes in your face and the sun makes you wondering if things can get any better. You look in to the blue sky and wonder about the ash clouds from Iceland.
Kerry is a great place for cycling when you avoid the main roads. You`ll  pass farmhouses and old sheds that you´ll never notice when you drive in a car. Landscape details like a small river going down a hill or trees and flowers come in your elevated view. Horses, cows and donkeys are everywhere and of course the sound of the sheep is in the air.
As you see at the photo above, I parked the bike right in the middle of the road, traffic is really no issue here .
You can rent bikes in Eamon Casey´s Shop in Cahersiveen or you bring your own.

Discover Kerry by bike and with your camera!

St.Finians Bay, a typical scene

Donkeys near Ballinskelligs

great view to the Skelligs

a vintage tractor

hope to see you here one day!

all photos taken with Lumix LX3

My first Grey Heron and a send off

During my evening walk on the beach in Ballinskelligs I came across this Grey Heron. I´ve seen them before but somehow never took any pictures of them. I decided to spend a bit of time with this bird and was really surprised how many different shapes this animal can create. The sun went slowly down and the light got better and warmer. The Heron was walking up and down or flying around me because I had propably entered his territory and he seemed a bit upset.
Anyway, I took those photos today, and I´ve got a bit  joy out of it. I need more time to get closer next time.

Irish broadcaster Gerry Ryan had a great send off  today.
May he rest in peace and turn in to something beautiful like this Grey Heron.

Waterville Solstice Festival Workshop

 Here is the poster that I did today in preparation for the Waterville Solstice Festival Workshop. As Waterville is surrounded by water I take water as a theme for the three days. Hope you can take part in this or one of the other activities during the festival. I´m going to update you when I have the full program.
Water can be a wonderful subject in photography and the opportunities are endless. Reflections, light, movement, all kind of plants, boats, rocks, you name it - can be photographed. a great chance to learn and practice your skills.

Longer days, more time to take your photos outdoors

A great evening with my Waterville class on the beach

 At the old Burial Ground, Over the Water, Caherciveen...

and at the cliffs near Portmagee with the Camera Club.

Before....

and after a Tourism-meeting in Portmagee.

 last week at my own place, just running up the hill.

and finally yesterday in the Glen, during a walk.



I could not believe that I did only one post on the blog in April, it was a very busy month for me and a lot of work had to be done. Looking back, I still took a lot of photos, in the morning, during the day or in the evening. Its like a dayly exercise and keeps record what I´m doing. this selection of pictures was taking in the now longer days and during my classes, with the South Kerry Camera Club or just during a walk to get a break from the computer.
I always carry a small compact camera with me, a Lumix LX3. I really like the camera for its image quality and that I can change all settings and shoot raw or jpg. she does nice HDR-Videos as well and the macro settings are another great feature for detail shots. I miss a viewfinder as the screen is sometimes hard to see, but despite that a great little camera, if you know how to make the most of it.