The Brazen Head
This is the oldest pub in Ireland. Ain't that cool? Oh yeah, and Happy St. Patrick's Day! (required Irish photo below)
Do you have certain things that you automatically associate with certain countries? You know, like tea with the English? I have a few, and one of them is good pubs and the Irish people...they just go together.
I've posted many photos here of The Temple Bar pub in Dublin, and I admit that I still have PLENTY more of those to get to. It's just so photogenic. Frankly, I love that spot. But there's another pub in Dublin which is well worth your time. It's this one...The Brazen Head. It's awesome, and it's the oldest pub in Ireland!
Now, it's a bit more of a walk than Temple Bar, but only by a few minutes. And it's not sitting in the center of the entertainment district bearing it's name (also like The Temple Bar). But it has personality, and as Jules said in Pulp Fiction...personality goes a long way.
I went there on my recent trip to Dublin after shooting around with my friends Mike Murphy, who was up from London for a few days, and Mark, who was traveling with me from Texas. We ended up sitting there and making friends with a group of Irish folks who were seated near us.
One of them, a bit of an elderly man, took a big interest when he found out we were from Texas. He's apparently a bit of a historian, and started quizzing us on things that I had either never learned in school, or long since forgotten. Or, maybe it was the Guinness. :-)
Either way, we had a great time and I highly recommend you visit The Brazen Head when you get to Dublin. You can thank me later!
And by the way...this place is full of locals, so that's saying something. Though I love The Temple Bar, I admit it's full of tourists mostly, whereas places like the Brazen Head appeal to the locals. That's good enough for me.
Sunrise in Dublin
I've had this photo finished and sitting on my desktop for months now. Not sure why, but I keep passing it over in favor of posting something else. But I decided that sitting there and gathering virtual dust is no way for this photo to spend it's time - it wants to get out there and be seen! So, here ya go - a sunrise I caught one morning in the lovely town of Dublin, Ireland.
No, I did not take this one on my most recent trip there a couple of weeks ago. This was taken on my previous trip there last year. Either way, it's Dublin, and it's sunrise...and here you go. I finally posted it. :-)
The Bankers Lounge, Dublin
I have a thing for shooting pubs!
I guess I didn't realize it until my recent trip over to Dublin, but as I was going through my shots I realized that I have taken a LOT of photos of the various pubs there. I can't help it - I just find them interesting! They just seem to have so much character.
This one is a good example. It's not special in any way, and I doubt anyone would call it beautiful. But, as I walked past and looked down the street both ways, I just liked the look of the scene. The red color just pops against the grey, rainy skies I had that day, and of course I just love that little arrow pointing down the street. Cool stuff.
Trinity College Library
This is one impressive library!
This library sits on the campus of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. I was in Dublin about a week ago, and prior to my visit I had a list of new places I wanted to go shoot there, and this was #1 on the list. Isn't it awesome?
I have been to Dublin several times now, but for various reasons had never made it here to see this incredible library. I have seen photos online so I knew it was something worth visiting. I'm glad I had the time for it!
It was somewhat busy, though not entirely crowded, but when I am in places like this I try and exclude the tourists from the shots if possible. In this case, I just aimed a little higher than normal. Regardless, I thought it gave a nice view of the place, and in case you are curious, no you cannot touch the books.
Some of these things are really old. The Library also houses the famous Book of Kells, which dates from something like 800 AD. So yeah, some old stuff in this place. If you find yourself in Dublin, go and check this out!
Four Courts, Dublin
I finally got a good shot of this thing!
I have been to Dublin several times now, and each time I have seen this wonderful building, standing so tall and interesting next to the River Liffey. But, each time I have not really loved the photo that I have ended up with. It's different reasons each time, but nonetheless I wasn't totally thrilled with any of them.
And by the way, this is the Four Courts Building in Dublin, which is the seat of their Supreme Court, among other things. I just like the architecture, and the fact that it sits next to the river (and it's close to the oldest pub in Ireland, which is the subject of a post I hope to get to soon).
But, this time was different. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I just returned from a trip to Dublin (and then on to Glasgow) and was able to get in quite a few shots in both towns. And despite the rain threatening in Dublin, I kept getting my shots in without too much incident, rain-wise. It just worked out. The great thing about rain (yes, I just said that!) is that rain comes via clouds, and clouds can add a lot of interest and drama to a shot.
Take this photo, for instance. Although I like the shot a lot, I admit the sky adds a different (and more interesting) element to the shot. If there were no clouds in the sky and it was a clear blue, I would be pretty bored with it.
Anyways, it worked out great for me last week, and I am trying to find a little time to process more shots from the trip - so much to work on! (and that's a good problem)
Here's a Before and After in case you want to see the processing steps that I took while working on this one in Color Efex Pro:
Some Temple Bar goodness
I just got back from Dublin - love that town!
I spent last week in Dublin and Glasgow, two cities that I really enjoy visiting. I always bring my camera (of course) and take photos, time-permitting. Well, time did permit and I clicked away like crazy. But, I actually didn't take today's shots last week - I took these on one of my previous trips there. I just happened to have them ready, and when I sat down to write this, all I could think about was Dublin!
I just haven't had time to work on any shots from the trip yet - hopefully I will get to that this week sometime. I took over 1500 shots in the two cities last week, so I expect I will have some real goodies to share with you. Plus, I also got to several new spots in each town, which means I can add them to my lists of where to shoot in each city - fun!
So, til I get to processing the new stuff, please enjoy these which are of The Temple Bar in Dublin, taken in broad daylight (of all things!). I just happened to be walking by one day, and it only took a couple of minutes for the scene to clear out, and then I fired away.
The Temple Bar is just so photogenic - I shoot it every time I go there. I just can't help myself! I hope you don't mind seeing it again. And if you do, well...sorry, but there are a million more shots of Temple Bar that I haven't even processed yet. And believe me, I definitely plan to share them here when they are ready!
Morning in Dublin
Have I ever mentioned how much I love to shoot at sunrise? ;-)
Ok, I know I say that a lot here but man is it ever true! See this scene? I have walked by here at all times of day: blue hour in the morning and on thru sunrise, mid-morning, mid-day, sunset, and into the evening. Guess what? It's freaking crowded almost all the time!
You know why it's crowded? It's awesome. Ok, well the other reason is that this is in the middle of Dublin's entertainment district which is known as Temple Bar. That's where all the tourists go to have fun. Except at sunrise of course, because all the tourists are still asleep.
So that brings me back around to why I love sunrise. I get to stand on a street corner in the most famous part of a famous town, and shoot at anything and everything I want, and not have anyone get in my way. Who can argue with that?
Sunrise at Trinity College
Sometimes you get up early and Mother Nature rewards you!
I say here often that sunrise is one of the best times to shoot, and I really think that. Yes it's hard to get up but I find that it is nearly always worth it. Sure, some mornings just turn out crappy but usually I end up with plenty of keepers.
The thing is that it is impossible to predict. You never know what you might get. With sunset, you have the benefit of checking out the weather report, looking outside at the sky and then making a decision. Plus let's face it - you're already awake.
But with sunrise, it's a total gamble.
When I travel to Europe, I prefer sunrise though since I can wander the streets of whatever town I am in without all the tourists in the way. I just prefer my shots that way, plus I actually enjoy being able to walk around by myself, undisturbed, while doing some creative work. It's fun.
This image was taken on the campus of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland one beautiful morning. See? Sometimes you do get rewarded.
And here's a "behind the keyboard" showing the HDR before I added filters in Color Efex Pro (left side) and the image after the filters were applied (right side). I hope you don't mind these little Before/After comparisons because I sure enjoy sharing them.
The altar at Christ Church Cathedral
So many photos of Dublin...so little time. :-)
When I travel and get out to shoot, I tend to shoot a lot. I often come home with thousands of images across multiple memory cards, all waiting for me to get right into it and start processing. But, I tend to process a few and then decide to hit the pause button.
I think I do this because even though I love a place (like Dublin, in this case), I get bored rather quickly with too many images in a row from the same place. It wears me out, and I yearn for something "new", even if it's an old photo from a previous trip. Just the very idea of changing up the content makes me happy.
That probably explains why I like to travel. :-)
Anyways, I have so many photos from Dublin, and am about to add more to the family when I go back there soon. I don't mind revisiting a place, especially one as nice as Dublin. In fact, I enjoy getting to further explore a place and getting the chance to really know the place and have a feel for it. I just won't share too many photos right away.
Change is good, and I prefer to mix it up here on the blog. I feel like it keeps it more interesting for you. It certainly does for me. I don't know if you would get bored seeing a bunch of shots in a row from the same place. Would you? I'll probably never do it, but why not ask?
A couple of times I have devoted an entire week to a single trip. Maybe I will try that again. Anyways, I'm done here. I feel like I am having a conversation with myself, and it ain't going anywhere. :-)
Evening in Temple Bar
The Temple Bar in Dublin - beautiful at night!
I love Dublin, and I say that a lot here. There's a lot to love about that town. One particular spot that I love there, probably more than all the rest, is the Temple Bar District, and the Temple Bar pub itself. The area is basically their nightlife and entertainment district, and it centers on The Temple Bar pub itself, which you see in the photo.
The district has retained it's historic, sort of medieval feel and the streets are all cobblestone, which adds to the cultural feeling of the place. Of course that makes walking a little harder, especially when I am carrying a large camera on a tripod and looking around, not down at what I am stepping on. I haven't fallen over yet, but have come close a few times! And yes this area is a magnet for tourists, but I don't care - I just love it. It has so much character.
My hotel preference is just a few hundred feet from the Temple Bar, so that makes it really easy for me to photograph it, especially at sunrise. Whenever I am in Dublin, I always try and get up to shoot sunrise. It's just amazing to walk these little cobblestone streets in the early morning hours, and not even see another person out. I just love that. Conveniently, it makes the photography a little easier too. :-)
And in case you are wondering, yes this is an HDR photo. I actually don't shoot too much after dark, but I was headed back to my hotel on the evening I took this one, and just couldn't resist a few more shots. Of course, I do that a lot!
Sunset in Dublin
Sunset along the River Liffey
I love Dublin - it's a great town. There's just so much to love about it. The people are great, there's cold Guinness available at every turn, and there is just so much to aim the NIkon at. And believe me, I aim it at a lot of stuff!
But the one thing you can't always count on is a beautiful sunset. In this instance, I got lucky and was treated to this spectacular light that you see here. I like to think that I can see a great sunset coming together, and that I can then get in place and get the exact shot I want...but that's not really the case.
The truth is that most of the time when I think the skies are going to be awesome, they fizzle out instead. And when I think nothing exciting is going to happen is when it gets all awesome on me. This was one of those times. The clouds were doing their thing, and it was getting closer to sunset...and I was walking along the River Liffey and shooting all sorts of things.
But when this came together as was surprised as anyone else. I scrambled for a decent vantage point along the River Liffey, because I really, really, really like to shoot reflections. I think they are one of the best things about HDR photography. So I leaned over the edge of the bridge railing along the river, steadied my camera (I was handheld here), and fired off my 7 frame bracket.
I rather like the composition, as the clouds are sort of peeling off to the left while the buildings are anchored by the large, closer building on the right end. It works for me, in other words. So that's what I mean. It all sort of came together in the moment, without much foresight or planning on my part. Just one of those serendipitous moments of photographic awesomeness in Ireland. I'll take all those that I can get!
Hello 2014
Happy New Year - thanks for stopping by!
To keep the bad pun alive from yesterday (wherein I said the last day of the year was the "sunset"), then that would make today the "sunrise" since it's the first day of the new year!
With that in mind, here is a sunrise photo from that most lovely city in Ireland - Dublin. I love that town. Great people, great culture, great accent (!), and great photo opps. Oh yeah, and the Guinness is great too!
I don't know yet if I will make it there again in 2014, but I sure hope so. I grabbed this photo during my last visit there, on the morning I was flying home.
I was ready to go before the taxi arrived to whisk me off to the airport, so I ran around for about 15 minutes and took a few shots, since a beautiful sunrise was happening and well, it's hard to pass up something like that!
And here's the New Year's card we are sending to family and friends:
Dublin Castle
I love castles, even when they aren't totally "castle-like".
Do you love castles? I freakin' love them. I really do. Aren't they just awesome? That's one of the reasons I enjoy Europe so much - a castle at every turn! I lived in Germany for about a year as a kid (2nd Grade, to be exact) and we saw a lot of castles. I mean, they're everywhere in Germany. That stuck with me I guess.
So whenever I visit a European city, I am on the lookout for a castle. I can't help it - some things are just ingrained. So on my first Dublin trip, I made sure to swing by and check out the Dublin Castle...which it turns out isn't much of a castle at all. It's a major Irish government complex, and yes there is a tower sort of thing, but this ain't the kind of castle that springs to mind when I hear the word castle (I tend to think knights, maidens, and moats...and maybe a catapult).
But, that's ok because I still found it to be rather beautiful and photo-worthy. In fact, I shoot it every time I go there. You see, I also just love architecture, so shooting things like this is also ingrained. Old habits die hard.
By the way, this is called The Bedford Tower and the gates on either side represent Fortitude and Justice (per Wikipedia). I was also really diggin' the cobblestones...add that to the list of awesome stuff in Europe, I guess.
Thanks for stopping by today!
Back to Dublin
Boy do I ever love Dublin! Have you ever been?
There is just so much to love about Dublin, Ireland. Here's a partial list: Guinness, friendly people, great churches. I had you at Guinness, right? :-)
It really is a wonderful town though. I've been a few times now, and always look forward to my visits. I often shoot the same things each time I go, because I rarely have time to get out of town and see sights that are further afield. Hopefully someday.
So that means the majority of what I see and shoot is within walking distance of The Temple Bar District, which is their historic entertainment area. And just a short walk from there is Christ Church Cathedral, which you see pictured here. I've shot the interior and exterior a couple of times, and always go back. It's just beautiful.
On this visit, I was approached by an American couple while I stood there shooting. It turns out they were from Dallas, which is only a few hours away from where I live in Austin. Small world. They were asking me about the area, and of course I have a list of sites for them to go see. I hope they had the time to explore it all.
Ha'Penny blue hour
This is the Ha'Penny Bridge in Dublin, Ireland which straddles the River Liffey. It's not a big bridge, as you can tell, but it has a long and important history in the town, dating back from 1816. I'm no historian, but that sounds pretty old to me. :-)
I love shooting bridges, because I find they offer some interesting possibilities for photography. Plus, they go over water (well, normally at least!) and that means I might get some nice reflections, which is another thing I really like.
I got up early one morning in Dublin to wander the Temple Bar district and take shots. I love that time of day because I am normally alone, enjoying scenes like this free from the distractions and noise of tourists and pedestrians.
By the way, this is a single long exposure instead of HDR.