While going through Nicola and Philip’s wedding slideshow one last time today I gave myself a little pat on the back. I have shown a shot from their wedding before with the two of them walking on a beach. However, on reflection, I think I like this one even more.
I’m so happy with this shot. As all photographers out there will know, shooting into the sun ain’t easy, especially when trying to focus on moving targets. In this shot the sun was low on the horizon and wedding party were having a nice gentle stroll across the beach so I had to act quick to get the shots I was after. This is one of those shots I just couldn’t be happier with.
When I can share more from their day I’ll definitely do so
I think I may well have a new favourite Irish city. Galway. I spent the Easter weekend there and I just fell in love with the place.
With everything in such close proximity it’s just a joy to walk through. The sounds of buskers fill it’s busy cobbled streets which are dotted with plenty of cosy cafés, pubs and eating houses – it’s a place that is just bursting with vibrance and while it’s a city, it appears to have more of a small town attitude which I’m sure is something that a lot of us, especially those of us who live in Dublin, wish we could experience a lot more of.
I never really got out with my camera too much on the Friday and Saturday as I seemed to spend most of it walking up and down the promenade with breaks for good coffee and tasty food. Wa Café and Cobblestone Café as two of the standout favourites. On Sunday however I finally took the camera out of the bag and wandered into town for a bit. It being Easter Sunday a fair few of the shops were closed so things were a little quieter. That’s not to say however that there wasn’t as much to see. As I came up to Eyre Square I saw a gathering of people who were attending a memorial for those killed in the 1916 Easter rising. It was when I was taking some photographs of this I was approached by a guy who’ll remain anonymous, asked if I could take some pictures of the posters he’d dotted around the streets.
The poster titled “Frank Fahey TD – Property Baron!” read “Frank Fahey is a landlord to many poor souls all over Galway and the world. What was the point in ending British colonialism in Ireland if we only replace their landlords with our own class of gombeen land barons? Re-distribute Land Now!”. I duly obliged.
A short while later I headed back down toward High Street. It was here that I came across three men sitting in the doorway to Brown Thomas. As I was changing lenses across the street from them I was approached by one of the men. Mick frm Castlebar. “If anyone can, Canon can!” he quipped. We had a brief chat and told me that the two other men sitting in the doorway were his drinking buddies. I asked if I could take their picture and he told me to wait and he’d join them. The picture I took wasn’t great so I walked over and struck up a converstion with them in the hope that I’d get something a little more intimate. All I can say is these men were true gents. Mick from Castlebar, Paedar from Galway and Mick (another) from Dublin. All interested in what I was doing in Galway, what I was taking pictures of and where I was from. Before too long Dublin Mick (as he refered to himself) was reciting song after song, sometimes joined by Castlebar Mick on the spoons. They didn’t mind me snapping away and taking plenty of video. Peadar, a former skipper of a ship and aerial photographer, would just sit and enjoy it, smiling as he watched his two friends sing song after song. It was Dublin Mick however that interested me most of all.
Dublin Mick
A man who was very much down on his luck but showed no bitterness about his current circumstances. An intelligent man who battled with drink in his younger years but after five years sober he had earned himself his PhD. He went out to celebrate telling himself he could have “just one drink” but that changed everything and has since been a self admitted chronic alcoholic. A sad tale for a man I saw as being so gifted. He’d recite poetry and song continuously only pausing to to have a quick chat while he’d light the end of his cigarette and take a drink from his paper cup. I could sit and write another 1000 words about Mick but I’ll just finish by posting this little clip of him reciting a poem straight down the camera. Just a side comment, I absolutely love how Peader shows such a big interest in both the photography and his mate – you’ll see him in the reflection of the window coming around to view the camera screen and at the end you’ll hear him congratulate Mick.
The poem is titled ‘Dublin’ by Louis MacNeice. Warning, contains strong language.
As a photographer that is. Yes, today is a special day. I got to shoot my first gig. After an inquiry a couple of weeks back to Whelans they were kind enough to offer me along to whatever gig I was interested in shooting. When I saw Crooked Still on the lineup for July I couldn’t believe my luck! I queued up tonight along with the rest of the punters – a right old mix I have to say – and waited patiently and a little nervously to what I knew would be a great show but also for what I hoped would be a successful shoot.
As I went inside I seen that chairs where setup on the ground floor. My instructions had been clear – shoot for the first 3 songs, no flash and most importantly – don’t get in the way of the paying customers. I knew that the chairs would restrict me somewhat and to get in front of them would be breaking the 3rd rule. So I went upstairs for a look, found a spot (and chatted to an excited and very proud bunch of Aoife’s, the lead singers, relatives) and waited for the band to take centre stage.
I came back downstairs for a closer vantage point after the first song and hope I managed to stay out of the way. After a while it was time to put the camera away and just the enjoy music.
What can I say? It was an awesome gig and it was great to get to meet Aoife (Lead vocal) and Gregory (Banjo and poet!) afterwards when I bought a few cd’s from them. You wouldn’t see Bono doing that outside Croker…
Check out the band at http://www.crookedstill.com/ and also on myspace at http://www.myspace.com/crookedstill
Loved it. Thanks Whelans!
EDIT : I also took this video of the band performing the song ‘Tell Her’ from the Still Crooked album.
Last weekend I went to Belfast to see my sister Rose. But this wasn’t just the usual catchup. She was going to acting in play called Cagebirds at the Southbank Playhouse. The story of six birds locked in a cage by their mistress for their own good. Then a new bird, The Wild One, is added to the mix. From the outset this new bird is not happy and begs the other birds to join her in a grand escape.
I’ll say no more….
My sister Rose was cast as ‘The Wildone’. Otherwise known as ‘the stroppy one’. She wont mind me saying that either. She was perfect.
I took my camera along and was able to get some shots during their rehearsals.
(L-R) – The Medicated Gloom, The Wild One, The Mistress, The Regular Thump.
Julia Connolly, Rose McClelland, Cheryl O Dwyer, Laura Gray
Congratualtions to everyone involved in the play. It was excellent and I even knew a few people who stayed for the second show to enjoy it all over again!
Thanks to Martin Toland for allowing me to come along with my camera. Looking forward to seeing what you can all come up with next.
I’ve just returned to Dublin from a weekend in Derry but that didn’t mean my time with Derry folk was over for the weekend just yet. I was asked to take some photos for the Echo Echo Dance Theatre Company from Derry who where on the final night of their latest production ‘Ripple Affect‘. They’ve been all over Ireland with this show but the last night of the tour had arrived and a good crowd turned up at the Civic Theatre in Tallaght to see what it was all about.
Steve Batts, Co-Artistic Director looks on during rehearsals
Well, it was about the ripple effect, surprisingly enough, of human interaction. The tag line used is ‘What do you do after you have been hugged, or hugged someone?’. The dancers where excellent, blending a mixture of well choreographed dance and improvision. At times funny, at other times moving. Oh, and some cracking music from Lorna, Karen and Joleen McLaughlin – otherwise known as The Henry Girls.
As mentioned, the tour is over now, but you may want to keep an eye on Echo Echo’s website for future shows. Good stuff.
Dublin Mick
