College at 50 am I mad?

So I decided to be selfish and do something for myself that perhaps may be construed as mad by some but which might hopefully give some others encouragement.
I decided to go to college and get myself educated in something other than the normal run of the mill stuff that’s taken for granted like plumbing or engineering or mechanics etc etc.
I chose the world of art as the next cog in the big (or small) world of so called “life”.
Only time will tell if I’ve chosen wisely but regardless of the outcome, I intend getting as much as possible out of this course.
BA in contemporary art
I hope to specialise in photography, print and paint but then again I won’t really know my chosen route until much further into the course. Perhaps I’ll prefer sculpture and ceramics?
Well all will be revealed in time to come and I hope to document my time here on this blog with regular updates and photos of my progression.
Regardless of any pre conceived notions, I am open and willing to embrace new ideas, techniques etc so let the journey begin.

VW Beetle

Here are a couple of photos of my 1976 VW Beetle. My son decided to wash and wax it so now its for sale. Beautiful car and it starts first time every time. Brilliant engineering for its time.

VW Beetle

Clifden HDR

Is this the road to no where?

Someone was very accurate with the saw that cut this stone!!

flowers, grass, sand rocks

Distant mountains under thunder sky

This is out of focus as all these were taken hand held

One of my favourite photos. So much colour and texture

Beautiful coloration on all the stones here.

Here are a few hand held shots taken a couple of weeks ago outside Clifden in Co. Galway.

Garth Brooks Concert

And so finally the clouds have lifted and we see blue skies again. Garth Brooks has said no to any compromise and I for one don’t blame him.
In my honest opinion, those who blame Garth Brooks for this debacle should be given community service with a placard around their necks saying “I am an idiot” and here are my reasons for this statement.
Originally there were 2 dates announced and when the tickets went on sale they sold out in minutes. Then a third date was announced and this too sold out in jig time. Now that’s fantastic in anyone’s book.
Then we heard that some of the ticketmaster outlets had problems with their online ticketing and printing process which meant that thousands of fans in certain parts of Ireland were left without a ticket or a chance of obtaining one. Unfortunately however, we have ticket touts in Ireland (as well as overseas) who have teams that sit outside the ticket outlets and online to purchase the tickets and then gouge the real fans out of their hard earned euro notes.

By all accounts, Garth Brooks heard of this problem and even went so far as to organize tickets for at least one fan who had been disappointed. Then low and behold, 2 more dates were added to the weekend for Monday and Tuesday nights and these tickets also sold out in record time.
Personally I thought this was a BRILLIANT move by all concerned. Garth Brooks, Aiken Promotions, Dublin City Council and Croke Park. This would (in my opinion) put a stop to the touts and fix the problem of the disappointed fans in Limerick etc.
SO GARTH BROOKS IS NOW DOING 5 NIGHTS IN CROKE PARK…NOW HE HAS TO PLAN FOR 5 SHOWS

but wait for it…..wait for it…..There was a problem…
378(I think) objections from residents close to the stadium were lodged with the city council.
Now don’t get me wrong here… Everyone is entitled to their opinion and these residents had the right to voice their concerns and have the right to object. One of them also sought a high court injunction which was also his right.

The Dublin city manager a Mr. Eoin Keegan decided that the concerns of the residents were valid and then he and he alone made a decision which would affect 160,000 Garth Brooks fans. There would be no concert on the Monday or Tuesday. End of story as far as he was concerned. His word was law and his decision could not be changed or appealed by any means.

So do you think it right that this one individual who sits on his arse earning almost €175,000 a year should have this power?
Remember the saying, “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely” So Mr Eoin Keegan, you made a ruling based on the objections of these 378 individuals and your own personal notions…..But wait again…. The Irish police (Gardai) are investigating fraudulent objections to the concerts. 40% OF THE OBJECTIONS ARE ALLEGEDLY FRAUDULENT!!!!
Some guy is supposed to have signed his name quite a lot(100+) and there were names from outside the state??? and from minors???? And the Dublin City Manager who gets paid to be on top of his game read these fraudulent names? did he verify any of them???
oh wait , there’s more…. The guy who wanted the high court injunction dropped his case!!! then we hear he was (allegedly) paid off to the tune of €15,000. He met the Lord Mayor of Dublin and voiced his opinions and cried because his partner left him. (I wonder why)

So then during all this rubbish carry on we hear that there are negotiations ongoing because Garth Brooks has made a statement that he will do anything in his power to accommodate the 400,000 fans who have bought tickets. Excellent..

Then Mr Keegan says that his ruling is final and can’t be amended. But perhaps Garth Brooks will do 2 matinee concerts on the Saturday and Sunday!!

Is this guy for real? That had to be the most ridiculous solution I have ever heard. How can you stage a show which was designed for night time in the middle of the day? Perhaps Eoin Keegan could somehow turn off the light at 12 midday? Oh I almost forgot, He is the supreme ruler is he not?
He also forgot that the show was designed around 5 nights not 3.
Then we have those who decide to blame Garth Brooks??? Where in the hell are their brains? Have they actually been reading whats common knowledge or are they just the same as yer man Keegan?

Anyway, for what it’s worth, I am a Garth Fan and saw him in Croke Park in 1997 where he was brilliant. I also bought 12 tickets for family and friends because I wanted them to experience just a little of the magic that I had 17 years ago. I will get my money refunded by ticketmaster so thats all ok. Whats not ok is the ridiculous system that operates here in Ireland. I’m not talking about the licences either. I’m talking about the power of one man who can make decisions that cant be amended or challenged (perhaps through the high court).
Personally I don’t know Mr Eoin Keegan or have anything personal against him but I do think he was wrong this time. He gave zero thought to the 400,000 fans who wanted to spend their money in Dublin. He let 378 objections sway him without verification of how genuine these names were. He just flushed about €50,000,000 down the toilet and did massive international damage to the reputation of our country.
He has to resign his position because no one person should ever have that power.

Rant over.

Stairs

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Beautiful abandoned runner.
I will definitely go back to this old house but with a tripod next time. I can clearly see my mistakes so next time I need to have a checklist of what not to do. Too much light coming through the window up the stairs.
Too much clutter in the way of clean pictures.
Not enough time spent composing the shots.
Not enough planning prior to the visit (too busy having a laugh with friends so got caught out)
Need more ceiling showing in some shots.
Try to level the stairs a little more before shooting (the stairs is rotted near the wall so it slopes to the right)
Bring remote triggers and coloured gels for flash units to shoot at dusk from outside if possible.

Anyway there I go again talking to myself!!!

Old abandoned house Galway

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Window from the past

Nikon D7000 Colour

Went for a drive on Easter Sunday and after a few miles of directions from my best friends, I ended up in the middle of nowhere beside a lake that has had very few visitors throughout the ages.

For one family it was home for a long time and when I saw the old house that has long since been abandoned, I was so glad I had my camera with me. My friend Yvonne had told me it was an old run down house but that I’d love it and all I can say is that she knows me better than I know myself.

The photos I took need nothing to enhance them. It was a beautiful sunny day and although the light was harsh, I think it really added to the photos. I took 3 bracketed shots hand held using my wide angle 12-24mm nikon lens and then merged the 3 shots later to produce the photo. I have a lot more which I will upload later.

Comments are appreciated. Enjoy.

Just look at all those layers of paint and imagine the lifetime/s it took to achieve this.

More macro photos

Something I really want to try and get to grips with is macro Photography.

I really think the hard part will be to get the insect to stand still without harming it but I’ll have a go… see below.

These were taken with  a Nikon D7000 using my fantastic second hand 200mm macro lens which I bought through the internet in Japan and shipped to Ireland for a very reasonable cost. I placed the camera on a tripod for stability and took a few shots. These are 2 of the better ones but I can see the value of the longer focal length now because I could stay well back from the subjects and take my time focusing. (check out my other macro shots on facebook)

Its pretty scary looking through the viewfinder the first time you use this lens. Everything is completely out of focus and you keep making small adjustments. Then you see a shadow and move a little forward and then backward trying to see if you’re capable of finding the subject (of course, while all this is going on, the spider or whatever may decide to wander curiously toward you which will definitely make the task a lot harder.

Boy’s oh boy’s…when it comes into view…..WOW. I almost fell back in surprise at the level of detail that revealed itself immediately. Every hair on these insects is visible (of course with the 200mm Nikon macro there is just one plane of focus so it is crystal clear “in bands” across the photo which means you may need to take several shots as you gradually move forward or backward and then blend them all together with a photo stacking software, to get a subject that’s in focus from front to back. For this you’ll definitely need a sliding rail mechanism that allows minute movements)

Anyway, I haven’t done any photo “stacking” with these and I’m delighted with the result so far. I can only improve. I understand that the purists may frown on such feeble attempts but I’m no professional and frankly, I don’t care.

She really needs to shave those legs

Gardening as a beginner.

So here’s todays challenge

Tim Butler

Gardening as a beginner

So my great weight loss challenge has begun. I don’t want six pack abs at my age but I don’t want a family pack either.

Apart from parking the motor vehicle and getting on a bicycle or walking, what else can I do to lose a few pounds weight?

As I ponder the what if’s and wherefores, I think back to younger days and try to recall what my parents did to keep us all fit and healthy although they had nothing of monetary value apart from the rented council house that sat on an acre of ground and certainly no access to gym or other keep fit classes.

It dawned on me, that as a child, running or walking the mile or so to the “local” shop for groceries probably helped a lot, as well as walking to school, kicking a ball or playing “cowboys and Indians” with my father chasing us all over the field and up and down the tilled earth rows of propped garden peas. How could I forget the smell of the damp earth as I lay motionless behind the towering stalks of the Brussels sprouts hoping I was well hidden?

There was the answer. The garden. My dad had a beautiful garden. It was full of every type of vegetable you could imagine. Garden peas, runner beans, french beans, broad beans, cucumber, lettuces, onions, cabbage, chives, shallots, sprouts, tomatoes, leeks, carrots, parsnips and the horrible vegetable marrows which I hated then and still do today. Spuds and kale and the experimental area where pumpkins lived and died and fruit bush cuttings fought with each other for the horse manure my father placed in such high regard. I know he planted aubergines and they looked stunning in their beautiful dark silky skins but I hated them almost as much as the bloody marrows. Man was he a great believer in giving his kids a taste of the exotic and we certainly had our 5 a day.

So thank you Jesse Butler where ever your spirit flies today. I have decided to have a go at the gardening to see if I can achieve just a fraction of what you did but also to give myself some fresh wholesome (organic?) veggies and of course, it’ll get me out in the air.

Here is what I am tackling today. An old glass house that’s missing 12 panes of glass and is full of nettles and grass with trailing briers everywhere.

First task is to remove the briers and nettles so I’ll post again soon with a few pics of progress. I’m hoping to have it looking ok in about a week or so.