Took Me Long Enough

I finally finished my urban alphabet.  Finally.  I only have a week left in this 365 day photo project, so I figured I really needed to get out there and find that annoying and elusive "Z".  Here it is...

and here's the whole thing...

A Through Z

I Want To Be Beside The Seaside

I worked for the majority of the day.  I didn't have the chance to seek out something uber-special to shoot.  Luckily, my wife and I were recently at the sea.  We had grabbed a few seashells...one of which was sitting in the same room I was working in.  A quick shot with my macro extender produced this...

So soft and pretty.  

Oh.  It's the last day of national bird-feeding month.

Say goodbye to the birds.

Pigeon Away!

Black and White...Mostly

As of late, I've enjoyed shooting through cafe/diner/coffee shop/bakery windows to get a different perspective on these joints.  My last two...here ...and the first photo here, are a lot less abstract than today's (and focus less on the window), but they all utilize the same method of shooting through the window for a variation on the subject.

I copied my original image and converted the copy to black and white.  I then combined the two images and allowed the color from the second layer (the original) to seep through in certain places....leaving me with this.  

Abstract Architecture

More and more I'm inclined to use my homemade tilt-shift lens for my architectural shots.  I am always fairly pleased with the results.  Today's shot wasn't as good as some of my others...like the first photo here.  But there can be just as much if not more satisfaction gained from creating something with which you can take a photograph than from the photograph itself.

I'm always a fan of bokeh.  Architectural photography is not a field you tend to see it used in...I think it works here, though.

Fence. Night.

Here's a fence.  At night.
The redeeming qualities?...1. a little bit of bokeh...2. the "series" look...3. shallow depth of field...4. and hey, contrasty black and white is always good, right?

 Hopefully that justifies a fence. at night.

Black and White on the River Lagan

My wife and I walked a good portion of the River Lagan today.  There was a photography exhibit about Strangford Lough, and it just so happened that the quickest route to reach the exhibit was via the river.  Here are some things we walked past while trekking along side it...

A nice little scene...a flock of birds flying over some river houses, a cloudy sky and some hills in the background...

A cleat..maybe?   

...and a Tesla-esque streetlight.  I guess it's the coil-like bulb, but this really made me think of him.  

Guess What...

It rained today.
Also, since a small portion of what I do for a living consists of managing some floral deliveries, work occupied much of my day today.  There was much to prepare and double check for the upcoming holiday.

So yeah, there was no chance to get out today...except for the two minutes in which I ran to the nearest convenience store to buy some milk.  We were out of milk and I have found a vice in a certain granola they have here in Northern Ireland at our friendly Tesco.  I don't think I could start my day without a big bowl of said granola and milk.

So yeah, basically I had to find something indoors worth shooting.  I've said it before...I didn't bring enough odd crap to keep these days from getting the best of me.  So I turned the shower on.  Enjoy some abstract photography...

It reminds me of some sort of awesome alien invasion.  

It has been brought to my attention that far too many things remind me of alien invasions.

Old Men and Old Kegs

Went for a walk this morning.  Saw an old guy...

 He was rather intent on making sense of this "map"

and some old kegs...

They look far too American for Northern Ireland.

Antiquing

Though it wasn't anything like antiquing in Lancaster County (they know how to do it right...especially in Adamstown), today, my wife and I got to hit up table after table of old shiny...things.   Everything from vintage forks formed into bracelets, to skeleton keys, to clothing that no one would be able to go out in public in without being ridiculed, to cupcakes that my wife explained to me were in fact still edible because they apparently were not made in the 40s.  Here are some of my finds...

I know, I know...I just shot some books the other day.  But these are different.  They look all nice bundled up together.

Matryoshka Dolls...ready for a game of checkers.  I'll have you know, I pondered how one would differentiate between the dolls for a game of chess for a good long while...Then I finally realized it could be checkers...or some other game I am unaware of.

Where there is the ability to go antiquing, there too is the ability to take pictures of typewrites. 

Out Of Focus

Having a subject that isn't in focus is normally an issue.  Sometimes, though, it's exactly what's needed to make the photo just different enough to be noticed.  I've been meaning to get a photo that would look good even though it isn't in focus.  I think I succeeded.

I went out with the goal of getting some good bokeh.  I did get some (look to the lights on the light posts) but it isn't the main subject.  This just means you can look forward to a shot where the subject is out of focus lights.  

Warm Beverage, Anyone?

Not having much of a chance to leave my apartment today, I had to find something indoors to help me get my daily photo.  Not being in the States, where I am surrounded by a lot of (interesting and more photogenic) crap, I am limited to the things I brought with me or purchased here.  Which really isn't much.

Luckily my wife is constantly drinking tea...and leaving her teacups where I stumble upon them and realize they are as good a subject as any.  Especially when you are going for an overexposed and washed out look (things with smooth surfaces are better for this (or so it seems)).

Bird Thursday

Today, I give you...birds.  Swans and herons to be specific.  Grey herons to be even more specific.  The swan on the other hand is your standard swan.  If they have a more specific name, I am unaware of it.
Both of these birds were found on the Lagan River in Belfast.  The swan got very close and very vocal.  The heron stayed far away, barely moving...

Through The Viewfinder And Into The Greenhouse

Yesterday's greenhouse made it into today's photography as well.  This time with the addition of a Kodak Duaflex, allowing me to get a nice TTV shot.  The greenhouse can be found in Belfast's Botanic Garden.

I appear to not only be on a black and white kick, but also a greenhouse kick.  Worry not, I'm sure I'll beat at least one of those habits tomorrow.

Jupiter, Bicycles and Greenhouses

Last night, my wife's university gave the surrounding community a chance to view Jupiter with some high-tech telescopes.  Though the three second individual viewing time may not have been worth the wait, it provided me with a decent enough photograph.  Here is a man checking out his telescope..making sure it is in working order and fine-focusing it.

While waiting for my turn at one of the telescopes, I noticed a bright light shining on a bicycle nearby...

Today I was wandering around the outside of a locked-up greenhouse.  An old greenhouse.  Here are some shots from it...

Giant's Ring

Northern Ireland has its own henge...you know, like Stonehenge.  Our's isn't as big nor as popular, but it is still pretty sweet.  It supposedly has been around since 2700 BCE and has been used for burials and tombs...as well as horse racing in the 18th century.  The megalithic tomb in the center of the henge seems to be the main event...

The henge itself isn't too visible in the pictures, but the rounded feeling that the grassy area seems to create in the second photo is indeed from the circular henge.

Went For A Walk

We went for a walk today.  We do so daily.  Today we went down to the river as well as some parts of the city that we were yet to check out.  We came across what seemed like a River Dance flash mob...

One second they were jumping around like fish out of water...the next second they were just standing there talking as if it never happened.

Then we came across the area that is being used for Occupy Belfast.  No one was there.

Then, on our way back to our flat, old Albert entered my field of vision.  Apparently Albert is the name of this clock tower...

Mostly Belfast Zoo

I saw this on the way to Ikea on the 19th.  Nothing special, but I liked the composition and the focus falling on the wall, behind the subject, instead of on the subject.

Bus Stop?

More importantly was yesterday's trip to Belfast Zoo.  I warn you people that some of these images are awfully depressing...not in some mangled and bloody way.  The emotion some of these animals are projecting is just extremely sad.  

The zoo is actually a very nice zoo, TONS of space for the animals.  We had a very nice time, and spent the majority of the day there.  I guess sometimes you just capture a picture that goes a little deeper.  I feel I have done this with the first two pictures.

Staring Into My Soul

Alone in the Rain


In an attempt to not leave you utterly depressed, here are some baby meerkats and a cute bat.

Baby Meerkat

Baby Meerkat Up Close

Not a Normal Angle

Not Much Time Left

With just two days until we leave for Northern Ireland, my wife and I have very little time.  We went for an extremely quick bike ride today, though, and I grabbed my camera...thinking it might be my only chance for a picture of any interest...

Biking at Warp Speed

What looks like traveling at a great speed is really just a pretty slow speed on a bicycle.  Apparently motion lines/blur can be deceiving.

 Holding the Walls Up

These ladders appear to be holding up the walls of an old building.  They are not.

The Rain Begins

We got hit with some rain this morning...it may have been the beginning of Irene, or it may have just been some regular old rain.  Around 5:00 pm the real rain started.  It hasn't been crazy heavy, and it's been off and on, but it seems like we may have a good bit of falling water ahead of us.

Falling Water

Here is some pretty falling water.  This was taken just as Irene made her presence known in my mother's pool.

Staying Inside

The rain has kept us inside today.  This cute kid was made tired by the incessant raindrops that kept beating themselves against the window panes.

Going With The Train Theme

In that yesterday's photo was a caboose, I thought I could keep the theme alive and do another train related photo.  So have some oil tankers.  They have been sitting in the woods by some old train tracks near my house...my brother found them fairly recently and showed them to me.  Now I shall show them to you.

Tankers in the Trees

I don't know when these were last used, but I doubt it was very recent, whenever it was.  The weeds and bushes have grown around them, making it seem like it has been years, many years, since they've been touched.