Today's Random Pic...

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Turning a Corner...

We have turned a major corner here in Ireland... to some people it may not mean a thing... but to me it is a major marker of every year. The first day of Spring. February first is the first day of spring in Ireland. Believe me when I say that you instantly notice the change. The weather is a bit better (although today is kinda gray and cold), animals are giving birth, and most importantly - the days are getting longer faster! Now... to all of you back in the states that are saying "how is that possible?"... It is because the Irish calendar centers the seasons around the solstices and equinoxes (so that, for instance, midsummer falls on the summer solstice), beginning the seasons at roughly the halfway points between solstice and equinox. This is a continuation of the Celtic and Gaelic system, which is pagan in origin, but feels a bit more accurate (in my opinion).


Dee and I celebrated the day in our own way...... we went for a drive. Thankfully the weather was spectacular!



I couldn't decide between these two photos... they both had elements that I liked... which one do you prefer? Leave me a comment and let me know!












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Today's Random Pic...

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Behind the camera...

As you know... a photo is worth 1,000 words.... unfortunately, it rarely tells the whole story. From time to time I like pull the veil back and reveal what is really going on around me while I take a photo...



What you see: lobster pots and brightly colored buildings through the fog....






What you don't see: The ruckus of feeding seagulls and swans as they fly around me!







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More from the fog....

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Life in the fog....

Things are slowly warming up here... but the frost and snow has been replaced by a thick fog. All weekend long we lived and walked in this eerie gray soup. We normally would just hunker down and wait for it to lift, but I ended up in the city with the camera for a few hours over the weekend. I'm so glad that I took the time to explore and see the city in a new way. The streets and spots that I have photographed a thousand times had magically transformed into a new and sadder place.

This photo was taken in one of my favorite spots. During the long warm days of summer it is a popluar picnic and hangout spot for college students.... but in the fog it just felt abandoned and lonely.








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2010 Calendar - December

This photo was taken not too far from the February photo, but the conditions could not have been any different. I took this photo on a cold January morning. It was actually taken at midday, but the combination of the high mountains and low winter sun meant that many areas of my little valley did not receive any direct sunlight for several of the winter months.








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2010 Calendar - November

As I have mentioned before, I am a city boy. And nothing thrills my heart more than to see a farmer with a flock of sheep or cows walking down the street. I really feel that there is no other image more classically Irish than a scene like this. You can’t tell it by the picture alone, but we watched this farmer and his three sheepdogs slowly work and collect sheep all over the side of a mountain. The farmer stood at the base of the mountain and loudly whistled out commands to the three dogs. Slowly and systematically the crew worked with one mind and collected the massive herd of sheep.Then, to my surprise, they brought them all down to the road. There really is no way to express my excitement as I photographed the small parade of wool and dogs.








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2010 Calendar - October

I took this photo while out on a drive with Dee. This was the first and only time we had been to this area, and I was really struck at just how beautiful it was. It was one of those late summer days before the winds and rains come in force… one of those days where the wind already has a chill to it, and you know summer is going to end at any moment.








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2010 Calendar - September

This photo was taken at the National Sheep Sheering Competition June 2008 in County Mayo. Being a city boy means that farm animals still thrill and mystify me. I can honestly say that I had never really been around sheep before coming to Ireland, and I have learned a lot about them while I have been here. Sheep are, in my opinion, the funniest animal I have ever been around. They are content to feed on roadsides as cars fly by, and they are in the element balancing on the side of a cliff, but their nerves of steel melt away as soon as they see a person. You really can see instant panic in the faces and hear it in their voices as they react with their one and only defense… they urinate. They are quick to run away – even if that is in the direction of danger, and try their best to hide by blending into the crowd. Needless to say, I have a new respect and understanding of why the Bible refers to us as sheep….

I try and make it to as many traditional festivals as I can each year. The sheep sheering is always a blast. The sheep with their thick winter coats a herded into large pens only to be snatched up by the neck and quickly relieved of their wool.The look of terror and bewilderment on the sheep’s face is always funny to me.

Click here to see the original posts about the sheep sheering...






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2010 Calendar - August

I have received several requests for me to finish posting and explaining about the photos on the 2010 calendar. So… over the next few days I’ll post the remaining photos.





This photo was actually taken just a few months ago from the beach near our house. To know anything about my family is to know that we all love the beach! I don’t know what it is, but there is something about sounds of the rolling waves or the smell of salt and seaweed that instantly relaxes me and takes me (in my memory) back to so many happy vacations to the sea with my family. One week in Florida was the highpoint of every childhood summer (and now my adulthood summers). Living so close to the ocean is still a thrill to me. There is not a day that passes here where I don’t pause at and look to the sea. It is truly a place of reflection and inspiration... a place where I feel small... and a place where I somehow feel closer to my family...

This photo really captures a typical winter sunset here.







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Shameless Self Promotion Time....

It is time for the 2010 Irish Blog Awards!

Nominations will be open for the next week or so. Anyone can nominate this blog by simply clicking here or going to:
http://awards.ie/blogawards/nominations/


To nominate this blog all you need to do is pick the category and then enter:
your details,
my name (Wallace Jones),
my email (info@irishrainphotography.com),
and the web address for this blog: http://www.heyitsourwebsite.com/irishrain.html

You will then receive an email to confirm your nomination.




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