Looking Back, Looking Forward

..Looking Back..

That time again when I look back that the year's takings. It started off pretty good but ended not so good. However the year as a whole was very productive. I narrowed the selection down to 10 and picked the Top 5 over Christmas. There are as follows, in no particular order :

 Derrybawn Bridge

 Carton Grounds

 Mt. Errigal & Dunlewy Lough

 Storm over The Poisoned Glen

 Camaderry Waterfall

The introduction of a new camera system, lens and filters helped me out with the lack of motivation during the second half of the year after a death in the family. It was hard to get back out and start shooting as Tim wasn't there to see the results when we went to visit. 

So that was 2014 and now for 2015.

..Looking Forward..

Well now for 2015, what's in store for "The Mononeil Process". I have made a list of locations, some old ones for a re-visit, which I would like to capture their beauty and then transform into an image worthy of a place on my website ( www.blackandwhite.ie ). 

-  Lough Aughawoolia, Galway

-  Ashleagh Falls, Mayo

-  Horseshoe Valley, Sligo

-  Fermoyle Beach, Kerry

-  Novohal Cove, Cork

The list will change as we go through the year but you need to start somewhere right?
I have my fellow photographers to thank for these locations as they have posted images which I feel is just right for me and my "style".

See you all in 2015.

Google +

As you might know there has being no activity on this blogger site thats because I have moved over to Google+ and have stopped publishing my work here

https://plus.google.com/116143938603101885158/posts

Also my website is still in operation here and there a blog linked to this site

http://www.blackandwhite.ie

Reflections Gougane Barra

Gougane Barra, is located 5km west of Ballingeary on the road to Bantry, Co Cork. On this fine morning on my way home form my good friend and fellow photographer Peter Cox, who lives next door so to speek.  I stopped by Gougane Barra only to be greeted by a wonderful reflection in the still waters of the lake. The sun had risen and burned off the last of the low lying mist. It’s a perfect reflection and have fooled many by turning it upside down.

This was the start of one fantastic days shooting and only stopped by the fact I was running out of power for my camera. Remember to always charge batteries even on the last day before heading home.

The Gap of Dunloe

The Gap of Dunloe, Killarney, Co Kerry is one of the must see location on the tourist trail in Ireland.

If you have ever being up at The Gap you will have gone passed this lake, Coosaun Lough, on your way to the bridge for the “normal” view of The Gap. Not me, I’m not normal !

On this afternoon I was down in Killarney to  meet up with Peter Cox and Roger Overall to talk business about the upcoming new Episode of Circle of Confusion video series. When the elements are right don’t put if off to till tomorrow as I was going to do here. The choice: bit a small bit late for the meeting or miss this photo op. Sorry lads but you lost out and boy I was glad I when up to the Gap. It was magic and spent an hour photographing from this location and another one from the other side of the bridge. More about that image in a later post.

I love the reflections of the mountains and the water lilies in the foreground. The clouds and light were perfect for the composition.

Dinish Island Sunrise

Just as you think your never going to get that image….

On this trip to Kenmare the weather was mixed. Not great for photography as we had too much haze mixed with low clouds all during the day and not much better in the mornings for sunrise either. On the last day of the trip all the elements came together and I got the sunrise I was after.  This image shows Dinish Island, which is in the middle of Kenmare Bay, lit by the early morning rising sun.  I used this wonderful side lighting to bring out the texture of the stone slipway and used the slipway to lead you into the image.

Three days of sitting and waiting for the light was worth it me thinks.

Blurred Forest

Not your pin sharp wonderful B&W landscape that you come to expect from me, but something different.

The first Sunday in every month is set aside for a family walk up some mountain. Come rail, hail or shine, and in this case low clouds and mist, we go. All manor of clothing is packed into the boot of the car which leads to very little space for my big camera bags (must get bigger car not ). So I always carry my trusty Canon G10 with me on these trips.

Last Sunday  the 5th June was such a walk  ( Link to pic ) up Djouce Mountain in the Wiclow Mts. After  a couple of wonderful sunny day with temperatures in the high 20′s, the sunscreen was packed. I can tell you now that never came out of the boot.  At times you couldn’t see 20 meters in front of you and   the higher you went the worse it got.

The challenge was on – to come away with a couple of image from the walk.

One such image is above titled “Blurred Forest”. With very very very bad visibility what are you to do ? During the walk through the forest the light levels very low and hand holding a camera to get a sharp image was impossible. Use this camera blur to your advantage. During the 1/6th second exposure I moved the camera in an upwards motion. The result was, I think, great. This got me think and I started to play with the different camera setting to produce my images and not the usual Landscape images I take.

I love the way the forest floor and the tree branches are completely  blurred while the tree trunks are still visible. I also like the triangle shape the trees make which draws you into the image.

So if you go down the wood today…………..

Make sure you have low light and don’t bring a tripod.

The Long Range

The Long Range is a stretch of water that joins Muckross Lake to The Upper Lake in Killarney National Park. It’s the same water in this image as in the Eagle’s Nest post  (link here).

This time however I had a boat beside the foreground rocks which makes for a nice composition. The lines on the rocks lead you to the boat which leads you into the rest of the image. The weather, clouds and light was just right and I had to stop the car yet again on my way home from Kenmare. Well not directly home as I had planned to stop off at Peter Cox new Gallery in Killarney and give him a hand with framing a few images before the grand opening. This didn’t go to plan in favor of Peter as the light was to good to miss and being a photographer I knew he would understand.

Also my battery run out and this was the last image of the day. Another reason for a trip to the gallery to charge the battery for the afternoon shoot. As I have already said, the Eagle’s Nest is just off to the right and I was standing right where the boat is to take that image.

This is a classic example for returning to the same location again and again. You will either see something different or the conditions will be different and come away with another image as with me in this case.

Coornagillagh, Kenmare Bay

I came across this location on the evening before but the clouds had rolled in and that was the end of the sunset. However the next day I came back this time a little earlier to see what it was like and go for a little walk around. The tide was low which made for so interesting foreground rocks to help in the composition.  In the image above you are looking straight out along the Kenmare Bay with Iveragh Peninsula on your right and the The Beara Peninsula on the left. You can’t really them with this portrait format but I think it helps the composition with the  way the rocks in the foreground led you into the image.

There is only one problem with this image- no sound. You can’t see them but you could here the Seals making some wonderful sounds. It added to the atmosphere  and will be added to the list of locations for the next episode of the Circle of Confusion Video series. Can’t wait to hear the sound on the video in the background while we try any part with some advice.

Lackeen, Kenmare Bay

I usually use Killarney as my base and travel from there when I’m down Co Kerry way, but not this time. Kenmare, Co Kerry was to be my base for this Co Kerry trip.

I now think after this trip that Kenmare is the best location as you can travel north to the Iveragh Peninsula or south towards the Beara Peninsula. Also the drive from Kenmare to KIllarney ( N71) is much better in this direction. We have had some of the best weather of late and I was hoping that it would continue for my trip. It was good and bad. Too much haze. Clear blue skies and strong haze might be good holiday weather for the beach etc… but not us landscape photographers.

The image above was taken one morning after a short drive out on the Iveragh Peninsula along “The Ring of Kerry” road to a place called Lackeen. I found this small Quay and stopped. The clouds were starting to break up so I decided to stay here and wait a while. In the image I am looking sound across Kenmare Bay towards the Caha Mountains on the the Beara Peninsula. I like the peaceful scene. The different shapes and tones of the trees and the cloud patterns. I bit of a difference between this image and the dark moody one from the previous post ( Castletownbere )

So the first image in the bag from this trip. Hotel was great. Food was great. Kenmare has jumped to the top of my list of landscape locations. I have only just scratched the surface of wonderful locations to photograph, so will be back again and agin me thinks.

More to follow from this trip including : Coornagillagh Quay, Cloonee Lough, Darrynane Bay, Glanbeg to name just a few.

Castletownbere

The one that nearly got away.

After we finished filming the morning sequence for the The video we made our way back to Castletownbere for some breakfast. A hard thing to find - a coffee shop open on a Sunday morning at 8:00. So we waited and did a bit more filming down at the harbour.  We also started doing the backup of the compact flash cards onto the laptops in the back of the jeep. The clouds were starting to break up at this stage which would lead to a very productive late morning and afternoon shooting. While the backup were being copied I noticed some wonderful light starting to appear over the harbour in front of us. A quick camera setup and a couple of images taken before the clouds and light changed and the show was over.

I love the mood in the image. The ripples on the calm water in the harbour and the single boat just on the edge of the light. Ok I did darken down the clouds and foreground a bit but this adds to the mood of the image. After a poor start to the day, getting up at 4:00, driving for 1.5 hours to capture the Super Moon set only to be greeted with the same clouds in the image above. This time the low lying clouds make the image.

Bad weather is good weather. It all depends on your mood.

The Reeks

The Reeks or there full name The Macgillycuddy Reeks Mountain Range on The Inveragh Peninsula, Co Kerry. This image above shows The Reeks and The Gap of Dunloe from the main road ( N71 ).
If you are one of the many people who have download the video ( Photographing The Landscape - Episode 0: Cork & Kerry ) then you will have seen how the image was captured.
And if you haven't why not?
We had wonderful light and shadows with the passing clouds to play with at this time of the day compared to the weather conditions for the sunrise early that morning.
Listen the best thing to do is download the video because, well read the DVD cover notes :

"Follow Landscape photographers Peter Cox and Neil McShane as they plan a dawn shoot in Cork. Despite being frustrated by the weather, they will show you how to work with the conditions instead of against them and come away with some good images.
For the rest of the day, they take in some of the highlights of the Cork and Kerry landscape, revealing tips and tricks of the trade along the way. Oh, and there's plenty of banter and good humor as well.
Some of the things you'll learn in the episode:
-Ways to plan for the best photographs.
-Tips for getting great black & white landscapes.
- How to use graduated neutral density filters to balance exposure.
-How bad weather can make for good photographs.
-Shading your lens without a hood to prevent flare."


So there you have it, all my secrets are out for you to learn from.
Over the coming weeks I will post more images for this trip which didn't make it into the final cut of the video. Not that there not any good, it's just we had to stop some where.
I look forward to your comments on the video if you have downloaded it and if there is anything would guys would like for us to cover in the next episode, please let me know.

Landscape Video

I am please to announce I have teamed up with Peter Cox and Roger Overall over on The Circle of Confusion website to star in a video series about Landscape Photography.

You can learn more about it on The Circle of Confusion website : HERE

Teaser - The Circle of Confusion: Photographing the Landscape, Episode 0.