Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

Ballycastle Beach, Ireland

Left Belfast today and headed north and west  to Londonderry. Drove back over some of the same roads from Wednesday - this time the weather cooperated a bit - some rain but mostly dry weather....I saw this image the first time through and was happy to get back for a second shot at it......

 Spending New Year's Eve and Jan 1 in Londonderry exploring the northwest peninsula of Inishowen.

According to Wikipedia Inishowen is the largest peninsula in Ireland and the most northerly point, Main Head. Additionally, they say it has some of the highest sand dunes in all of Europe - as well as a fort constructed in the sixth century, Grianan an Alieach.....

Ireland, Foul Weather

Irish Sea, White Park Bay, Ireland, Canon 5dmkII

Yesterday was one of the my worst weather days ever touring Ireland. We had Rain, Sleet, sun, clouds and winds sometimes as high as 60-70 miles per hour. As I posted on my iPhone blog one could lean back against the wind and it would hold you up. It was also one of the most fun days fighting these elements to get the image....

It was very difficult to photograph in a wind that strong - had to shoot at high ISO and shutter speeds and still hold the tripod down - the other problem was the water being blown on to the front element of the lens.....fun day all around fighting the elements....in the end it all worked out and now I know a few new places to get back too in the future....

Below is the image made just to the right of the above image - shot with my iPhone 4s also on a tripod.....took a few creative liberties with this one.

This morning it is the 'political murals' in West Belfast...Needed to hire a car and driver as the advice was to not go in there without a local....looking forward to seeing these famous murals close up with a camera in my hand.

stay tuned..more coming...

White Park Bay, Ballintoy, Ireland, iPhone4s

Low, Quebec, Christmas

Low, Quebec, Christmas Day 2012

'The snow is snowing, the wind is blowing
But I can weather the storm!'....Irving Berlin

Yes, it turned out to be a very very White Christmas up in Canada.....Got up early and went out and captured a few snow images on Christmas day.....Nothing gets much better then freshly fallen snow...I truly enjoy the way it defines the landscape.....

Bachman Turner Overdrive

Bachman Turner Overdrive

This image of Bachman Turner Overdrive (BTO) is from mid-seventies in New York City - most likely the Academy of Music which was on 14th street. 

BTO were originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Acording to Wikipedia Randy Bachman and Chad Allan were formerly with The Guess Who and Neil Young apparently suggested they use Fred Turner as the vocalist. 'Takin Care of Business' and 'You Ain't Seen nothing yet' were probably two of their biggest hits.

Judging from the grain structure in this image it was most likely made using Kodak 2475 High Speed Recording Film - a favorite for ISO's of 3200 and more...It' main use was surveillance film back in the day. Personally, I always loved the grain...maybe a bit more detail but....

Chicago - Derby Scrimmage

Chicago Roller Derby Scrimmage

In Chicago to shoot some studio portraits tomorrow and was invited to attend a Women's Roller Derby Scrimmage.....I like shooting little vignettes of what is going on  around the track - don't get me wrong I love the thrill of the bouts but the 'odds and ends' always draw my interest...The movement in this sport reminds me a lot of my days as a Rock and Roll Tour Manager - love the fast moving flashes of color....

Women's Derby is a fast growing sport in this country - in fact the US Team won the World Tournament last week in Toronto.....If you can get to one of these bouts yo will be totally entertained by this fast moving sport, and, the athletic ability of these women....

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan - Dis-Appearing America

Found this old abandoned park on the way to Chicago.....I am not usually prone to HDR type images but on this particular image I liked the juxtaposition of the old and the new.....

Photostream Resolution

OK, I signed on to the cloud today to see for myself what was happening with the photostream images. It does appear, unless I have done something wrong, that the cloud does lower resolution. Possibly I am missing something - so if you have any more info on this subject please feel free to jump in here....

Thanks

1. Low Res in Photostream

 

2. High Res on IP4 

I did notice that Hipstamatic Images seem to come into Photostream with a higher resolution percentage then other camera applications....Could this be?

MIck and Keith

Mick and Keith, 1975

From the 1975 Stones Tour...The first tour with Ron Wood featuring Billy Preston on Keyboards...The tour opened in Baton Rouge with two shows.....I believe after listening to the beginning of Keith's book he is talking about this particular tour...