Why is Ardglass in a Jamjar? I’ve no idea! But I’ve heard that expression used by my late grandparents, back in the 1960’s. It was made famous by Van Morrison, the singer/sngwriter, who immortalised it in his song ‘Coney Island.’
…On and on, over the hill to Ardglass
Van Morrison
In the jam jar, autumn sunshine, magnificent
And all shining through Stop off at Ardglass for a couple of jars of
Mussels and some potted herrings in case
We get famished before dinner…
Van Morrison (who I understand had a significant birthday yesterday) wrote a song called ‘Coney Island’ in which he mentions ‘the Lecale District.’ It’s that broad area that stretches along the Co.Down coastline between Killyleagh and Killough, and includes towns like Downpatrick, Shrigley, Strangford, and Ardglass. locale is (like Strangford and the Ards Peninsula), a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.’ – so it’s no wonder that when Van Morrison made his meandering car journey through it, he would wish that it could be like this all the time!
One of those outstandingly beautiful areas is the little hamlet of Kilclief, perched right on the edge of ‘the Narrows’ that bottle-neck of unpredictable tidal water at the mouth of Strangford Lough. Kilclief has an old castle, (Caislean Cill Cléithe) a state supported monument, a ‘tower-house’ built around the years 1412-1441, by one John Sely, the Bishop of Down, later defrocked for living at this castle with a married woman who went by the unusual name of Lettice Savage!
Continue reading The Lecale District #1Newcastle Co.Down.
The recent storm (Ellen, I think) caused flooding in the seaside town of Newcastle as the Shimna River burst through its banks. The Shimna rises in the Mournes and meanders through forested areas on the sides of the hills. Wood swept down by the torrential currents ended up in the Irish Sea and washed up on the beach.
The dark hills in the background are the Mourne Mountains of Percy French fame, sweeping musically down to the sea. I like this image because of its contrasts, its light and shade, the textures of the driftwood and the deep shadow of the hills.
Fujifilm X-T2, F=18mm, f/6.4 @ 1/125th sec on ISO800.
The driftwood is quite bright – after all, it’s been washed clean by the sea, so I exposed for the wood, which cast the mountains into deep shadow, an effect I rather liked!
Angus Rock Lighthouse sited in the Narrows between Lecale and the Ards Peninnsula. Built as a day guide only, the light was added in 1980, and later became solar powered. It can be photographed from Kilclief, but you need a longish lens. This image was made with a 300mm Nikon lens on a Fujifilm X-T30, so probably the equivalent of approx 500mm on a full-frame/35mm camera.
The camera was supported on a monopod (My granddaughter Chloe calls it my ‘giant selfie stick’). Here’s the boring stuff: F=300mm, f/5.6 @ 1/180th sec on ISO400.
Personally, I like the ‘minimalist’ look of the image.
A long walk from the West Strand into Portrush, around Ramore Head and back past Barry’s to the West Strand, with a break for a cappuccino along the way! Just one pause to make an image with the Fujifilm X-T30, and a Nikon manual focus 35-70mm lens. It was dusk, around 8.45pm:-
We walked through Portrush this afternoon, and then drove out through Bushmills to have afternoon coffee at the fabulous BOTHY COFFEE cafe at White Park Bay. Iv’e spent so much time with a camera in Portrush, so I wanted to get some different shots, something fresh and original from a familiar location. Here’s a few of my efforts…
I looked down this entry and noticed a Liverpool FC flag hanging from a window, giving a tiny splash colour to an otherwise bland scene.
Continue reading Same Portrush – Different PerspecTiveIt was a sky just like this that inspired the songwriter Jimmie Kennedy to write his famous lyric, “Red Sails in the Sunset.” This image was captured using the Fujifilm X-T2.
Red sails in the sunset
Way out on the sea
Oh, carry my loved one
Home safely to me
If you are travelling on the train from Coleraine to Londonderry there are some truly stunning views, and on approach to the city this otherwise inaccessible view of the Peace Bridge and the Guildhall are a worthwhile image to capture.
This mage made while the train was moving using the Fujifilm X-T30. The trains are double glazed so a little bit of dehazing in Lightroom fixed that. Continue reading NIR Railway Journeys – L’Derry
Waking along Tullygarvan Road this evening and got overtaken by this road-hogging monstrosity!
Fujifilm X-T30, F=21mm, f/5.6 @ 1/125th sec on ISO2000 (9.20pm) Nikon manual focus lens, using focus peaking.
It’s rare to have open roads in Belfast on a Saturday, but today the roads were reasonably free of traffic – with people ‘self-isolating’ and ‘social distancing.’ But there was one traffic jam, and that was caused by the closure of an important route into and out of the city, the Sydenham By-Pass. This closure caused a stand-still traffic jam on the lower section of the Newtownards Road (Ballymacarret) – Just one single snarl up in the whole city and I was stuck in it.
As it happened I had a camera right beside me on the passenger seat of the car, so while the car was stationery, with the handbrake on and the engine stopped, I made a small number of exposures. Random images, of no relevance or importance.
Portraits2Go.co.uk 