It’s back to the North Coast, one of my favourite parts of Northern Ireland! This time to spend an October day around Ballintoy, a picturesque harbour between the Giant’s Causeway and Ballycastle, Co. Antrim. I took the Fujifilm X-T30 and the Nikon F100.
Ballintoy Harbour
Ballintoy (Baile an Tuaigh – the northern townland) village is less than a mile from the harbour, which is accessed by a narrow winding road. Even the journey to the harbour is visually rewarding.
A visit to the Mausoleum at Templepatrick (Co.Antrim) requires some diligence and persistence – just to find it! It is signposted from the road opposite the Templeton Hotel, and the passage to the site lies within the historic Castle Upton Estate. Nowadays the monument is owned by the National Trust. A visit is rewarding though, for the site is historic, including not only the Templetown Family mausoleum, but also the grave of the first Presbyterian Minister of Templepatrick, Rev John Welsh, the grandson of John Knox.
The approach to the graveyard is by way of a tree lined pathway, which lends itself to the ‘spooky fog’ treatment in photoshop! (Don’t worry, you can see the ‘untreated’ image in the next montage. Images were made with the Fujifilm X-T30 and a standard zoom, 18-55mm lens.
The Gate to the Mausoleum – Spooky! F=39mm, f/4 @ 1/60th sec on ISO800
Pathway and gates F=39mm, f/4 @ 1/60th sec on ISO800First view of the mausoleum from the gate.F=28mm, f/11 @ 1/60th sec on ISO400
The Mausoleum was built by the Scottish architect Robert Adam for the Upton family in 1789. It contains memorials to some of the family members. On the day I visited the monument was open and access to the inside was certainly interesting.
The Mausoleum Interior. F=18mm, f/2.8 @ 1/60th sec on ISo3200
The best shot of the Mausoleum is from the far side of the graveyard. Although the ground is uneven and the graves squashed close together, the graveyard can be crossed with care for a rewarding photograph.
The Templeton Mausoleum at Castle Upon Estate F=18mm, f/13 @ 1/60th sec on ISO400
Fujifilm X-T30, 18th August 2019, 6pm, overcast/patchy clouds – daylight. Average reading was f/5.6 @ 1/250th sec on ISO200,
I had a few minutes to kill today before an appointment, so I had a short stroll around Holywood Priory, an old church and graveyard in Holywood, a medium sized town between Belfast and Bangor, and part of the Ards and North Down District Council area.
Portstewart’s annual ‘Red Sails Festival’ is held each year during the last week of July each year. With entertainers, singers, children’s competitions and amusements, exhibitions and a fireworks display – the festival attracts great crowds into the seaside town each year, filling the cafes, coffee shops and restaurants, and giving plenty of opportunities to meet friends and enjoy the company. this year it was a week of high temperatures, pleasant breezes, and beautiful sunsets, and great opportunities for photography. Here’s a snapshot of the week…
This old Mill Gate on the Crumlin Road Belfast is a remnant of Belfast’s industrial past, when the flax harvested in the fertile Lagan Valley was woven into the ‘Irish Linen’ cloth so valued by discerning (and wealthy) clients all over the world.
An interesting blend of the old and modern – a derelict factory chimney on the site, with mobile communications equipment attached!
The mountain area protruding to the right of the chimney is known locally as ‘Napoleon’s Nose’ – part of Cave Hill Country Park.
The BBC’s ‘Line of Duty’ police drama is a powerful, compelling drama, watched by (series 5) by over 8 million viewers across the UK, – and shot in and around Belfast. Today, with a few minutes to spare I stopped at one of its favourite locations, TATE’S AVENUE, to make some images of the area.
Passport Agencies are changing the way passport photographs are conveyed to them. The old paper passport photograph will soon not be accepted, as the agency changes to digital, online applications.
On a recent visit to the North Coast (of Ireland) I visited the town of Portrush, and made some images of the local Methodist Church there. Why so? Because of its name! This church is named for the learned Bible commentator Dr Adam Clarke.
Adam Clarke was born in 1760 near Tobermore, and died of Cholera in Westminster, London in 1832. Clarke’s greatest work was his Bible Commentary, which was to be a standard theological text among Methodists for around 200 years. Continue reading Dr Adam Clarke→