| Sunday, February 27, 2011 |
| Connor Pass |
I was amazingly lucky on this trip in regards to weather. Most days I couldn't have asked for better, and it only rained for an hour or so on one day. On this day it alternated between overcast and partly cloudy - which I'll still take over a boring blue sky any day. But the clouds so darkened the landscape that I just don't love any of the shots. Digital editing can do a lot, but it doesn't change the fact that a dark skied picture would look quite odd if the landscape wasn't proportionally dark.
This is from Connor Pass which is the highest mountain pass in Ireland. They seem to love ranking things in this country - the highest pass, the oldest this, the farthest west that, and so on. I guess it's mildly interesting, but honestly, if this was the 2nd highest mountain pass, I can't say that I'd have thought any less of it.
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posted by Brian @ 9:43 PM  |
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| Wednesday, February 16, 2011 |
| Jacob's Barn |
In my part of the country you don't have to drive too far to see some great run down, picturesque barns. But generally there's very little place to park other than in someone's driveway and I'm always worried about someone getting upset that I'm trespassing on their land. So despite the proximity to these gems I have yet to stop and take a picture of one. Back in Kentucky where my family is from however, the town is so small that I figure if anyone ever does approach me they'll either be family, or know my family. There's probably a greater chance they'll have no idea what I'm doing and not care anyway. This a place where I've been stopped more than once while jogging and asked if I needed a ride.
This barn belonged to my late uncle Jacob. It doesn't house anything more than rusty old farm equipment these days, but it still stands, and hopefully it will continue to for years ahead.
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| posted by Brian @ 10:15 PM |
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| Wednesday, February 9, 2011 |
| The Dotted Lake |
So I just spent an hour digging my car out of the snow and I have to say, I'm over winter. It's beautiful and all, but I'm ready to be able to walk out to my car and just drive it at more than 5 mph. And I live in Arkansas! This is supposed to happen in Wisconsin, in Michigan, not in Arkansas. I didn't measure how much snow we got, but it's closer to two feet deep than it is one.
This picture was actually from the last snow we had, right as things were just starting to thaw out. The little white dots on the lake were these crazy little ice crystals that looked like fur. It was very cool and made me wish I had a macro-lens. Unfortunately those are expensive and I spent my money on wide-angle. The grass is always greener. Anyway, you can just take my word for it.
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| posted by Brian @ 4:42 PM |
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| Tuesday, February 1, 2011 |
| Powerscourt Estate |
This picture is the polar opposite of whats going on outside my window right now.
For one, the green grass has been replaced by a few inches of ice and snow. Two, there's no awesome mountain (which would actually be a welcome addition to the snow - at least I could snowboard). And three, I don't know what the opposite of sprawling gardens outside a mansion is, but I'm pretty sure it's what I've got going on outside my tiny apartment.
This was taken at Powerscourt Estate which I think is a little southwest of Dublin. Its a beautiful place but it's been redesigned to milk tourists for as much as possible while retaining as little of the original charm as possible. It now has a hotel next door, two golf courses, and a number of shops (a mattress store if I remember correctly) and restaurants. You can't even see most of the inside of the house because it's only available to be rented out for weddings. But I suppose you've got to pay the bills somehow.
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| posted by Brian @ 5:12 PM |
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