Category Archives: Photography

Fushimi Inari

I’ve got a speech contest coming up in February in Sanda; it’s all in Japanese. I pretty much still can’t speak any Japanese spontaneously but it’ll be good practice.

If you ever visit Kyoto, definitely check out Fushimi Inari; ten thousand gates, one after the other represent possibly the most effort ever gone into man made tunnels.

6754389133 f2921fa0fb b Fushimi Inari


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Fushimi Inari

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Nagasaki Sunset

Last time I posted a shot of Nagasaki city at night from an observatory platform, today’s pic is what you see if you turn around! Two great views for just one admission!

6663966423 4be186c509 b Nagasaki Sunset


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Nagasaki Sunset

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Nagasaki Lights

I’m just back from a 2 week holiday around Kyushu in Japan. Two weeks of sight seeing, restaurants, onsen, and many, many hours of trains. And a 12 hour ferry back to Osaka at the end of it all.

Nagasaki was the first city I visited on Kyushu. The highlight was getting to see the sunset over the Pacific and the city lighting up as it slowly got darker. Highly recommended!

6658780457 5e37a9158a b Nagasaki Lights


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Nagasaki Lights

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Kiyomizu-dera

Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺) is one of the thousands of temples spread across Kyoto. It was flooded with people (and spot lights) the night I got there, but they were all but invisible to the camera thanks to a long exposure as they quickly strolled by.

6346695641 c18ee85dd5 b Kiyomizu dera


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Kiyomizu dera

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Long Road

Wow today was a reeeeealll long day. Three classes in a row! Each one 65 minutes long! Trying to explain english in english to japanese students! It’s a drain! Life’s tough!

6237373002 9d4c4b8250 b Long Road


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Long Road

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The Effect Wind Has On Rice

It’s been an eventful weekend; I’m just back home from a Mikoshi Festival in central Hyogo. A miskoshi is sort of like a portable house that is supposed to have a particular deity inside it. The local people move the mikoshi around the town on wheels and then carry it on their shoulders into the destination shrine. Sounds easy right? Oh yeah the mikoshi weighs 2000kg!

6226494492 e8fe45d678 b The Effect Wind Has On Rice


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile The Effect Wind Has On Rice

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Sun Setting Rice Fields

There are rice fields like this one scattered all around Sanda. I’m not sure why it’s lying flat at the moment though; usually the leaves are standing up straight. We did just go through typhoon season in September so maybe that had something to do with it ( ゚д゚) .

6221259935 5ae73bfae0 b Sun Setting Rice Fields


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Sun Setting Rice Fields

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Living In Sanda

Here’s our little house from the outside! It looks a little run down but it’s really very nice inside. We still haven’t met our neighbors yet and it’s been over two months – it’s a bit hard to do introductions when there’s a language barrier as large as English and Japanese goin’ on!

6206792103 3d83914e8e b Living In Sanda


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Living In Sanda

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Onwards And Upwards

Getting nervous now! Tomorrow week I’ll be on a plane to Japan for a year! So many things to get sorted still!

Todays photo is from the very very bottom of Lugnaquilla, a mountain in Co. Wicklow. It’s a very good walk to the top you should try it if you’re ever in the area icon smile Onwards And Upwards


5939700720 f2ed3cf712 b Onwards And Upwards


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Onwards And Upwards

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Slowly Clearing Out Junk

I never realised how difficult it was to move to a different country! It’s amazing the amount of junk one accumulates over the years, and most of it is stuff you never really use for anything. I’ve got three essentials items that I “NEED”: my laptop, camera and ipod. The rest is just superfluous. I’ve now got just ten days left in Ireland before jetting off to live amongst the Japanese for a year and I still feel like I’ve got a million things to sell!


5925103277 b8c110cebc b Slowly Clearing Out Junk


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Slowly Clearing Out Junk

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This Time Two Weeks I’ll Be Living In Japan

My time in Ireland is nearing an end. On the 23rd July I’ll be heading off with about 40 other Irish folk and taking up residence in Japan for at least a year. This is all part of the JET Program, an effort by the Japanese government to promote internationalism and understanding between the japanese people and foreigners. I’m gonna be spending the next year in a little place called Sanda City, just north of Kobe. It’s really a great looking location, not too urban, but close enough to get to some big cities without much notice.


5923907942 5a2f760e37 b This Time Two Weeks Ill Be Living In Japan


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile This Time Two Weeks Ill Be Living In Japan

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Trek Up Lug

It’s been a while since my last post and plenty has been going on in the last three months. I’ll be moving to Japan first of all! I applied to the JET Programme last December and have been accepted so I’ll be teaching english for the next year or so, starting on the 23rd July. I still don’t know where in Japan I’ll be placed but I’ll post more details as I get them!


5829830899 d700078cee b Trek Up Lug


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Trek Up Lug

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Posing Girls In Notre Dame

I have plenty of shots from Paris, so here’s another from Notre Dame Cathedral! For whatever reason the two girls in the bottom right of the shot seem more than willing to be in the picture, so I gladly obliged!

5451966804 cd8cf220b6 b Posing Girls In Notre Dame


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Posing Girls In Notre Dame

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Late Night Coffee in Paris

Here’s an oldie: I must have been running when I took this shot – it’s so blurry! The blue – yellow effect isn’t something I planned during processing but the dominance of just the two colors quite apealls to me.

4647751468 f07d6fa347 o Late Night Coffee in Paris


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Late Night Coffee in Paris


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Parking At The Castle

We’ve got some funny looking clouds in todays picture. Some of you might be wondering why? The answer, of course, is because the clouds have moved in between exposures and have been blended together in a sort of blur-motion way.

  • ISO Setting: 200
  • Shutter Speed: 1/500s, 1/1000s, 1/2000s, 1/4000s, 1/8000s
  • Aperture: f/4 @18mm
  • Lens Used: Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S VR DX

5357360466 050f66e3d4 b Parking At The Castle


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile Parking At The Castle

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The Great Wall Of Malta

When I was in Malta I took a train load of photos, many of which I’ve never posted here. Seeing as my last few posts were of one area (Mt Snowdon), I thought it would be nice to revisit my Malta folder that was slowly deteriorating away on an external hard drive, go through all my captures and post any ones which I’m at least 90% sure I’ve never posted before!

The one below was taken on Gozo I think; a very touristy island right beside Malta Island, and is part of the Republic of Malta. If you do go there though don’t call the inhabitants Maltese, they’re Gozitans!

Those interested in getting their hands on a new HDR ebook by a top photographer should head over to CaptainKimo.com. Kimo was kind enough to send me a copy of his new ebook for review. I’ve skimmed through it, (I’ve only had it 20 minutes!) and so far I can say that it gives step by step examples of how to take your HDR shot from Photomatix to a much higher level of professionalism using Photoshop (about 3 of its 8 chapters are devoted to Photoshop alone). The gulp between “Photomatixed” and “Photomatixed + Photoshopped” scenes really is huge! Once I read through it I’ll post a full review but in the mean time you should head over and check it out for yourself icon smile The Great Wall Of Malta .

  • ISO Setting: 200
  • Shutter Speed: 1/5000 s
  • Aperture: f/4 @31mm
  • Lens Used: Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S VR DX

5352313827 45fd5db5f0 b The Great Wall Of Malta


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile The Great Wall Of Malta

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The Lake Under The Ghostly Clouds

I’ve been in touch with Plimus over the ‘projectvisual’ discount coupon for Photomatix – they should get back in touch very soon and have it back up and running within a day or so.

Today’s pic is of a lake I passed while in Wales a while back. I didn’t get over to it but thought it looked striking wit the wispy clouds above it.

  • ISO Setting: 200
  • Shutter Speed: 1/640 s
  • Aperture: f/7.1 @26mm
  • Lens Used: Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S VR DX

5342111935 1bc4d9b718 b The Lake Under The Ghostly Clouds


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile The Lake Under The Ghostly Clouds

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Photomatix Coupon Down

Just a quick post, I’ve noticed my Photomatix coupon no longer works since it’s a new year and all, I’ll get it back up and running though as soon as possible icon smile Photomatix Coupon Down .

The Next In A Long Line Of Pictures From Mt Snowdon

I know it’s the new year and everyone is all about new starts and making changes for the better, but the fact is I actually haven’t had the chance to take any new pics since my trip to Snowdon a couple of months ago! I still have plenty to get through but I will make an effort to get away to some exotic land soon and get a new batch icon smile The Next In A Long Line Of Pictures From Mt Snowdon .


5324216319 e49ecca732 b The Next In A Long Line Of Pictures From Mt Snowdon


If you’re interested in knowing how I made this, along with my other photos, you can check out my HDR Tutorial icon smile The Next In A Long Line Of Pictures From Mt Snowdon

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The First Post Of The New Year

We’ll it’s a new year and after some personal business, formatting my computer and loosing licence keys for all kinds of stuff and finally relocating them, I can finally get back to some consistant posting. Check back soon icon smile The First Post Of The New Year

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