16 Favourites from 2009

16 Favourites from 2009
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

A mosaic made up of my 16 personal favorite images from 2009 - it was tough enough to restrict myself to these 16!

Mummers

Mummers
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

St. Stephen's Day tradition in North County Dublin. A play involving some old folk tales & masked performers.

Mummers
Seamus Ennis Cultural Centre

It's Christmasssssssss!!

Santa
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

As the great Noddy Holder would say :)

Samuel Beckett Bridge

Samuel Beckett Bridge
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

So this is going to be a popular sight, our brand new Santiago Calatrava designed bridge in Dublin's dockalnds.

I have to say, it looks damn good. It'll look better when I get back there some evening for some 'blue hour' shots though...

Beads

Beads
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another image taken in the graveyard of St. Maelruain's Church, Tallaght.

50mm f/1.8 lens.

All She Wants for Christmas...

All She Wants for Christmas...
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Apparently she got some of them already :)

Another shoot with Ms. Blue Ruin, for her christmas card!

Helga (Studio Shoot)

Helga
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot of Helga from our recent shoot, going for a different mood & look with this one...

Model: Helga Stibi
MUA: Sarah Fitzsimons

Helga (Studio Shot)

Helga
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

One of the shots from the recent studio shoot with Helga Stibi.

I had come up with an idea of showing the aftermath or debris from a night out, and the photographer who was using the earlier session the studio donated the roses! I brought along some empty bottles, and makeup artist Sarah provided the handbag and it's contents.

Studio Aftermath

Studio Aftermath
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

The debris of a studio shoot...

St Maelruain's Church

St Maelruain's Church
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

St Maelruain's Church, Tallaght, Dublin. One of only a few 'old' buildings in Tallaght itself.

In Flight

In Flight
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Sunset somewhere over England, October 2009. Cityjet Avro RJ85.

Achill & Clare Island BW

Achill & Clare Island BW
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

A shot taken from the transmitters on Minaun hill, Achill Island. This view is towards the southwest and Clare Island.

Memorial

Memorial
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

The memorial to the victims of the London bombings on July 7 2007.

This is situated in Hyde Park, it's quite simple so I took a number of shots using a 50mm f/1.8 lens and deliberately went for black & white images.

Can You Tell What It Is Yet?

Can You Tell What It Is Yet?
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Well, can you?

London's 02 Arena (Millenium Dome), deliberately out of focus...

For the day that's in it...

Brandenburg Gate night BW
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Brandenburg Gate, Berlin. April 2007.

Wedding

Wedding
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

London, y'know? It's a hive of activity.

Newlyweds getting their photos taken in the middle of Piccadilly Circus.

Speaker's Corner

Speaker's Corner
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

I'd heard about Speaker's corner in Hyde Park when I was a kid and I was intrigues by what kind of people would turn up on a sunday morning in central London to tell us all that 'the end is nigh'.

The gathering on this particular day was quite small, and most of the speakers were of the religious persuasion, including this American man.

Chinatown

Chinatown
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

I went to London a couple of weeks ago. It was the first time that I stayed in the city, I've been there a couple of times before but just on day trips. It's a great city, with an awful lot of things to see.

Anyway...Chinatown, in the West End. A busy street (Gerrard street in this case, named after Stevie of course) with various Asian shops & restuarants and a vibrant atmosphere.

I propped the camera on a bollard and hoped for the best with this one! ;)

Marlay Park

Marlay Park
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Yep, Marlay Park again. Just messing around the other weekend. I do need to get back into the landscape & outdoors work though, it's been a while.

No excuses really - after all this is the perfect time of year with late sunrises & nice colours everywhere...

Ms. Blue Ruin

Some images from a recent shoot with Ms. Blue Ruin (Lydia Farrell) in Dublin. We came up with a theme based around a day at the beach, and as Lydia has an interest in 1940's/50's vintage style I was able to work on some pin-up shots.



This image was taken relatively early into the shoot (we started at around 6 PM so plenty of natural light at that stage). Just one flash here as a fill light.



As the evening wore on the sunset colours began to add a nice backdrop to our work. In this shot Lydia is holding an old TLR camera I had at home, which I felt went well with the retro theme.

Conker

Conker
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

More strobist fun...I picked this up on the street & took it home.

Lit by a single 430EXii, slighty left & above the camera, 1/8 power, with a homemade grid on the flash.

Makeup Shoot

Makeup shoot
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another image from my recent shoot at The Portobello Institute.

The light setup in this case was:

Camera right: Canon 430EXii on 1/4 +0.7 power, via a white shoot-through umbrella.
Camera left: Nikon SB600, 1/8 +0.7 power, with diffuser

MUA: Sarah Fitzsimons

Makeup Shoot

Makeup Shoot #3
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot from my recent session with The Portobello Institute in Dublin.

MUA for this shot was Kasia Kaniewska.

I used a single 430EXII flash with a shoot through umbrella (white brolly) to the right on the camera. 1/4 power in this case.

Makeup Shoot

Makeup Shoot #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

A shot from a recent shoot at the Portobello Institute in Dublin. I got in touch with the tutor of their makeup course who was looking for a photographer to take a few shots for the students in the class.

It was a good experience - this was really the first time I've done a setup entirely on my own & it worked very well. There were some black cloth-covered partitions available as a backdrop, so with my light stands and a couple of flashes I worked away at it.

In this shot I'm only using one flash (Canon 430EXII with a shoot-through umbrella).
Makeup artist was Amie Doyle.

Shelly

Shelly #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another meeting of the Dublin Strobist group - this time we set up on Portmarnock beach with about 20 photographers and 5 or 6 models (I can't remember exactly).

This is a 2-light setup, Nikon SB800 on 1/4 power to the left and also to the right of the camera. Shelly Massey was the model for this shoot.

Achill Sunset 2

Achill Sunset #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Achill Island again, this time a sunset image taken on the northern side of the island. This is one of the last sunsets in Europe, being so far west.

Abandoned Village

Abandoned Village
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

I made another trip to the West of Irleand recently, this time to Achill Island in Co. Mayo.

This shot was taken at an abandoned village on the island, possibly abandoned during the famine, although no-one is entirely certain when it was deserted (there's evidence that people did live there after that period).

Irina Blonde

Irina #1
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot of Irina, this time with a blonde wig! I like this one a lot.

The background colour was achieved by using blue gels on each of the Bowens Espirit 1000W lamps we had pointing at the back wall of the studio (which is actually a white board).

Major credit due to makeup artist Melissa Curran who provided the wigs for the shoot.

Irina - studio session

Irina #5
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Into the studio last weekend for a shoot with Irina Rai. We tried a number of different ideas as Irina (and makeup artist Melissa) had broguht several different outfits, wigs etc. to add a bit of variety to the session.

Head

Head
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

More studio fun - this time with a very patient model. Quiet, responded well to direction & happy to do as she was told ;)

Spider

Spider
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Some people might not like this one ;)

A tiny little spider, in my parent's back garden. On one of their bird feeders to be exact about it. I'm going for one of those bokeh effects, it kind of works...

Glendalough

Glendalough
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot of Glendalough, this time taken from the western end of the valley, above the abandoned miner's village.

There are several walking trails in the valley, I did the Spinc & Glenealo valley trail in the opposite direction to the one recommended in the guide, starting off with the flat section along the northern shore of the upper lake & then heading up along the Spinc boardwalk...

Upper Lake

Upper Lake
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Glendalough again, this time from the viewpoint on the Spinc walking trail above the upper lake. Well worth the trek :)

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Taken from Howth, my idea was to get a nice sunset shot of Dublin Bay but the fog rolled in before I could get what I wanted!

Cliffs Of Moher

Moher BW
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

A black & white shot of one of Ireland's most iconic locations, the Cliffs Of Moher, Co. Clare.

It was a stormy day, extremely windy, raining on & off which made BW the only choice really.

It had been a while since I last visited this palce, probably 8 years or so. I don't remember if I was charged for parking on my last visit, but this time I had to pay €8 to park here, and there was nowhere else to leave the car.

Irish Sunset

Sunset #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

I spent a few days 'Out West' this week. The weather was pretty bad. Strong winds, grey skies, rain. A typical Irish spring/summer week to be honest.

Luckily, the final evening of my trip yielded a nice sunset, as viewed from Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare.

Slieve Donard & Mourne Wall

Slieve Donard & Mourne Wall
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

I managed a trip outside of Dublin this weekend, headiing north to Co. Down & the Mourne Mountains.

Slieve Donard is the highest peak in the Mournes, peak in Northern Ireland & indeed in all of Ulster, at 855 metres above sea-level. Not that I made it to the top, instead stopping a few times on the way up to the Mourne Wall, which you can see in the photo. That was about 540 metres, and the final climb is pretty steep so this inexperienced hill-walker decided to quit while the going was good ;)

Next time...

Lou #2

Lou #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

This shot form the recent Dublin Strobist meet has proven to be very popular over on flickr. I can't imagine why ;)

Veronika #2

Veronika #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another month, another meeting of the Dublin Strobist. It's not a bad way to spend a grey, windy sunday ;)

This time we managed to enlist the help of some modified car enthusiasts - the cars being used props. This set up is lit with two 'Alien Bee' studio lights, one to the left and another to the right.

Mary's House

Mary's House
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Áras an Uachtaráin is the official residence of the President of Ireland. Mary McAleese is the current presdient (hence the name of the photo!).

This house is located in Phoenix Park, Dublin. I was there today to take some photos at the Great Ireland Run, my first ever paid photography gig. It was good fun, and a good experience.

Snow Jet

Snow Jet
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another fairground ride at the St. Patrick's Festival last weekend.

It wasn't exactly oversubscribed down there last saturday evening. And to be honest, there didn't seem to be a lot on offer, a big wheel, dodgems, a few other attractions. I didn't go on anything, such things are possibly not compatible with a dSLR ;)

2 seconds at f/19 for this one.

The Way The Big Wheel Spins

The Way The Big Wheel Spins
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Big wheel at the St. Patrick's Festival in Dublin city centre this weekend.

Taken around dusk, I still kept some blue sky, the later shots I got have a much darker sky, this way I've got a little more contrast.

As for the title - a nod to Rush of course!

Lisa Again

Lisa #3
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot from the Dublin Strobist meet. this was taken in a kitchen, white walls & ceiling, in fact we were stood on a counter-top.

I used a flash unit (that was set up off my right side) to light Lisa's face. That unit had a large 'beauty dish' attached, it was a white disc that reflected more light. There was another flash pointed at the wall in the background.

For post processing I pushed the exposure up a little but particularly around her eyes to make them brighter.

Lina Blue

Lina #2
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot from last sunday's Strobist meet.

For this image I am using two speedlite flashes, one in front which is set up with an umbrella diffuser, one behind the model which has a blue gel & is pointed at the wall behind her - giving that nice blue coloured background.

The model's name is Lina, and the makeup artist is Melissa Curran.

Lisa #1

Lisa #1
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

This weekend I took part in a meet of the Flickr Dublin Strobist group. The aim of the group is to use & share off camera flash equipment. the location was a disused factory in Dublin, and we were joined by six models and a make-up artist.

Various settings were put into use, with different light conditions & flash setups. We used diffusers, gels, reflectors, and got a lot of great expereince. As I've never shot with either a model or an off-camera flash before it was a bit fo a steep learning curve but the aim of the day was to try and learn something new. Overall it was a great experience.

In this case, I've got a flash and umbrella diffuser just off to my left.

The model here is Lisa. I'll post some more images as I get through them.

Glendalough

Glendalough
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Last shot from this trip - I liked the bench here, looking out over the lake itself...

A Forest

A Forest
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Another shot from my recent visit to Glendalough. This was taken just above Poulanass waterfall, from a little bridge over the stream itself.

On the left of the image you can see a little bit of snow, the ground above this point still had a couple of inches of snow lying on it.

Glendalough

Glendalough
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Back to Glendalough - with the snow we had recently I didn't want to miss out on the chance of shooting here while it still had a covering of the white stuff.

I had considered going up there on the previous weekend but the snow was still quite heavy & the roads around that part of Wicklow were supposedly difficult to negotiate.

This is a merge of two images, both taken at 28mm. It's cropped at a 17 X 6 ratio.

Still there...

Still there
Originally uploaded by petergriffin_1892.

Fifth day of snow & I don't think it'll melt tomorrow... :)

At least the roads are clearer now, if somewhat icy.