The lilliputian

ON THE SUBJECT OF THE LIFESTYLE CHOICE!

2012-01-30T21:07:00.001Z

Well its been a while. But here I go!
The last government of Ireland had numbed me, so much so that I became immune to their rantings, their obvious detachment, the silly unfounded statements and ridicuolus actions.
So when the new crew came along in a way I felt sorry for them and the mess they had taken on.
But the beast in me has been reawakened by our now minister for finance Michael Noonan and his dearest Enda Kenny.
I suppose you could say I have had an epiphany on the road to the Malahide estuary to photograph another of our kind. A hard working, loving, vibrant, reality, being forced to turn away and seek feelings of worth in a mine in Perth Australia.
Oh now I realise what an empty system Irish democracy has evolved into.

GRADUATE GHOSTOWN

2012-01-26T01:35:00.000Z

Meet Naoise Mc Gee, a recent college graduate in Film and Russian. Naoise is on her way to the busiest city in the world so it's a good job that she worked at Mao Restaurant where things are always full of hustle and bustle. Naoise lived until now on Killiney Hill and the view from her window included the Pigeon House Station. Like Marie Carroll, she decided that close to these tubes would be a good landmark for her to sit for her glorious parting shot. Pensive is the word she actually used as she glanced at my mac screen after the shoot. She had to say that she loves Dublin, but with so many of her friends gone it seems like a ghost town (70,000 left in the last 12 months alone).

NEW YEAR TRAFFIC!

2012-01-19T23:06:00.001Z

Welcome to the second post of 2012. This one has been a while coming as things have been fairly hectic around my studio since the New Year kicked off. I have been very active over the last 5 or six weeks trying to arrange projections of a new video piece in some locations around the world.
So far four have been arranged and hopefully there will be news of more as the weeks pass by to the screening dates in March next. So far we have commitments from Melbourne Australia, Edinburgh Scotland, Alabama, U.S.A. and Minas Gerais Brazil. I am standing by for news from London, Bristol, New York and Chicago.

OH FOR A NEW YORK PROJECTION!

2012-01-01T23:46:00.000Z

Welcome to my first post of 2012,well over the two year threshold and 96 posts behind me,almost 45000 page views,with 30,000 of them in the last year.Thanks to all of you who keep coming back!
Keep spreading the word, after all the Lilliputians world is the small one!!
As mentioned in my last post I have arranged 3 projections of my Leaving Dublin video piece
"on leaving" for march next.I noticed whilst looking for a suitable New York venue that the Irish arts centre had recently (dec 7th last) made a 2 hour projection of a piece by Andrew Duggan onto the side of a building on 51st street.As they have gone through this process I really would like to talk to someone there. So if anyone could get me contact details of the person who orgainised this show I would greatly appreciate it!

My next sitter now finds herself working in New York and was delighted to meet with me whilst spending some time at home in Dublin for the Christmas holiday.Aoife Mooney has been living there for almost a year now but I missed her on her original departure and we have been in touch via fb a few times to organise a shoot when she made it home for a visit. Here is what she had to say.

A FRESH START!

2011-12-27T15:45:00.002Z

Difficult as it is to move away from home and make a fresh start one person who is rising to the challenge and is full of optimism for the life ahead is Graham martin.
Graham, from Loughshinny, sat there for me a couple of weeks ago.He took time out from seasonal work grading veg for the christmas market to make the shoot.Being one of seven photographers I have photographed over this project Graham, like the others has an keen sense of the importance of this documentation. In fact emigration is as much an important part of the fabric of the Irish psyche as it is the destruction of Irish society.

PLEASE CALL!!

2011-12-04T18:18:00.001Z

I have got to say a big thanks to all at the Irish Times for affording me my first ever Full page broadsheet piece(web version here)Thanks Ciara and the features Editor for elaevating my project.
One of my main reasons for making contact with the paper was to let more peole know about my project and to let them know that the project was still going.
I am still shooting and I would like more sitters to get in touch with me.
So if there is anyone you know who is about to make this big move please point them to this page or my viewbook site where thy will find my contact details.
you can find me at dmon@me.com or call on 087 2247020
You can be guaranteed of a great night shoot and a fantastic momento of a time of significant meaning in your own personal history.

WELCOME HOME!!

2011-12-02T00:25:00.001Z

Meet Conor McMahon,you may have met before here on the liliputian(click here)Conor left his home in Dublin Back in August 2010 and had this to say at the time about the house he was leaving behind"The house is my home and the store of all my effort this last few years. A place to get together with the lads to work on the tunes, or other times where I might draw, conceive new ideas for my next exhibition. It is also my home in this cul-de-sac neighbourhood where I have found myself very much part of the extended neighbourhood family that I became part of 7 years ago now."

MOVING ALONG

2011-11-26T13:44:00.001Z

Phew when Friday arrived this week I was delighted! Its been really hard the last few years working so much more then before most of it not showing any monetary reward.
But we keep the head down and keep plugging away and try to follow through to completion on every new avenue of opportunity that opens up.

PEOPLE I ADMIRE MOST!

2011-10-28T16:29:00.002+01:00

Last Friday I had a call from Jade O Callaghan, I was to photograph her on the following Sunday and had just been introduced to her by her good friend and fellow sitter Claire Weir.
Jade told me that she was going a little sooner than she though and she had just recieved her itinerary for travel and she was leaving on Saturday morning. Although Jade was having a farewell dinner with her boyfriend Aiden and her parents she arranged the photographic session for 10 that night before leaving for Kuwait the next day!

BÍ ULLAMH

2011-10-22T22:02:00.001+01:00

On Wednesday night last I took the drive out to Stillorgan, Co Dublin a pretty established suburb about 4 to 5 miles from the city centre. Driving through it's busy centre I could not help but notice the vacant shops which have become synonymous with these times. Towards the end of the town there stands a very large site that speaks volumes and articulates for me the rot that has set in and is eating away at our country.

PARIS BOUND!

2011-10-18T17:47:00.002+01:00

Its been all of 3 weeks since my last post and this has given me time to reflect on the "Leaving Dublin"
project and assess what has been going on.

Yesterday I looked at an autumnal shoot from last November and was amazed to find that at that point we where still a sovereign nation (although only days from the bailout)
Looking around now it is very disheartening to see where we are as a nation and I understand why Emmanuelle Pinjon And her Fiancee Guglielmo Casu are making a dash for the relative safety of Paris.

GOOD STORIES TO TELL!

2011-09-21T00:50:00.000+01:00

I would now like to welcome my first guest writer to my blog a Man with insight on his way to London.

The following are his words

Neil Callanan has moved to London after six months as a freelance journalist. Prior to that, he was business editor of The Sunday Tribune when it shut its doors in February.

A NEED FOR ADVENTURE!

2011-09-05T13:59:00.000+01:00

Siobhán Meade and Karen Redmond have had enough! The good friends and G.A.A. rivals are off to Australia tomorrow in search of adventure. The adventure their working life here in Dublin failed to deliver. After college and then specialist training both would have taken up positions in teaching (Primary school) and chefing (Special diet chef in Temple Street Children's Hospital) respectfully.

WALK ON!

2011-08-24T22:39:00.000+01:00

Meet Brigid Dunne another brave Dubliner facing down the negativity and the naysayers and moving on.
On to a new city,where new challenges,obstacles,and opportunities all coincide to give a person receptive to change a new and fresh perspective on life, but without a safety net!!

ON THE RIGHT SHOES!

2011-08-14T01:40:00.001+01:00

Last july I presented my work Leaving Dublin to The Sean Mac Diarmada Summer School in Kiltyclogher,county Leitrim.
It was a very positive experience and it forced me to think of my work in the broader context of migration and documentation of the movements of people.My Presentation lasted for 30 minutes and I finished it with a specially prepared video piece which was warmly received by all who viewed it.
The experience affirmed my aspirations and made me feel a true sense of achievement as it was obvious that the work presented has and will continue to grow in historical significance as a documentation of the phenomena all to familiar to several generations of Irish,and indeed to several other cultures around the word.

FROM THE S.C.R.TO ARIZONA

2011-08-07T00:02:00.027+01:00

Through the process of shooting this project I have met with so many people, each one with their own story.In a lot of cases movement from Dublin was a necessity forced upon the person by one circumstance or another . Initially my call for participants looked for people who were moving for financial reasons, but as time passes I realise that there are other reasons for peoples wanderings and in the interest of presenting a fuller picture of Irelands new diaspora all movers must be represented to one extent or another.

AFTER TIME OUT THINGS HAVE CHANGED!

2011-07-31T23:58:00.002+01:00

I have to admit typing this post from a different machine in a different country has phased me a little.
There is no doubt about it that familiarity makes us all feel very comfortable and we become very cosy when we operate from inside our comfort zone.It makes the act of composition a very straightforward one.
But faced with this awkward feeling of typing in a different location really stresses to me the hugeness of all the people who have sat with me over the last year and a half
All of these people without exception have found themselves in situations which placed them far from the comfort of their homes and families. One such person is Glaucia Torres Quintanilha who spent 3 years in Dublin working as a child minder.Now she is returning home to that comfort zone knowing that things there will have changed somewhat whilst she was away. here is what she had to say

FINGERS CROSSED

2011-07-21T02:25:00.002+01:00

Last monday myself,Artur,Ray,Mel,and Emma,were joined at Dun Laoighre Marina by Melanie Croxon a young Glenageary teacher preparing to take up a new teaching post in the Middle East.
We were also joined by Mels good friend and mine Jeannie Wenham a person who has put me in touch with many a leaver!
Jeannie and Mel have put out from this Marina on several racenights and over many summers and have enjoyed crewing boats as often as they could.
This is the place that means so much to Mel and she is very sad to leave it,but being a young out of work teacher is not in her plan so she is all packed and waiting for the word to go.

FORGING AHEAD

2011-07-18T02:15:00.010+01:00

Meet Jurgen Alexander a young man with a future!
In this life we have got to strive for what we want. Through hard work and application all is achievable.
Jurgen has worked as designer to the wexford festival opera since graduating from the Grafton academy.
you can see some of his work here.
Jurgen has aspirations as a couturier and so he is off to study in London to fulfill his dream of becoming a major force in the field of fashion and design.

OVER THE BRIDGE!!

2011-07-02T21:49:00.004+01:00

its been over 3 weeks since my last post and I am feeling a little withdrawn,but really glad to be back tonight.
I got caught up chasing a load of books around a copy stand and it took up way more time than it was supposed to.So sorry to any one who may have been hanging on for a post!! Sorry especially to Tady Walsh and his Wife Milena who I photographed some 4 weeks ago before they departed for Quimper
in Brittany(France).

HOLD ME CLOSE ,KEEP ME SAFE!

2011-06-11T23:30:00.000+01:00

I had another one of those beautiful experiences in Kilmainham last week.I met with a family who where just about to ship out to Holland. they had been guided to my project by a friend and they liked what they saw.It was in the eleventh hour that they had made contact with me so there was no time to physically scout the site,but we put our heads together and came up with a location where I knew there were a few good angles and plenty of space to do the shoot.

These are the Brichard -Rooneys Ken,Severine,and and the beautiful Leonore.

FOR THE GOOD LIFE!!

2011-06-07T22:51:00.001+01:00

Two weeks ago now I met with Sabrina del Pico, an Italian from Rome who having lived here and enjoyed it a lot,had decided to go back to Rome to try life in her home town once more.
She had been in Dublin for several years and lived at the photo location on the south circular road for some years.The garden at her house was a particular favourite place for her and indeed it proved to be a very special place for me to!!

ON OBSERVATION!

2011-06-05T16:26:00.002+01:00

I was delighted to be asked last friday to speak at the launch of the Griffith College Graduate Photography Exhibition.
It was a fantastic night with great work and very well attended.On the night I was phased by a very well researched intro about myself(twas very strange,but indeed gratifying to hear my own words quoted),the Heat of the heaving Auditorium,and crowd hum.The Net result of this was that I paused mid flight for about 20 seconds and jumped straight to the end of my prepared short talk.
The thrust of my message was to encourage the graduates to continue the great work they had achieved with this show and I feel from feed back on the night they got the message.
However there were some things I only pointed at and now I will expand on those for the record!

Last year I attended the first graduate show of this program and was blown away!
The same is true of this years show.In short the work acknowledges the many facets which exist in modern photography without getting hung up on any one.These strands are then skillfully held together with technical skill and proficiency with the medium underlying all works.
The course program is skillfully put together as to allow participants to freely explore their desired area whilst acquiring the skill sets to propel them forward into the profession of photography!
There is no doubt that more colleges will have an eye to the model honed by the course authors at Griffith, and I await with some pleasure to watch outputs mutate as other students are unfettered from the restraints previously placed upon their creativity.

It is interesting that the photoireland festival had its first year last year also and my interest there was also to observe the level of diversity present in the works presented.I look forward to see this festival grow and as it does it should raise the profile of photography amongst the Irish audience.

The Photographic industry in ireland has been in a state of flux and over the last few years I have really felt things shift dramatically.Just as in the Print and Publishing sectors in the Eighties the lines between photography,design,(web and print)and other areas of business have been blurred to a point that it was assumed that because the tools of photography where more accessible than ever,any creative type with access to these tools could multitask to provide a total solution for customers at a reduced cost.
I am glad to report that I see a shift in opinion as business and agencies realize the truth of this false economy is a fall of standards in output.
Just recently I met with a recent photography graduate who has, in a turn around, been employed full time by large Dublin based Auction house as their in-house photographer. These type actions are the seeds of change and I foresee several more positions emerging for graduates in the future.

For my own part I have only recently reconnected with my own desire to create personal work along with the desire to make a living from photography.This should not have been the case.Now I realise the importance of personal work as being central to my practise as a photographer and I would encourage all to keep on shooting and working on the great work started on their college course,in the longrun this kind of practise can only be good for your spirit and your career as it creates another facet to your person and indeed to your professional persona
I have to thank the economic slowdown in Ireland for affording me the time to spend working on my own projects . I must point out to all that time spent shooting work if equalled with time spent promoting this work via the internet will grow for you a profile beyond your first imaginings.
The secret of success in this area is to be diligent,frequent, positive in content and interesting.
Thanks to all on the night ,the graduates and Staff at Griffith

I hope this post reaches my intended audience of the night and beyond and clarifies the intentions of my strangled address.
please pass it on!!
thank you
david

UNDER THE BRIDGE

2011-05-31T00:27:00.001+01:00

I have to say this project is bringing me closer to a lot of people.People I would never have met otherwise.
It has given me the opportunity to pause,chat,and to know and understand some of the complexities of modern life.
Also I have made an intimate study of certain parts of this city in an effort to come up with a fresh perspective and this has totally altered the way I feel about, and now look at,my own home town.

SHELTER FROM THE MADDNESS AND RAIN!

2011-05-28T18:24:00.003+01:00

When I started the process of shooting work for the Leaving Dublin project I expected at some point or another to meet a problem on the streets.But to date this has not been the case. In fact I would go so far as to say every one we met along the way were interested and supportive,the worst you could say of any one person is that they were unconcerned or indifferent.
This cycle I am afraid came to its end on a recent shoot where we met less than hospitable people.
Ironically it was the closest shoot to my own home I had ever planned in a part of town I thought to be inhabited by the nicest you could meet.
How wrong could you be!

But Hey this was Henrieta Street, and I fully understand that on several occasions the natives have been corralled into their homes by large film crews waving city council permits granting them permission to shoot footage for hours on end.

Our shoot would have taken 20 minutes after setting up,we where 4 people in a family saloon car with one flash head and a tripod.
How ever once the flash had tripped once two crazies approached us to enquire what we where doing.
I answered in a friendly manner,and was quickly told you can't do that here.(we where disturbing their sleep,at 9.45pm.and their street was private property)
From the tone of the conversation that followed I realized we were talking to a couple of mentally disturbed cranks who needed to get their way so we decided to leave rather than to trade insults(one of them had been rude to our sitter as she explained why we were working there)
In the meantime rain had started to fall so we retreated to my house for a cup of tea and a strategy meeting!!
Our Sitter on this occasion was Meghan mac Lachlan, A young woman who recently left Dublin for Seattle in the U.S.A.Meghans mother is Irish and she had done a lot of research into her family tree and had uncovered addresses occupied by family members in the past,2 on Henrieta street,one on Bolton street,one on Dominick street,and on the other side of town Crampton place and Dawson street.
She was anxious to shoot at one of these sites and I had tested a few of them out in the research phase.
However Rain was our real enemy on the night,had we not been disturbed it would have been all done before the rain started,but now we had a problem.
You see Meghan was leaving for Seatle early the next morning and her shot at this stage was looking doubtful.
She then had an idea, a place dear to her grandfather was close to the dropping well pub in Windy Arbour and it should be sheltered from the rain.
So of we went into the night blindly.
We arrived on set at 11.30 and the rain still coming down, Meghans hair was wet from the walk and she set about drying it while we set up.It was a slow process that night and I have to commend the patience and Ray, Artur and indeed Meghan,their commitment to the process always on full tilt.
We left the site glowing with a great sense of achievement at around 12.30 with another great shot from this series in the bag.
Thanks again to Artur Sikora,Ray Hegarty and Meghan for all their help and resolve on the night.
And a special thanks to the two dudes from Henrieta street who inspired us to new heights of creativity in finding a solution to the problem of finding shelter from the madness and the rain.
Please use the Share buttons on the top of the post to move this project onto others.
Comments are always appreciated and answered,so please keep it up.
Follow the blog by hitting the follow button on the top right of the page.

thank you

David

a short post on printing

2011-05-28T16:37:00.003+01:00

In the world of high end of digital printing Epson have ben pushing the standards for years.

Until the introduction of their pigment inksets some years ago it was hard to have work with this origin accepted by museums and collectors as archivally sound.Once this landmark was reached however all was changed

As time has passed the quality and longevity has surpassed most other commonly used processes including c-type prints, and Lambda prints.

When used in conjunction with fibre based acid free papers prints from this process are resistant to fading for up to a hundred years far surpassing the expected life of Lambda or c type prints.

How ever in a world where so many other manufacturers products have the same initial appearance it has become very important to have a system where standards are set achieved and recognised by bodies collecting ,distributing,and producing fine art prints.

Such a system has been developed by Epson,which sets standards for achieving museum quality prints,

In edition,produced by print studios who adhere to strict guidelines regarding materials and technique.

The Digigraphie System first launched by Epson in France some years ago has been recently launched in the rest of Europe,and I am delighted to announce today that I have been accepted as user of this system.

heres how it works!!

The use of the term Digigraphie relates exclusively to a print produced :

- by a 7900 or 9900 model Epson Stylus Pro professional printer,

- with Epson Ultra Chrome TM inks,

- on certified art papers from Epson, Somerset, Arches, Canson, Hahnemühle, etc,

- authenticated : numbered, signed by the artist, marked with the official relief stamp and accompanied by its certificate.

If one of these four obligations is not complied with, the printed work cannot, in any case, be qualified as Digigraphie. This obligatory qualification is the guarantee, for the artist as for his clients, of ensuring the fidelity and permanence of the reproduced work (estimated to be 60 to 100 years as per tests carried out by various independant institutes).

MORAL COMMITMENT

The Artist undertakes, in the context of the use of the Digigraphie label, to exclusively produce works in limited series. The concept of limited series is defined by three criteria freely determined by the Artist :

- the number of proofs reproduced,

- the format of the reproduction of the artwork,

- the support on which it is printed.

Pictured above is a stamp made by my personalised embossing tool baring my artists mark D.M.
See my earlier post re printing here

IS IT ALL ABOUT WORK LIFE BALANCE?

2011-05-13T21:15:00.001+01:00

I suppose it was only a matter of time before we ended up smack in the centre of Dublin outside the G.P.O.
It happened last week on a thursday night and timing was critical as one of my subjects Ara Lopez was off to Mexico the next morning.Rain had cancelled the shoot the night before and I am indeed grateful to Ara and her Irish boyfriend Daragh Mc Munn for agreeing to come to town a second night so close to a departure.

THE LONG HAUL!

2011-05-07T18:03:00.000+01:00

When I started this project I was concerned that it would take some time,and indeed,it would take some numbers if I was to include all the many colours of people leaving our shores.Young ,old,male female,families,maried,single,friends,professionals,tradesmen,students,couples.
Now that I have over 40 shots in the series I can see the project being filled with people from all of these sections of our society.
If I can continue a little further I feel that the Leaving Dublin project will represent a true picture of all of the different groups who felt the need to leave these shores.
A real achievement awaits!!
A couple of weeks ago now I met with Tom,Nina,Isaac,Kael,and Sophia Scott a family reluctantly making preparations to move to the U.K.(the 4th family to dates see 1 and 2 here 3 was the last post!)

ON THE NEED TO PROVIDE SHELTER!

2011-05-01T21:14:00.000+01:00

It was an absolute pleasure to meet with Seán Ó Dálaigh and his beautiful wife Leia Uí Dhálaigh a couple of weeks ago.

Leia was in an advanced stage of pregnancy and found it tiring to make arrangements to move to Rotterdam in The Netherlands. They where going there because Seán, a web designer, who had gone through redundancy three times in the last year, was offered a job in HR & logistics for an engineering company. With no immediate prospect of work here Seán had been volunteering at the Gallery of Photography, in Temple Bar, which is how we were introduced.

He was enjoying the experience when the offer of full time work came through. These are the lengths you must go to in order to provide for a family, making decisions quickly when faced with the stark reality of how you survive into the future. Within six days of the offer being made they were packed up and gone!!

RICHARD AT A CROSSROADS!

2011-04-22T12:27:00.008+01:00

This is Richard Orciuch He is the fourth Brazilian I have photographed in as many weeks.
My Interest in things Brazilian started a couple of months ago when I talked with a static guard at The National Photographic Archive.He was set to leave the country with his Girlfriend,bound for Italy, with a hope of getting residency there.I hoped to photograph them,but I never got the call!

Soon after I contacted Mariane Goldberg a friend in Sao paulo who lived here a year ago.She had some contacts still in Dublin whom she mailed and so began my work with these energetic,friendly,vibrant,hardworking,people who bring so much to our society and ask for so little in return.
Richard is 27 years old and is a teacher.In Ireland he has worked for the Metro newspaper and as a cleaner.
He used to hand out the metro paper here outside the old Moran's Hotel on the corner.For that reason he will never forget this part of Dublin.

WAITING TO GO

2011-04-15T18:57:00.000+01:00

About a week ago I paused for a while at st. Stephens Green with Antoiela Couto Lorenco,as she preparred to depart Dublin for her native Santos,Sao paulo,Brazil.
She is heading home after a year here.She has had good times but will be delighted to get home to a warmer climate with family and friends near by!!

LAST TRIP TO THE TURKS HEAD

2011-04-06T14:10:00.000+01:00

It was a beautiful spring night at the end of march. All was good as we prepared to enter April for a second time in the life of the leaving dublin project.
The project is again gathering pace and I have once more made a compilation video to try and attract new participants to join us in this historical documentation process.See it here and please share it with anyone you feel may be interested in this project and indeed with those who you know are on the move!!

welcome europe photobloggers

2011-04-05T14:15:00.001+01:00

Yesterday I received confirmation the my posts will be added to the listings of europe photobloggers
So I would like to take this opportunity to welcome all Europe photoblogger subscribers to my blogpage.
I would encourage all visitors to freely comment and share the posts with all interested parties.
Above is the last image I posted,(for the full post just click the title or click here), and a video compilation of work shot to date for my project on Irish Emigration"leaving Dublin"
The video runs for 4 minutes and contains the first 35 images all images are posted already and available here in chronological order and without text on my viewbook page here

thank you david

FULL MOON AT THE HALF MOON!

2011-04-03T01:22:00.002+01:00

Poolbeg and the walk to the lightouse on the southwall of dublin port is a very special place.
I have been there 3 times in the last two weeks and each time the experience was something completely different!
The first visit was a solo one. I went to find some suitable locations for the shot above.There was no one around ,there was just me and the sea,some boats ad the odd aircraft on the standard approach to dublin airport thats so obvious from several locations along the coast.The moon was full and had a huge penumbra which lit me up inside.

ON THE WORLD STAGE!!

2011-03-25T21:26:00.003Z

Worldwide a lot has happened since my last post.
I was delighted to hear that my good friend Keiko Furamoto and her family were all safe and well after the Japanese earthquake/tsunami. A total disaster which will have far reaching effect on a lot of people for many years. In Libya the United Nations have declared a no fly zone which should lead to the end of the Gadafi regime, although this could get worse before it ever gets better!! Closer to home things seem to be hotting up in Europe again!

Well we are only a few weeks into the life of the new Dail here in Ireland and I have to say I am an aweful less irritated by the new crew than I was by the old crew. I am delighted to see that so many have either retired in fear of rejection, or have just been rejected. The batty days of the two Brians and a whole bunch of Mary's are well behind us no doubt. But, it remains to be seen if our new crew can unravel the tangled web woven by the two Brian's on their retreat. Europe should take its share of the blame for our sad situation but I don't think thats going to happen easily!
Still thought things are pretty tough and I can see all the uncertainty continuing for some time. Yesterday as some predicted Portugal joined the party and now we only await the failure of Spain to send the European project into meltdown. I wonder can they pull it off and get it all back on the rails. Well thats one world stage now on to another.
For me the "Leaving Dublin" project is an inspiration. Every time I go to shoot I meet people who are meeting the challenges of life head on and getting on with it, no messing around just taking the bull by the horns and going for it!!
This week was no exception, I met with Raissa Oliveira Do Prado, a Brazilian who has been living in Ireland for almost a year. Raissa who is a marketing specialist came to Ireland to learn English and to de-stress herself. Her hope was that time spent in Ireland would refresh, de-stress and prepare her for meeting new challenges back in Brazil. I suppose for her it was interesting to be in a country in flux during her stay. Chatting with her on the night it was clear that she loved her time here, the people, the places and the slower pace of life. Considering that she comes from a city of 11 million inhabitants the pace of life in Dublin must have been relatively crawling when compared to Sao Paulo. She has left now and no doubt has enjoyed a reunion with her family before setting out on the next chapter of her life, a new job with the addition of english, a little older and a whole lot wiser after her year out!!
Raissa chose the Pheonix Park, she lived just across the river in the Coombe and the parks of Dublin were pretty special to her especially this one and St Stephens Green.
On the stage that night she performed beautifully and after, enjoyed the peace and quite of that moonlit night in the city centre park. The bandstand is located in the hollow beside the Zoo.
Sadly it looks like it has been some time since it has seen a performance and the beautiful white seats wait patiently for noise, merriment and mischief (perhaps even some music) to once more populate the stage.
As always Artur Sikora and Hugh Mc Cabe hoofed the light around the location with ease. No rain this night so no complaints.
Big thanks to Mariane Goldberg in Sao Paulo for putting me in touch with Riassa

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Please comment as it helps to make the connection
thanks
david

THE POWER OF POSITIVITY!

2011-03-17T11:20:00.006Z

There is a lot to be said for having a positive mental outlook, and no doubt about that!
Time after time I have met people, who when faced with adversity have triumphed because of their wish to have a life fulfilling. On this shoot I met a very positive young man who was about to leave for Sydney Australia. Conor Savage is an online manager for an Irish bookies, Paddy Power.
They have recently acquired an Australian arm and need to lever Conor's expertise to make it happen efficiently on line. So without having to look for employment on arrival, without having to reskill, without having to sit grueling interviews, or work bars, or fruit pick until the right job comes along, Conor is out of here!! EASY!!

GRADUATE AND GO AWAY!!

2011-03-08T12:39:00.002Z

There is no doubt about it.One of the largest groups Leaving Dublin are young graduates.
On the eve of our general election last week I met with Michelle Ellis and Claire Mc Dermott.
Michelle(left in our image) is a graduate of commerce and has recently been awarded a masters degree.
Even with this postgrad qualification she remains unemployed and as she put it, in an effort to remain positive about her future,she is leaving for Vancouver Canada.

TIGER BOUND

2011-03-05T19:24:00.003Z

Niall Judge and Roisín O'Connor are off. They have had enough. Life in Dublin has become very tough. No real prospects in the financial services sector and shrinking wages and a deteriorating health service, make for an untenable position for Niall and Roisín respectfully.
Like so many they are looking out into the world to find a place where their skill sets are needed and valued beyond the subsistence wage they can achieve here. That coupled with a better lifestyle should leave them both feeling a lot better about themselves and gives them a common stage on which to play out life in a more meaningful way.
So Niall and Roisín are off to Singapore a centre of world trade and one of the real asian "Tiger"economies.

When Niall suggested to me that the Pheonix Park would be a good spot he mentioned the Papal Cross as something that would remind him of happy times spent walking and training in the large flat green space that played host to a papal visit way back in 1979.
About ten years ago I made some polaroid stereo pairs using a linhof 4x5 camera and some instant colour print film. One of these images has stayed in my mind and it featured the cross in sharp focus away in the distance framed between two trees and shining forth white against a blue sky. I quickly set about incorporating this version of the cross into my composition for Niall and Roisín's portrait as I thought they might be impressed. When I sent my proposal to the couple this is the one they chose as being the place they would like to shoot. Needless to say I was delighted.
On the night it was raining a little and it proved to be a difficult shoot as working in the dark without the aid of public street lighting made things quite tricky. But with a good crew all is possible.
Artur Brian and Hugh all came together to transform a tricky situation into a joyous outcome.
Even a trip by car to illuminate the cross was no problem as we synced by phone across the parks black void.
Niall and Roisín should be happy that there passage between on ex celtic tiger to the real thing has been marked by the creation of this dramatic parting shot. In fact for me it feels like we buried the beast in the Pheonix park that night!!
Big thanks to Niall and Roisín for keeping it together on such a miserable night.
And also huge thanks to Brian, Hugh and Artur, the right guys in the right place at the right time!!
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David

ELECTION SPECIAL 2

2011-02-27T00:01:00.005Z

I am sitting to write this entry tonight after the count on election 2011 has given us an indication of how things are going to be in the next Dail.

The ruling Fianna Fáil party have suffered huge losses after two and a half years of blatantly ignoring the people and arrogantly making decisions that could only be justified by their wish to remain in power until the corner was turned. Right now it would appear that the corner is further away than it ever was and whoever forms the next government has a long struggle to get us anywhere near to that corner before the next election.

One person who could not wait around for the election or the turning of that corner is Darren Crook.
I met with Darren and his father Terry on Howth Harbour County Dublin. For me it is a very special place and once more my past overlapped with the wishes of my subjects to locate their shot at a location special to them. Knowing the area I knew exactly where Darren was talking about when he mentioned fishing with his father and I was excited that he might like to set things up on the huge curved terraced wall at the end of the pier.

Talking with his farther Terry it was very obvious that he was very sad to see his son, the second in a week , leave and go to Australia. I suppose that life is going to be a lot different for Terry and what remains of his family and they will dearly miss Darren and his brother Brian. However there is another side to this process and Darren was in contact with me after his departure to fill me in. Its obvious from his words that he is filled with hope for the future and a huge weight has been lifted from his shoulders, in Dublin he was a mechanic, in Australia he has started his working life picking fruit and has this to say.

"Me and my da used to fish Howth lots during the summer months, not as often as we used to in the last couple of years, we started doing more further afield, but we'd always get a least one session in Howth in the year. Definitely see myself fishing out in Howth again, don't ever see myself living in Ireland again especially after getting a taste for the lifestlye over here, but can't see myself going home to see my dad without throwing in the lines."

Thanks Darren hope it always sunny for you in Oz, and if Noreen Bowden and the good people at Global Irish have anything to do with it you might have a vote in the next general election without having to come home!!
Well done Mick Wallace and all the Independent voices who made it through the election process.

In another plus for this project the Belgian newspaper De Standaard Published 5 of this series today in their weekend magazine. I will put it up when I get a pdf next week!!

Or you can find a screen grab on my fb page

Hugh, Artur and Gemma where with me on this one and all work was completed with their usual efficiency. Big thanks as always to them.
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Thanks again
David

ELECTION SPECIAL!!

2011-02-25T01:52:00.008Z

We wake up this morning to the possibility of change. That in itself is an enriching experience!
For too long I and others listened to the arrogant ones talk pure horse shite and at all times there was never anything we could do but suffer their over inflated egos and their empty words and hold firm until this day came.
When I go to the poll today it will be as a reactionary. I will not be voting for the person or persons I wish to see govern this country.(quite frankly we are stuffed for a few years yet)
I will be voting to remove the current regime(and its likes) full stop.
Hopefully over the next few years the events that conspired to mess up Irish life will be unpicked
and we can move forward unchained.
These feelings are shared by our latest sitters Linda dePaor and Philip Duggan
as they leave this country for pastures new with their young son Luca.

They are disillusioned about the way this place has been run and Linda (a solicitor),and Philip( a librarian)
see no great career prospects for themselves in the current climate. However they do have hopes of returning some time in the future to find all changed with prosperity and effective government in place.
Once again I applaud the actions of people like Linda and Philip as they move on into the unknown
with nothing but their ambition for a better life for themselves and Luca.
We shot this image just two nights ago in the dolly mount end of St Annes park A place dear to this family and only ten minutes from their now previous home.The exotic trees and strange root structures form a very powerful backdrop for this historic parting shot,and I thank the Guiness family for the fantastic planting that was their back garden back in the day!!
The set was very close to the road but it was very tricky as someone had driven a tractor through our exact tripod location that day.What a mess!!
We were joined on the shoot by Eve Irvine and Valerie Labonne from France 24 a French T.V.channel.
The shoot will form part of a report to be aired next Monday night as a report on Ireland around the time of its election, another very exciting turn for the Leaving Dublin Project.
Hopefully this picture will also feature in a printed piece in a Belgian newspaper De Standaart (next Saturday) again to focus on the election story.
I really wish Philip, Linda and Luca the very best in their new home Australia and I hope the time they spend there is full of good experiences.
And indeed I hope our own little election story has a happy ending ,or at least a twist that was not predicted by those pollster types!!

Artur, Hugh and Mel were on hand once more to throw a light on this very dark place, so big thanks there.
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big thanks to all
david

TIME FOR CHANGE

2011-02-23T22:45:00.005Z

There is no doubt in my mind that there are several levels of need within our society at present.
But more and more I am coming across people who's need to subside far outweigh's their need to reside (here). This for me is very sad! but, I suppose we must take heart in the strength of the people leaving these shores, as they take with them a desire to succeed which will carry them through onto new levels of achievement.
Last week I met with Graham Ford, after much internet banter about locating his shot we finally agreed that, if open on the night Belgrave square Rathmines would be the place to shoot. Happily the gate I had used previously was still unlocked so we were in.

Here is what Graham had to say
" I worked in Dublin as a mortgage administrator, then as a legal assistant before finally being asked to work as assistant accountant, all at sub prime mortgage company in Clonskeagh. Every weekend my girlfriend and I would travel west to work the family farm, and get back to Ranelagh late on the Sunday night, before returning to work on Monday morning. Following the passing of my girlfriend's father, I was able to take voluntary redundancy and we moved to the west, where we ran the family farm for 2 years. With no pay however it was imperative that one of us found a job. My partner found work in Galway, but I had to look too, but there was nothing in the west. So I applied for a job in the UK, and got the position in horse racing, so I am moving from Ireland.

We are due to be married at the end of May this year, so it was a rush to finish all the organisation prior to the move as I'm unlikely to get back to Ireland now until the wedding.

It's a great shame to have to leave Ireland, especially when we should be living together and planning the future, but I have to go where the work is. It will put a huge strain on our relationship, but there is absolutely no chance of a decent job in Ireland at the moment.

The park in the picture is literally just across the road from where we lived in Charleston Road, and we would come over with chairs and food, to read or doze in the summer days and evenings after work. It's a special place to me and reminds me of a very happy time in my life.."

Artur and Mel were on hand to shunt us over the fence if needed, but they settled on lighting this one up with their usual efficiency!

Big thanks to Graham who by now has taken up his post as Clerk of the scales with the British Racing Industry. Another job title to add to his already colourful career which includes Train Driver, Mortgage Administrator, Legal Assistant and Farmer.

Two days to the election here. Lets vote for change and try to resist being corralled by the pollsters!

Its time we all had a change! not just Graham!!

Today had a chat with FRANCE 24, for a piece on irish emigration from an election perspective airs next Monday.It was great to meet Eve Irvine (correspodent) and Valerie Labonne( producer/camera)

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THIRD TIME AT THE BERNARD SHAW

2011-02-16T09:58:00.001Z

Before I start this post I must take the chance to wish Dar Crook the very best in Australia and I hope its all going well for him there. Due to a slight tricky edit I've decided to finish his parting shot off when I am feeling a little more in control (maybe by the week-end).
So it would appear to me that The Bernard Shaw is a very special place in Dublin, so far I have photographed 3 of my shots in and around its location in Portabello in the heart of the Village quarter.
I photographed a very excited Gráinne O'Sullivan in the alley beside the pub. This laneway runs right around the pub and is filled with an ever changing feast of street art.

The reason for Gráinne's excitement was that the following day she was away to London for a new life.
She was inside in the Bernard Shaw having farewell drinks with some friends while myself Artur, Brian and Mel got set up outside.
Grainne got in touch with me after she had seen a piece on RTE news about the project.
She has been out of the country a couple of times and of late has been finding it hard to get work in her field. She is a very special person and took on the establishment when she co-produced the site count me out.ie with Cormac Flynn & Paul Dunbar, a guide to help people opt out of the Catholic Church, which was recently covered in the NewYorkTimes. So now she is off to London and appart from friends and family, I dont think she is going to miss Dublin life too much.
We have a lot of hard times ahead here and if she ever needs reminding of this its only a short one hours flight time away!!
Things are pretty awful approaching our elections as the media try very hard to push voters into one camp or another. My hopes for our election is that there is an overwhelming rejection of the establishment and the Irish voters push a lot of independent voices into the Dail (Parliament). Then, we can prove that we count and are pissed off with how we have been misrepresented, and we did not then, and don't now accept the lines we were and are now still being fed day after day after day.
Dutch T.V. just pushed out this piece and guess what it focuses on - the single biggest issue. Emigration.

Lets make our politicians pay at the ballot box for this and lets hope we can slow it down!!
Big thanks as always to Artur, Brian and Mel who lit up the art in style.
And indeed to Saskia and Peter for giving us a voice in Europe.
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ONE RAINY NIGHT

2011-02-10T20:30:00.005Z

Well it's been a busy week or two.
Ever since the CBS network in the USA covered the work of the Lilliputian myself, Artur, Brian, Hugh, Gemma and Mel have been busy shooting one thing or another for the last five days.

All the organisation has been tricky with ten times the amount of emails to answer and send compared to normal times.
Its all been very exciting, a little tiring but the feeling I am getting is one of realisation that the "Leaving Dublin" project is starting to reach its objective of being representational of all of the various groups of people fleeing our shores this time around.
After local coverage on The National News, emails lined up a number of people from different age groups, professions and some family groups, so excitment is high for the nights ahead.
On Sunday last we braved the rains to go to Blackrock , Co Dublin, to meet Sarah Cowhey.

Sarah lived nearby for several years before leaving Ireland for New Zealand four years ago.
There Sarah completed studies in wildlife documentary making and has worked since on the production side of things.
Against advice she returned to Dublin five months ago and had no luck securing a job and she feels in the current climate her expertise is surplus to requirements. She returned to her familial home town of Limerick and spent some time with her family. Whilst there she had a Christmas seasonal job in the local Dunnes Stores, but no other employment.
So, she has made the decision to leave and return to New Zealand and seek work once more in her area of expertise. May we all join in wishing Sarah the best for her next spell away from home!
Luckily just before Sarah arrived on location the rain died away to a little trickle ensuring that our gear could cope without exploding!!
Big thanks to Artur and Hugh who's spirits never dampened on that very wet evening.

And also a big welcome to Eve Irvine from France 24 TV station who may be joining us on a shoot next week!!
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A VIEW FROM THE HILLS

2011-02-02T01:14:00.005Z

Its clear at this point that momentum is gathering around the Leaving Dublin project.
Over the last two weeks there has been a lot of publicity,heightened by a CBS news story and several online news stories and print media stories.
here are a list of some of these pieces
broad sheet.ie had a piece called The Exodus
the journal.ie had a piece highlighting the CBS piece
And diaspora.ie also had its own take on this project with a link to a youtube piece from my last post
photographers.ie also had a short piece about the CBS story
Later in the week I had a call from a Sunday Tribune photographer and talked to a very nice journalist John Downes he interviewed me and did a very good piece last Sunday.
Next Up is the Six One news(its here now 18.25 into the bulletin) with big thanks to their video journalist Philip Bromwell
and a few seconds in a piece by Saskia Dekkers re the new wave of Irish emigration on Dutch public television.
Considering this work is still in progress, and therefor has no P.R. machine behind it, one can only be amazed at the level of media coverage to date.
There is no doubt that the subject matter is very current, but even still I was aghast to be half way up a mountain on a shoot with two national T.V. cameras pointing at me.
Also we were ten people, a little more than usual for a shoot that usually needs about five.
Our sitter this time was the very patient and graceful Claire Ryan.we met at the foot of the hills at the Yellow house in Rathfarnham she was there with a friend Arni Haraldsson who joined us as we drove in convoy up Stocking lane towards the car park in Killakee.

PROOF THAT THE SMALL WORLD EXISTS!!!

2011-01-23T01:54:00.006Z

Hello world!!Its a fantastic day for the Lilliputian just over a year after its inception the blog has caused a stir in the small world
From coast to coast in the U.S.A. and all over Europe a piece was broadcast by CBS.news which uses my photographic documentation as a vehicle to describe the latest wave of Irish emigration.
I am so delighted and stuck for words at this moment that I had to let it out.
you can see the piece here
I would again like to say Big thanks to all who helped push this along ,Ben,Agnes, and Liz at CBS London. It was a pleasure!
I hope during the work done so far I have paid,and will continue to pay tribute to the people of this city, and indeed to the city they have chosen,or indeed in some cases, have been forced to leave behind!!
Big thanks also to the crew,Artur,Brian,Gemma,Hugh,James,Louise,Don.
who have always been at the end of the phone to throw light over a sometimes very dark and cold city

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IN PRAISE OF PRODUCTION

2011-01-16T00:19:00.010Z

On Assignment this week I was asked to make a photograph for an Irish Arts publication
The proposal was to go to Cast Bronze Foundry and Photograph the artist and foundry man
Leo Higgins pouring Bronze.

So heres how it went. I met Mel O Reilly down at the foundry at half ten friday morning.
We went in and met Leo who gave us a demo as he poured a small bronze with one of his skilled team Henry.
The pouring of metal in this way is such a ritual and has been done for thousands of years
I felt humbled to do work in front of two men who performed flawlessly time after time to carry out the poetic movements which ultimately give birth to a work of art.
We then had an hour to get set up while the next crucible of hot metal became molten.
We settled on an exposure of 1/8th of a second @f4(wide open)
Needless to say our biggest problem was focus in such low light but we held it across the critical part of the shot.It took two takes with some more melting of metals in between but we left satisfied that we had all that we needed in the bag.

DOWN BY THE FURRY GLEN

2011-01-13T23:54:00.000Z

The Pheonix Park in Dublin is a pretty big place and no doubt about that.
Having said that I managed to find a place which meant something to our latest sitter Neasa O'Shea Brady
A place where she and her family have often walked and played in the many years they have been living near the park.
The Furry Glen is a little ecosystem within the park a small treelined valley with a pond and all the associated flora and fauna that goes with it. It is indeed a beautiful place and we found ourselves on the edge of it amongst trees Which according to an inscribed memorial stone were planted in 1878. Beeches and scotts pine formed our backround all which have become heavily inscribed over the years be lovers of life and grifitti.I wondered had Neasa an artist about to take flight for New York, ever made her mark .But, I was afraid to ask.Anyhow when that crossed my mind I had I had other things on my mind.

It was pitch dark and very difficult to set up the shot using only a couple of flashlights.But thanks to Artur,hugh and Mel O' Reilly(a new member of our troupe), and a lot of moving around by Neasa we got there eventually.
Neasa and four other friends are off to New york and mostly for the same reasons there is no work for them here in their chosen fields.I have photographed two of the group already Aoife O Donnell and Fiona O Keefe and all of them are off to New york and hope to get internships in the Arts.
They are a very motivated group and I wish them the best and I hope they get all they deserve in their new home,New York.
Things come and things go that's for sure, our country is in a state of disarray It looks like the two Brians, Batty,and the whole bunch of Mary's might be moving sooner than they think.
But one thing is sure that when the dust settles on this troubled era the Furry Glen will be as beautiful a place as it has always been,and the joy of the stroll through the woods is something I hope Neasa and her friends will see again,soon.

This is the last post from my current shooting list current and so I am appealling for new leavers once more
if you know of anybody about to emigrate from Dublin please send them this way.
there is a little video piece on youtube that will get the message across also my viewbook page
has all of the work without the text.
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SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF!!

2011-01-11T23:59:00.002Z

Irish identity as seen from a different perspctive is an interesting thing.
I wait with baited breath to see how C.B.S.portray the people I have shot and how that all relates to America and how it sees us in their world.
Two months ago my brother Ken sent me an email link to a very interesting B.B.C. article which he said related to my project!
Now it really does!
Let me explain the article was about the new wave of irish immigration into the U.K. and it was a very good, deep and reasonably historically accurate. It points out the differences of previous Irish waves and draws the conclusion that this wave will be the most rewarded(because of a change in sentiment towards the Irish).It talked to a couple of new Immigrants.
one of these was a person called Claire Weir.
Claire has been around the world since leaving Dublin last year,she spent some time in Australia where she saw my project and corresponded with me via email. Thinking she was still there you can imagine my surprise to see her name in the B.B.C. article.Later that month she mailed me to say she was home for christmas and she would like to be part of my project.See the interesting article here
She chose her old neighborhood of Portabello for the shot and we where both drawn to the clean and heavily loaded graphic by her old local pub.
I have followed Claires progress over the last year I can say she is a hard working Irish photographer looking to do what she does best and the opportunity to do this in ireland is not forthcoming.
So it was with great pleasure that Claire and I closed the circle last week when we at last met to take this glorious parting shot as she prepared return to London to take up a job doing stills for a t.v. production.
It is an interesting point of B.B.C. article that the Irish in this new wave carry themselves well ,and Claire is indeed one of these.
Artur Sikora and Hugh Mc Cabe dodged the traffic to light up the neighborhood and we got it all finished before the rain came down.
Remember to read the the article over at the B.BC.page,It makes me feel good to be documenting history as its being written, and to leave my mark in the records,no shame ,no regret!!!

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David

SCENE FROM THE COAST

2011-01-06T23:07:00.003Z

Christmas in Dublin this year was great!!and horray it was a white one!!
probably the only white christmas I have ever seen(at least as I remember)
After the november snows when everything really ground to a halt the Christmas fall was perfectly timed for those living in Dublin.(added several shots to my tree portraits at this time due to magical winter light after snow)
the Snow actually gave us the means to slow down to the holiday.
Afterwards it all melted away beautifully by the 27 and that left the roads clear (and the temperature amiable) to make another glorious parting shot.
This time our Hero was Brendan Rowan.
A recent Science graduate of Trinity College Dublin Brendan moved to Cardiff in Wales to do a P.H.D.in his chosen field.
here is what he had to say" I wasnt forced to leave Ireland ,but the funding for P.H.D.'S isn't there any more meaning there is larger compettion for places.

In the U.K. we are more highly valued and find it easier to get studentships.

As well, it's a chance to live in a new country and get away from the vortex of gloom that is currently overtaking Ireland.
The shot happened on december 28th at about 10 at night at Seapoint just down the road from Monkstown
The temperature had risen to 4 degrees making it a very comfortable shoot after the three previous sub zero sessions.
Artur Sikora accompanied me and looked after all lighting needs for the night.
Big thanks to Brendan,and to Jeannie Wenham for putting him in touch with me.
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David

THE STRANGEST OF SYNERGIES

2010-12-31T02:51:00.008Z

This post is a tad late. So apologies if you have been waiting around anticipating the third chapter in my three shots in a week post!!
I have to admit that right now I am awe struck at the pattern of events that have conspired to become this moment, when so many forces have pulled together to catapult my mind and my leaving Dublin project of into a higher dimension. Allow me to explain.

Aoife O Donnell is 'leaving Dublin', she is off to New York.A graduate of the D.I.T. photography school on Meeting house square,she shares with me a passion for photography and many happy memories of time spent on this square and in its environs.Aoife said "I am leaving Ireland primarily for personal adventure but also to further my career in photography. I plan to take up a

photography related internship in New York City for a minimum of 14 months with a view to extending my stay or to then travel the world. Having lived in Chicago for a period in 2008 I found considerably more opportunity to train and work in photography than in Ireland. As a recent graduate I now have the opportunity to obtain a working visa for The States so I plan to return there in January 2011.It has been an ambition of mine to live for an extended period in New York since I was 15 and this potentially could be my one and only chance to do so."

She spent 3of the last 4 years here in the D.I.T. building ,In talking with her last night I realised that I had been associated with the Photographic archive ( the building at her back)for the last 12 to 13 years.
It is a sad truth that the three of us (Aoife,the archive,and I),are all leaving our pasts behind us in this Square and Moving on!

The Square was set up as a result of enlightened policy to pull film, art, and photography institutions together in one place and to allow them to synergise for the benefit of all involved in these complementary disciplins.On the square was The ark,the Gallery of Photography,the Irish Film Institute and cinemas,The National Film Archive,The National Photographic Archive,The Gaiety School of Acting,and The D.I.T.photography School.Close by there was a music venue (now called the button factory),Film base,Temple bar Galleries and Studios,And the Project Arts centre.
As far as photography is concerned I think the synergies kicked in last year when recent graduates of the D.I.T school and others,united all the strands of involvement in Photography and set up the Photoireland festival.What a blast that was.It showed how Ireland was now ready to take its place and stand shoulder to shoulder with the rich photographic cultures that exist in Europe, the Americas,and the rest of the world.
Sadly the Photographic Archive for whatever reasons has chosen to retreat to its early nineties position and become once more The photographic collections of the National Library of Ireland.
This Quiet retreat is reflected in the libraries website were all traces of the previous National Photographic Archive have been removed to be replaced by this Introduction to the photographic collections.
I am deeply saddened personally,and see this as a backward step culturally for Ireland in a European and worldwide context.The exhibition space remains open for the moment but soon enough the square could start to fragment with its loss.
However I suppose it is the reduction in work volumes in the last few years that has me chasing personal projects, so for this I suppose I will be eternally grateful.
Back to the images above!The reason we are here.
Aoife as I said earlier is off to New York,and C.B.S.news was interested to make a story around my project.They saw it as a fresh way of showing the return of the age old Irish tradition of emigration,and they were also interested in talking to someone who was moving to the U.S.A.
So up to this point my project was free flowing governed only by its participants with no outside agencies timetabling shoots.
However once we had Arranged to hook up with C.B.S. a date was set for them to interview,Aoife,myself,and to record the goings on at a shoot.
The shoot was set up for friday dec 17th,and low and behold the polar express was being projected on the squares screens that night for an eager christmas audience.
It would have been cutting it to tight to wait till after the square was put back in order after the show so we decided to move the shoot to another part of temple bar(Essex street)
This proved to be crazy busy (as you may see when the video piece is aired later next week),
and as a result I was not totally satisfied with the result.
In consult with Aoife we decided to have a second go,but at the original site chosen by Aoife on meeting house square.
After looking at the final images I realised that the first shot is totally fine,and my dissatisfaction was actually caused by not making the shot at a site so sacred to me,And indeed to Aoife.
We both indeed have lived a lot of our life in this unique square,and now it is a part of my own portrait of a city left behind, and part of Aoife's past.

So many strands coming together at one time have left me a little phased,but on we go propelled by synergy!!
Thank you If you have managed to stay with this post from the start,its a long one!
Please let me know which image works best for you,via the comments box!
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Brian Daly,Artur Sikora,and James Lillis,covered the Essex street shoot.
Whilst Artur Sikora,and Hugh Mc Cabe,handled the rather slow,(due to a crappy mac issue), meeting house square shoot.Big thanks again to them!! And to Dan And Tanya at the Gallery of photography for enabling me to light up!!
david

NEW YORK! THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME!

2010-12-22T01:16:00.000Z

Having finished our shoot at the Guiness plant,myself,Artur,Gemma,and Agnes (CBS Wonderproducer)
All jumped into my car,and we headed to our next assignment.
East wall was our next destination and we were off to meet a friend of Gemmas who was Emigrating to New York.
Fiona O Keefe is a fine art graduate heading to the U.S. She is disillusioned with the lack of jobs available to her in Ireland within her field of study,and she is hoping to work in Gallery administration in New York.
She is a great talker and she chatted with me,Agnes ,and Gemma as we prepared to shoot.
She was talking to Gemma about this project and my heart just soared to hear one positive comment after another.
Had I mentioned in the last post that it was a cold night! aahemm! o.k.
Well the effect of the cold on my laptop had left me without an essential part of the kit.
In fact the battery charge had dropped off from fifty% to zero in minutes leaving me shooting direct to camera with only the nasty little preview on the back to check focus.
I have said here before that the quality of the files from the hasselblad h series camera are tops.
But its Auto focus system leaves a lot to be desired,so I like my full screen preview and a 100% magnification to check focus.This was denied to me and I had to feel my way around this one in a different way!!
East wall has been home to Fiona for some years and She liked the way the the old and the new fell together in this composition. Artur and Gemma were great here as always and we only drew the attention of one passer by who strangely wanted to know had somebody been shot!!
Well in fact somebody had,but in the nicest possible way!!
Big thanks for all the positive comments for the last post please keep them coming,it helps keep the ship straight.
Also if you do facebook,please follow the blog by checking the networked blogs tab above on the right.
Thanks to all for sharing this content with there friends,and if you know of any one preparing to fly,please direct them to my work.
thanks again
david

FIVE YEARS ON!!

2010-12-21T00:59:00.002Z

Wow Its still bitterly cold in Dublin and Iv'e been out working in it a couple of times this week.
The project gets stronger and stronger as more types of people come forward for inclusion.I met Anna Vareil at a class I give at the gallery of photography and when she told me she was leaving Dublin
I showed her my project and she was more than impressed . Quickly we found a location and we got on with it.I was anxious to shoot a lot this week as my project was singled out byCBS news as a story worth covering.From their perspective emigration stories where old news but infused with the magic of beautiful photographic imagery those same stories become little nuggets of light lighting up the night sky of a very very cold,but interesting nation.
They wanted to film me shooting a shot so I arranged three shots over 2 nights just incase anything went amiss.More about this in our next few posts!!
We shot on Rainsfort street dublin(thats the Guiness hop store in the background),Aplace chosen by Anna
as deeply significant in her stay in Dublin.Anna spent over 5 years in dublin and worked as a credit controller with Deloitte and Touche is returning home to Bordeaux for christmas before moving to Africa to work with medecins sans frontieres
here is what she had to say
"Am I sad to leave Ireland? I would say yes, I will miss the irish people, their laugh, sense of humor and the way they know how to enjoy life. They have something authentic and true, the nicest people I have ever met!
I think that once you have been in Ireland for several years, ireland gets into u and I know that I feel now a bit Irish. I will always carry a bit of Ireland with me wherever I go! I have fantastic memories here in Dublin, I have met great personalities, and I will definitely miss my friends and the evenings at the pub!!! .

for this shot Artur Sikora and Gemma Geraghty looked after lighting quite fantastically

and Agnes Reau caught it all on video for CBS

thankyou for all the positive feedback to date.

please continue to share this blog by using the buttons below,or follow on facebook by clicking the networked blogs follow button on the top right.

Comments are always answered and greatly appreciated so keep doing it !

thanks

david

THIS CITY REALLY SUITED ME

2010-12-11T01:06:00.001Z

Its been a very strange week or two.Ice and snow covered dublin and our great dictator continued dictating as if his tenure was assured no matter who he alienated.

On Tuesday we had a budget and I was delighted to be busy for the day.

The other Brian was on his feet at 3.45, I was finishing preparations for a class I was to give at 6 o clock.

All went well and afterward I drove direct to grand canal dock ,waited in the cold and was joined first by Artur,then Brian Daly.Gemma then arrived with Martina a friend and the subject of the nights shoot.

When Hugh Arrived we set off across the canal and got on with our business of the day.

Celebrating the greatness of another leaving this city.

I Missed it all,Lost in the glory of photography for hours!!

Here is what Martina had to say

"I'm returning back home, to the north-east of Italy, and I've lived in Dublin for the last 6 months. I worked in an art gallery and I fell in love with Dublin again.

I first came here in 1999 for a holiday and I always wanted to return and live here for a while. After such a long time (more than 10 years) I made it happened and it's been the realisation of a dream.
I could say that my favourite thing here are the people.
Irish people are unbelievably warm when you have the opportunity to know them.
I had a great time here and I feel grown as a person and ready for new experiences like this one. Believe me or not, I'm really going to miss this city and the last 6 months spent trying to be a dubliner...this city really suited me."

The one thing that sustains me through this very difficult fabrication in which we now live is the work that I do for my love of people and their spirit.The vast majority of people here in ireland are trapped in a shrinking world whilst those who choose to leave slip into a bigger space filled with hope and expectation for a good life ahead.

I wish them all success and thank them all for pausing a while with me,someone who wishes to celebrate their brilliance as they move on to greater things.

Now lets commit this entire cabinet to history.

Comments appreciated!!

if you do facebook please click the networked blogs tab top right

thanks to all

David

A SECOND CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS!

2010-11-20T16:58:00.003Z

There is a larger version of the video available on my public folder just click here and hit the file and download buttons to receive, put it on your iphones, ipads or email it to friends you know who may be leaving. The soundtrack is by Charlotte Gainsbourg and although my participants my not be journeying to the centre of the light suggested by her lyric, there are some interesting travelling images and suggestion of launching off into the unknown.

I have to say I am absolutely delighted to have got this far with the leaving dublin project, but there is still a long way to go to capture the true breadth of the change in the dynamic of our population caused by this shift to being a net exporter of people. So far I have met with a fantastic group of people covering a very broad section of our society with different hopes, needs and aspirations. Some making a necessitous change others following their hearts desire for adventure and new experiences.
During the course of making this piece I have experienced nothing but good vibes from all around especially the general public who's space we have always occupied whilst making this work. There was the helpful and cheery roadie at the rear of Whelans on Liberty Lane, the free coffees and use of space at the Bistro on Casltle Market, to the curious security guard in the G.P.O. and of course the curious Garda detectives at St Michaels Estate, to name but a few!! Indeed we have been from pillar to post location wise as we have moved from deep city to suburbia to the coast and back again. The project is indeed becoming a portrait of a city and those that the city has chosen to do without.

But looking at the faces of all of the participants they carry their confidence to new cities with a steadiness of spirit which has impressed me greatly. It has been a pleasure for me with the aid of Artur, Brian, Hugh and Gemma to provide these participants and the nation they leave behind with a visual record of their greatness as they prepare to meet new challenges up ahead. I suppose one could say to an extent they are lucky to escape this place especially considering the sad state of affairs we are experiencing at present. And indeed it even looks like the legacy Bertie Ahern had written for himself (peace process hero) is about to be denied him by the Irish peoples final realisation that our Government through these 13 years has become totally deluded and incapable of leading. Any good achieved through this time is about to evaporate as we give up our sovereignty to the E.C.B. and I.M.F. liquidity fund!! To those in Ireland, I say write to your FF T.D. and ask them to resign!!! help them see they are not wanted anymore.Tell them to go away! Be done with them!!!!

Ahemmm!!

All that to one side I have a little project to get on with here and the reason for this post is to present you with the work done so far and look for a pat on the back, but a slightly different pat on the back.
What I want you to do is to become active for me in spreading this post via your own contacts,(social netwoking,fb and twitter etc,) Indeed by seeking out the most important element in this project
INHABITANTS OF DUBLIN WHO ARE LEAVING. It is my wish to take the number of shots up to 70 or there about and that will take a good bit of research. But this process can be greatly aided by you working on my behalf and I do promise full recognition of all help received. So please point those you know as people on the move to my blog and viewbook page, encourage them to email me if they like what they see and they too can become part of this historical documentation process!!
A clear picture by picture overview of the project is available at my viewbook page right here.
If you are on facebook please use networked blogs to follow this blog and vote and share the posts
via the buttons provided!!
thank you
David Monahan

CLOSE AND EASY TRANSITION

2010-11-09T17:03:00.005Z

Storms were forecast on Saturday last as I made final preparations for another leaving dublin shot. I had taken calls from Gemma, one of the crew and from my subject Catherine Flynn who were both wondering if it was safe to proceed if rain was to disrupt the evening.
For some reason I was filled with optimism about the weather and felt all would be ok. Thats just how it turned out!
Not so the case with our little Nation as the two Brian's (helped by a whole load of Mary's) feel hellbent on returning this little country of ours to the peripheral position it once held on the edge of europe. It looks like our faith in the European project to deliver us freedom from hard times is about to be dashed, and Ireland not long free is at danger of being classified once more a colony, but with a new master!!
Its no wonder so many are leaving, and I feel the best chances lie with those who are tripping outside the Eurozone. Such a person is Catherine Flynn, she has just left for London (home of sterling) and I wish her well.
We had a great shoot on Baggott Street Bridge, just after eight on Saturday night.
Here is what she had to say
"I’m originally from Co. Meath, living in Dublin since college (about 13 years

I’m probably in a lucky position as I didn’t ‘have’ to leave Dublin. I’m mainly leaving for career reasons and for a chance to experience living in a completely new city. After ten years working and living in Dublin, I felt I wanted to shake things up and challenge myself more – the industry I work in is small and while I’ve gained some great experience, I want to keep developing and learn from the best in the business internationally, not just locally. I’d been thinking about making the move abroad since earlier this year but it all happened kind of quickly in the end – during the summer I applied for a job with an agency in the UK that I had admired for a long time and was lucky enough to get it – so the move over the water then had to be made!

My new job is Account Director at We Are Social who are a ‘conversation agency’ specializing in social media communication, which has long been a huge interest of mine.

I was with the advertising agency Rothco in Dublin for 6 years. I started off as an Account Manager, spent a few years as an Account Director on some big advertising accounts such as AIB, and then was head of their digital team for about a year and a half till I left last month.My office for the past 2 years was based just off Baggot St and one of the things I'll miss is my daily hops over Baggot St bridge for my morning coffee from Coffee 2 Go, which still hasn't been beaten by any of Soho's many coffee shops.

I have mixed feelings about leaving Dublin and in many ways I’m a little in denial about the fact that I’m ‘emigrating’ or have left at all (even though I now officially live and work in London!). I loved living in Dublin – I had a great life and circle of friends there, so London versus more far flung places was preferable for me so that I would relatively easily be able to visit friends and family at weekends. I also met my boyfriend not long before the London opportunity came up for me, so it made what would otherwise have been a really easy decision a little bit more difficult. Thankfully he’s been great about it so there will be pretty frequent trips home for me – and also someone to explore a new city with when he comes to visit me here. Overall, I’m really excited about London and really enjoying life here so far (a whole 2 weeks in)… I guess I have the best of both places now. So long may that continue."
So there we are, a story we have heard before here at the Lilliputian the Irish seeking adventure and challenges abroad. I wish Catherine good fortune in all that she does in London, and thank her for getting in touch after seeing this blog 2 weeks ago.
Big thanks to Gemma Geraghty, Artur Sikora and Hugh Mc Cabe who were on hand to make it all happen.
If you are on your way out of town please drop me a line via email.
Please use the sociable buttons below to share this post via twitter and facebook or mail.
And of course please comment, it helps keep the ship straight!

STILL PRINTING

2010-10-24T19:08:00.001+01:00

You may remember in a previous post I alluded to the fact that I was a very capable printer of all photographic and high end artistic projects. Recently I have been involved in 2 projects which have and will be the subject of much media coverage. So, I just wanted to get this off my chest and state it for the record that I did all of the printing for the current show in the National Photographic Archive in Meeting House Square Dublin and about 40 prints for the 20th anniversary show in IMMA also in Dublin

The show in the National Photo Archive is called Power and Privilege and documents the central position held by the big house in irish society from the early days of photography right up to the withdrawal of the British state from the 26 counties that now form the Republic of Ireland(1858-1922).
It is a fascinating collection of images and its power is greatly helped by the presentation.
During the preparation of the exhibition I worked very closely with the curatorial team in making key decisions about sizing, paper type and the means of production. Most of the work came straight from glass negatives and was processed by photographing the plate on a lightbox with the Amazing Hasselblad h3d 50 and the totally sharp Hasselblad H Series HC Macro 120mm f/4. The work was then optimised by pulling it through phocus (hasselblads capture software) then into photoshop for batch inversion from negative to positive, then into lightroom for fine tuning and on into silver fx pro for final adjustments and toning.

This all sounds fairly straight forward but there is one extra ingredient in the mix that some misguided individuals don't value too much these days! And that is the human touch of deep experience.You can't come to photo processing from a standing start and get it right just because you have the right gear, and the tools are only of real value to those who know and understand their true depth. I have worked with glass plates for some 14 years and I know what I am looking at and this has been a major contribution to the look and success of this show (but it is actually invisible and this is how it should be). If you want to see good reproductions from glass plates and small original prints this show is a must.

The Moderns is a huge undertaking by the Staff and Friends of IMMA at Kilmainham and draws from the core collections of IMMA but includes works from other collections like the National Museum, National Library and the Hugh Lane Gallery. Again I was delighted to be asked to shoot and print the works from the National Photographic Archive and some works from the archives of Dublin's various architectural practices. If you are considering hiring me to do your printing, the works in IMMA that I have printed are the following: Six photographs shot by Elinor Wiltshire, four by Fergus Bourke and five prints from the Roger Casement collection. Also in the design section I made some 25 prints from various architects back catalogue these include shots of RTE, Busaras, Ard Na Crusha. etc.

Bye the bye if you are into original vintage photographic prints there is a real treat for you in the Gallery of photography also on meeting house square.
The collectors Eye is an amazing exhibition which give great insight into one mans quest for the greatest
photographs of Irish interest and beyond.Sean Sexton(the collector in question) is a man with great passion for all the emotions a photograph can convey,I met him one night in the gallery a few nights before the opening,and I was blown away by his huge aura and enthusiasm for all things photographic.
It should be up for 3 more weeks or so,so don't miss it.

So to finish this post and get to the point,I am still trying to pull together a type 55 exhibition for next summer.See some of my here
I had a good response to an appeal for contributors but I am still waiting for work from all but one of those who showed an interest.
The Idea is to marry my skill in scanning and printing to put together a memorable show of the finest photographs in this medium,representing Ireland ,Europe and the U.S.A.All in homage to this fine and now,never to be revived films.Probably one of the best tools for expression in black and white photography
I am hoping this post will jog some memories or indeed catch some users of this film's attention and send them my way.
There is no structure or theme to this show save that of the beauty that exists within the frame of a sheet of type 55. If you feel you have some good examples of this please contact me at dmon@me.com
I really want to get this post to a maximum amount of Artists using this medium so PLEASE,PLEASE
use the SHARE BUTTONS below to share on facebook and to Tweet this post.
Thank you!
David

RETURNING TO LEAVE!

2010-10-18T21:05:00.005+01:00

Aside from those forced to leave Dublin in the recent months please bear a thought for those who have left in order to see another side to life. Only to find that things
have changed so much here since their departure that there would be no prospects of employment if they wished to return!
This weekend I met Trish O Gorman and Stephen Gill,A couple who left Ireland a year and a half ago,shortly after their wedding,to sample life in Sydney Australia.
It looks like they will be there for some time yet as things will not be good for a return home for some years to come.
Heres what Trish had to say about the experience,
"We had both spent time in Australia previously. I backpacked there for a year when I was 21 and Stephen had been there a couple of times to visit his brother who lives in Sydney. It's somewhere we both loved and we thought it would be nice to go and live somewhere new for a few years so Sydney was an easy choice!

I work in Public Relations and Stephen works for a Civil Engineering company

We left Dublin in January 2009 and have lived in Sydney since April 2009. We were happy to leave when we did as it was something we had planned. We do miss friends and family back home though. We've been back twice since we left and really enjoy visiting home again and spending time in Dublin catching up with old faces and places.We really love life in Sydney and the outdoorsy, fun and laid-back lifestyle that goes with it. That's not to say that Dublin isn't somewhere we'd consider living again in the future however as we both love the city. I had lived here for ten years before we left and could definitely see myself living here again."

thanks again to Artur Sikora and Hugh mc Cabe who lit up the night again and fought off the Stoneybatter foxes!!

Thanks to Jeannie Wenham for putting me in touch with Trish and Stephen.

please share and comment on this post!!
its easy to mail,post to facebook,or tweet thiss post by using the social buttons below.
Thanks,
David

AN AUTUMN DEPARTURE!

2010-10-15T10:43:00.004+01:00

Before I start there are some thank you's I have got to say!!
Big thanks to Andy Jordan for being so kind to me with his video edit!
you can see his wall street journal online piece on Ireland here
Big thanks to Noreen Bowden of globalirish for putting my name out there
Big thanks to photoireland festival for the banner headline on their blog
Big thanks to Daniel Scully for connecting me with the people in IMMA last week (perfect timing)
Big thanks Johanne Mullan for taking time out in a very busy week to organise security clearance at IMMA for us.
Big thanks to Kim Haughton for putting Jonas my way.
And big thanks to Artur Sikora for shining the light so right!!

It was a pure delight to have to scout a location in the grounds of IMMA, at the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. Autumn was in the air and leaves and conkers were all around, the sun was low and every inch of the formal garden exuded beauty. So I made several shots thinking about the final composition and where my sitter Jonas Voss was going to sit within.
On my way back up from the garden I was drawn to a piece of limestone sculpture and noticed it position relative to a stairwell. Although very obvious and literal I saw this stairwell as a fitting route for the exit of the sitter after he had performed on the stage here in Dublin.
I shared this thought with Jonas and after reviewing my tests he agreed with me that it was the place to do this shot.
Jonas hails from Copenhagen capital city of Denmark, it was a pleasure meeting and working with him after our email banter!
He is moving to London one of the big destinations for departers of these shores. Google was his employer here and from the following I feel he is moving to the London office. So here is what he had to say..

"No one lives 5 years somewhere without getting it under your skin, and as you realize you are about to leave, you start noticing what you appreciate about the place, and the things you'll miss. I never planned on being here for 5 years, and initially arrived thinking I'd stay here for 11 months on a contract. My time here has always felt a bit temporary because of that I guess.

I'm moving to London, which is great, but I'll miss the compact nature of Dublin. Everything is around the corner here, which I really like. I'll also miss the laid back attitude, the optimism, and the friendliness of the citizens of Dublin, they certainly made my 5 years here worth it.

I've really enjoyed the musical and cultural scene in Dublin, I've never been to so many, and such diverse concerts in my life, and seen artists that would never come through Copenhagen, so that has been a treat.

I'm happy to call Dublin a place I know, and can feel comfortable in.

I'll be working in technical operations in sales, sort of a minor geek role you could call it.

I've always enjoyed coming to IMMA, I think it's a great exhibition space in the city, and not least for the garden outside. Few museums has great outdoor areas where you can sit before you take in the art inside, or where you can have a sit afterwards, and digest the impressions, while looking at symmetry of the place. The place has a certain tranquilizing effect on me".

As mentioned above Artur Sikora iluminated proceedings and Kim Haughton caught it all on camera!!

Once more I say Big thanks to all (especially all who have read till the end)

Oscar makes the arrangements by phone!

2010-10-11T00:41:00.001+01:00

To start I have to say sorry to Jana Andrew,and especially to Oscar.

When I left them last tuesday night I told them I would be editing the next morning as I was expecting a call re work later that day!

Well I started to edit and the phone rang at about eleven o'clock and i haven't had a minute to myself till now

Could this be the start of the recovery we have all being waiting for?

I don't think so,but its great to be busy again if only for a little while!

So its late sunday night/monday morning and I am delighted to say this edit has worked out well

and shows Andrew Wilson, Jana Vourgourakis,and Oscar wilson,all of who are leaving any day now to return to Los Angeles.

For the adults of this party its a return home but for little Oscar its a trip into the unknown.

Living in Dublin has been his longest stay in any city so far,so Los angeles is going to have to show him parks at least as good as St Stephens green and the Ivy gardens,(both just across the road from where they have lived for the last year).

Jana picked Camden lane as the set for this shot as she enjoyed playing here with Oscar on their way to and from town.That said it has a different feel to it at night as it is right beside a couple of nightlubs and a large bar

Although they knew on arrival that they would be only here for 1 year both Jana and Andrew really enjoyed living and working in Dublin and are sad to leave it.

I wish them the best of luck back home and hope that their life journey takes them back here again so as Dublin can benefit once more from their company!!

Brian Daly,Artur Sikora,and Hugh McCabe lit up the night,whilst several happy dubliners passed us by on their way here and there!!

Remember for the purely visual you can trip over to my viewbook portfolio site where I have a page dedicated to this project (among others)

Thanks for stopping by and please comment and share this page via the sociable buttons on the right!!

A TRUE VIEW

2010-10-08T01:00:00.003+01:00

If you have stopped here before you may remember I was interviewed by a roving american reporter by the name of Andy Jordan.
Andy works for the Wall Street Journal online edition,and recently he took a tour of Europe to make a series of short films about the current European economic depression.
Last week he published the firs of these reports, a piece on Spain online click here to see it.
In the course of our interview we talked about my current leaving dublin project and how it relates to the current economic situation.Whilst here he also talked to trinity college economists the minister for finance,and amongst others, one of my portrait subject Bernard Tyeres.
After this experience my hopes are manifold.They are as follows
1 I make it past the first edit.
2.I did not misrepresent myself as a result of nerves
3.My images are used to illustrate the piece.and
4. my work receives a boost in traffic and this results in benefits including new work!!

In preparation for this I have put together a view book site.
Its meant to be an online portfolio and I am hoping to use it as a bounce along with this blog.
The aim I suppose is to give readers a little bit more depth, and a way for me to show the purely visual side to work without all the text that comes with the blog.click here or on the main title above to access the site and enjoy.The shot above is featured on the site in a gallery called type 55.
Myself Artur,Brian,and Hugh were out on the street again last tuesday,but editing is slow due to work load.
I hope to post the final image over the weekend.
please comment on the site and let me know if there are weaknesses and /or strenghts

OH it all helps!! believe me!

thanks david

ANY PORT IN A STORM!!

2010-10-01T00:23:00.006+01:00

There is no doubt about it this country definitely shut down over two years ago.
Most in business believed it was a short term thing and all would be good again pretty soon.
But hey you and me, the guys trying to make it on a weekly basis, the fellow operating without a salary,
we know more than the average Bank or state employee about the real state of the economy.
For the moment its peaks and troughs all the time(or as the Dude put it gutters and strikes).
You just dont know what any given week is going to throw at you.
When the building boom finally stopped Lynn Murphy found herself out of work and moved to Australia.
She has been there for 18 months now and has found a life.
She returned to Dublin some weeks ago for a friends wedding and she found herself reflecting on the past life she had here.

Here is what she had to say

"I was home for a wedding of a good friend from school, the visit was long overdue. It has been an odd few weeks being back, cathartic in some ways as I was able to see for myself everything that is going on - as opposed to just hearing about the tales of horror from friends and family and the papers. In other ways though it has renewed my love for my home city - its beauty, the friendliness of the people, how they keep on kicking never losing their sense of humour despite all the doom and gloom. The visit has also been good as it has confirmed for me that I know I made the right decision in leaving. The experiences I have had since I left have for the most part only been positive - travel broadening the mind and all that malarkey. I know how lucky I am to be living in such a beautiful place as Sydney. And as I said the other night being away has made me appreciate what I have at home - great friends and a wonderful family. No matter where I live, Dublin will always be my home.

I was working for the interior design store Haus in Temple Bar, it came to an end as it was just no longer possible to keep trading once the market went dead. Now, in Oz, I'm working for a similar company that carries alot of the same product but operates on a much bigger scale and the experience to date has only been positive. Professionally it has been fantastic to see variations between different consumer markets - how companies treat the same product so very differently."

She misses Dublin dearly! a feeling I believe that is shared by all the others I have photographed so far.
There is one and only one common thing that holds all of these people together and that is given the opportunity,and circumstances being right to provide them with what they needed,they would all willingly stay in this our great little town,Dublin.
It has always been my intention to show our city as a central part of this project ,and so far I think this has been the case and long may it continue.
I wish the best to Lynn in the future and I really hope she makes it back to Dublin if that is where she needs to be.But for the meantime Sydney beckons,and by now she has most likely left,and that could,but for the odd wedding,be for good!!
Artur Sikora,and Gemma Geraghty helped to reveal the beauty of Dun Laoighre harbour ,Its beauty like this that will hold us together.
It hurts me to think of Sean Fitzpatricks hidden €100 million loans,and how this and all the other hidden black business has left the ordinary citizen of Ireland Paying and Paralyzed unable to eject those clinging to the charred reigns of power.But Hey we have got to realise that some day maybe soon the dominoes will start to topple in our own Dáil and Ironically it might be someone like Michael Lowry who leads the revolt.
Big thanks again to Lynn and to Louise o Connor for alerting her to this project.Please keep looking and alerting friends on the move to this project I really want it to get BIG.
please use twitter ,facebook and the sociable tabs on the left to publicise this blog

SHOT ON SUNDAY GONE BY THURSDAY

2010-09-22T17:51:00.004+01:00

Slowly but surely this blog is drawing people in,people from all over the world.
The reason for this seems to be recommendation.
So I would ask you now at the top of this post,if you like what you see please use the sociable tab
to tweet or share this url on facebook or any other services.
Today I had one hundred referrals out of nowhere after someone from RTE tweeted this url.
On Saturday last I was visited by wall street journal (online) video journalist
who is touring europe making a series of reports about the economic recession.
He had been referred to my blog by the good people over at globalirish.ie.
although his motive was to find and interview a person in mortgage difficulty he spent over an hour filming an interview with me about my leaving dublin project and the people I had met in the last 7 months.
SO heres hoping I make it through the edit,and if I do I am visually well presented!

Last sunday I had the pleasure of making work in the centre of town with with a young Chinese lady
who is about to leave this country.

She was a close neighbor of mine and I watched her mother tend to her baby daughter in the local park or near to her house.
Her name is Ruochon Guan And she is returning to China after 9 years in Dublin.
Her young child who is a year and a half old moved back ahead of her last april with her grandmother.
Needles to say she can't wait to hold her again,and although she will miss Dublin town nothing will take from the joy of this reunion.
We wish her a happy flight and it was Indeed a pleasure working with this gentle person.
Hugh,and Artur lit up the scene whilst Gemma Geraghty filled with a little metz.
Big thanks to you all and a special thanks to Ruochon Guan
I have 3 shots lined up for the next 2 weeks so it looks like this project is heating up.
Its really holding my interest and I hope its working for all of you.
last week I also contacted by Email those photographers who expressed an interest in my type 55 polaroid project so watch this space for further developments.
Please comment as it will help shape my destiny!!(and content)

LOVE IT, HATE IT,SOME DAY YOU MUST LEAVE IT!

2010-09-17T23:55:00.005+01:00

Wow,what a busy week that was.
There is no doubt that most of the population wished they where leaving Dublin this week
after the babblings of our Taoiseach.
What a guy!!
but he wont go away without a big sloppy fight,thats for sure!!
For me it was 4 trips to the 40 foot in Sandycove, Dublin,to case the scene for our latest caper.
Leaving us was Bernard Tyeres, A telecoms expert on his way to better things in London.
Let us wish him well!
this is some of what he had to say about leaving Dublin.

"I'll miss the good things about

Dublin (tasty Guinness, rashers, sausages, the 40ft Foot), but it's time to

experience some more of the world.

There are plenty of things I won't miss, but overtime I'm sure I'll forget them.

I'll be sad to be moving a little further away from my family, but in the world of

modern communications, I will probably be closer in some ways. And London

is only 50 minutes on a plane.

For me I have always had a love/hate relationship

with Dublin. When I wasn't here, I enjoyed coming back, when I was here, I

always enjoyed leaving.

Dublin has changed immensely in the past 11 years, in some ways good,

(walk down Grafton street and listen to the languages spoken, more cultural

differences, a change in mentality),and alot of ways bad (ridiculous property

developments, the whole Celtic tiger “I deserve it” mentality, living on credit,

terrible wastage of public monies, politicians continuing with the small-minded

attitudes), but it still has along way to go."

The 40 ft is surely one of the most magical locations used so far on this project.

The constant stream of air craft on flight path to dublin airport,

the ferries arriving and departing,

the bailey lighthouse flashing you every minute,

all of these things are screamiing for your attention,

but very quickly you are absorbed into the the environment and you loose your self in the beauty of this ancient secluded bathing place.

Whilst there I met fellow photographer Barry Delaney see his work here

Artur,and Brian again played a stormer,with Louise Roden coming along out of curiosity!

Don Sheehan helped put the final part of this work together.

To all of them, Bernard included, I am very grateful.

Big thanks Again to Noreen Bowden of Global Irish who has helped to shine a light on this blog and especially the Leaving Dublin project.

Thanks also to Darragh Shanahan for the lead on this one.

And Finally, lets hope Mr Cowan finds his way home!!

Please use the sociable buttons on the left to share tis content with your friends.

Thanks

David

SPINNING THE DISK!!

2010-09-12T00:04:00.008+01:00

Some time ago I alluded to a technical problem I was having re data storage and archiving.
Discs break down,they go faulty,you have to pay data recovery guys a small fortune to recover your stuff.
but all is not lost when its lost!!
Number one there is data rescue iii.now thats good for starters!!
Then there is a hard drive docking station,an invaluable device which allows you to mount an internal hard disk as an external device.
If you are buying an external drive please buy a unit which has a single drive inside.
If this goes faulty its most likely going to be the interface thats fried ,so you can break the case open and pop it into your docking station.
If its a unit with more than one drive
your fried electronics are the glue that holds this together as one device on your desktop and you cant
recover the drive unless you buy the same controller circuit(messy)
Raids,multiple disc arrays,are all the rage right now but with the advent of solid state drives we will all be changing our storage over in the next few years.
So right now we need a cheap and safe way of storing our data until the time comes to migrate it to the next standard.
my solution is the following.

Use Adobe lightroom as your file management system.

Store your files in one location on your home computer(a second internal 1tb or 500gb disc)

As a further backup plan you could also use a program such as disk tracker to record the contents of your disks for lightroom independent search purposes.

When the disk is full remove it from your machine.

clone the removed disc using a device such as the Integral copy station box it and label it and place it on a shelf.(Storing the copy in a safe location)

Install a fresh empty disk Name it and start over again following the same process.

If you need to revisit your archive to access a file Lightroom will tell you what disk the the file is on.
you then simply mount that disc in your desktop dock and hey presto you have access!!

With a1tb drive costing something like €60 this form of data archiving is pretty cheap relative to external raid devices,or other Archiving methods like the drobo or gtech gspeed.

To soften the blow of this techie posting I have included a beautiful picture from 1996 shot in a Dublin national school.
Its a shot of a simpler time when all photographic images could be put in a little sleeve and housed in a book.Again it shows the bravery of children when confronted with the unknown(in this case me!!)

It was shot on film,neopan 400 rated at 800 and processed in microphen.

the camera was a mamiya RZ using a wide angle lens(me and the subject were at fairly close quarters)

oh happier simpler days!!

To all my friends wishing to join me in the type 55 project now is the time to make your choices of images and to mail me your low res versions so I can see if we have a show(my gut feeling is we will have two!!)
get me at dmon@me.com for this!!

I am back on the streets of Dublin next week for another Leaving dublin shot, so lets go!!
please use the sociable button on the left to share via facebook,twitter,and stumbleupon

MOVING QUICKLY

2010-09-01T13:36:00.009+01:00

Some days life throws you a ball and you have to run with it.

Up till now most of the "leaving Dublin" process has taken at least a week to a week and a half to get together. The final work really benefits from the process of planning and consultation with the sitter.

last weekend however,I picked up a lead form the Gallery of photography facebook page and followed it on to find that the persons involved where away for the weekend and leaving for Australia(via south Africa) two days after they returned to dublin.

So thanks to mobile phone email and facebook contact I was able to chat to Rae about location,

scout it on sat,post pics on monday,and make a decision that nigh on a location.

Last evening We met for the first time at the Suir rd luas stop on the Grand Canal.

Rae Green and Her husband,Clay Crighten are heading back to clay's home town of Rockhampton Australia,stopping off at South Africa for 5 weeks along the way,for one last adventure.Then Its back to find a new home and try to build a quality life.The type that is difficult to carve out in a slowly stagnating Ireland at the moment!

Good luck and good fortune to you both It was a pleasure to work with you on your last assignment before the flight!!

Techniccally we took a slightly different tack than usual because of the location.

we used on snooted bowens light as our main light, a barn doored (improvised by Brian and Artur) pair of metz 45's from behind to give depth to the sitters(you gan see some higlights on clay's neck and Rae's cheek,they are subtle yet significant).

All this was combined with a shutter speed of 1 second to allow some burn in from the ambient lights.

then we added some small sharp details from a 10 second exposure for a little more depth.

After the final edit a bleach bypass filter set to 30% opacity was applied on a layer.SO THERE!!

As always Artur Sikora,and Brian daly took it all in their stride And Hugh Mc Cabe Arrived ahead of us to welcome Ray and Clay on set.

A BIG THANKS TO ALL

PLEASE COMMENT AND USE THE SOCIABLE BUTTONS OVER ON THE RIGHT

HAVE A CHAIR!!

2010-08-23T16:47:00.010+01:00

A REFLECTION ON THE SUMMER

Summer 2010 is not quite over yet, but its end has been signaled to me!

On Saturday last I arrived home from France after a two and a half week visit I was totally relaxed after a wonderful stress free time.

With only one week of the childrens summer holidays remaining I have set my self the goal

of completing several housekeeping tasks to set myself up to go at it again with renewed vigour!

I finally came up with a plan for cost effective data back-up which I must now implement

(more about this on completion)

I Need to finally take down the Dadofoto website and replace it with a David Monahan one.

I must physically tidy up my workspace after a hectic july.

And once more slap some order on my life.

I am quite delighted how things went this summer and it looks like things will be better next year for all involved in this fragile province of the photographic world.

The photoIreland festival has pledged itself to educate the Irish to understand and appreciate,the role of photography in our society.

Personally I was heartened to see some great works during its early july schedule

and I feel they will help to elevate photography to a similar level of appreciation it receives in other countries.

For Me the highlights of the summer where as follows,

The fantastic home exhibition in North great Georges street.

The Healthy and stimulating debates and discussions around the photoireland festival.

The fact that I was hired by the photographic archive to print their next exhibition(launching next week).

Getting three shots done in july for the Leaving Dublin series

The success of two of Students I had the pleasure of working with this year.

two of them Jeanete Lowe and Tom Scott made it into the R.H.A. summer show.

And to cap it all Jeanette then goes and gets into the London National Portrait Galleries,Taylor wessing prize show. Well done to you both!!

The fantastic series shot by Matthew Thompson for ulster bank, dublin theatre festival,pure magic!!

All of the above have done a lot to renew and elevate my enthusiasm for photography

so thanks to you all!!

So,now that I am home I have completed my postcard site of holiday photography.

As an added treat for those interested I have included a chronologically sequenced set on another page to counter the random splash effect of the postcard site,click here to go there.

and please tell me which works best for you!

Thank you for taking a seat and reading this post.Incidentally the chair above is part of my summer gallery,I bought two of these pink formica topped beauties and a table for €10 at the amazing Emmaus community warehouse in St Brieuc

please comment and use the sociable buttons on the right to share this content with your friends!!

MAN ON THE MOVE

2010-07-30T23:21:00.012+01:00

Its been a really busy couple of weeks and I seem to be working longer hours than ever. But that all draws to an end soon, and I am really looking forward to travelling back to Bretagne to join up with Carole and my own Little Gráinne(who is actually getting bigger)

I had great photographic fun there in june and I hope to find the same form when I return.

The main reason for my busyness was I managed to secure a job to prepare and print the next exhibition for the national photo archive. Its all done and away at the framers right now so please if you are around Dublin from early august please drop in have a look.The exhibition is called 'Power and Privilege " and takes a revealing look in and around Irish stately homes.

I was very Privileged myself to make a second trip to the home of Conor mcMahon,a man on the move,so to speak.

In a few short days Conor is Packing up and moving to England.

He is going to work for a company that he has done consultancy work for in the past,but as consultancy work is drying up slightly here ,he has decided to take a salaried job,and go where the work is and so Surry is his destination.

I was suprised at first with Conors assertion that his back garden was his favourite place in Dublin and that is where he wished to be photograph.But after a long chat I fully understood that he was very proud of the fact that he had bought and renovated and cared for his own living space and he was really going to miss it most of all when he left.this is what he said specifically about his house" The house is my home and the store of all my effort this last few years. A place to get together with the lads to work on the tunes, or other times where I might draw, conceive new ideas for my next exhibition. It is also my home in this cul-de-sac neighbourhood where I have found myself very much part of the extended neighbourhood family that I became part of 7 years ago now."

May good luck go with you Conor and thank you for this challenge which forced us into a corner from which we had to come out fighting!!

Once more Artur,brian and Gemma made the job not so lonely as I fumbled for a few minutes with a dud set of batteries.All those cool heads saw us right in the end and we where ready to shoot by 11.00..

As I said at the start of this post its been a busy few weeks but its been great to have the space to organise and to shoot three amazing people in three very different locations.

OH LET THIS PROJECT ROLL ON!!

Please comment on this posting and indeed on the print quality in the archives next presentation (if you are so moved to) It really helps.

It would also be good if you shared it with your friends by using the SOCIABLE tabs in the right margin.

Here you can share it with your facebook,twitter,google,and stumbleupon friends!!!

ACTUAL LIFE

2010-07-24T01:39:00.005+01:00

Good things come to those who wait!
or so the saying goes!
Last monday night,I arrived at Heuston station just after dark.

Only to find it open with a train arriving at 11.45 from cork.
I had been down the previous sunday on a look see and it was closed so i assumed this was the deal every night(not so)
As it happened The station being opened did not effect the shoot in any way.
A little later I was joined by Artur and then Brian and we waited in the car for our co-conspirator Soraya Beyer.
On ariving in Ireland 2 years Ago Soraya(from Dresden,Germany)was put to work by her new employer in the Zumo smoothie bar in Heuston station,hence her affinity with the building.

When myself and Soraya reviewed the test shots from my look see we both settled on the portico
as a good location to make this glorious parting shot.
Unlike any other part of this very well known dublin building,It had a fresh comforting,unfamiliar appeal at this particular perspective.

Soraya had come to Dublin after completing her studies,
she craved a break from academic life.
She wished to discover somewhere new,find an uncomplicated job,something to fund her through a long break,a kind of holiday from her actual life.

I know when she looks back at this photo in years to come she will understand everything about the reality of her stay here and how it actually filled in the Gaps for her as she progressed from student to teacher.
Her reason to return to Germany came all of a sudden as she was offered a teaching post she understood would not come her way.

As always this shot was powered by a bowens flash head and battery pack,2 pocket wizards,and of course Brian Dalyand Artur Sikora

It has taken me till friday to make a space to edit this work,
but the wait was worthwhile!
thank you Soraya,and good luck with your recently renewed actual life!!
Please hit the stumble upon button if you like this page it will make it discoverable by others
Comments as always are welcomed and replied to!!

Tales from the promised land

2010-07-15T23:52:00.008+01:00

Last monday night I have to admit I was on a bit of a high.After a week of the amazing photoIreland photofest It was a delight to move on to another phase. The act of making,
Rather than looking.
(that said I am really looking forward to photoireland 2011)
I met Jacinta sheerin last year when a freind asked me to do a publicity photoshoot for an upcoming play.
It turned out Jacinta had co-written and played one of the lead roles.The play waiting for ikea.was a fringe hit and subsequently had successful runs in 2 other dublin theaters.
The same friend on hearing of my project suggested I contact Jacinta again as she was planning to move to London.
This i did last friday she was in Galway till sunday,and moving on tuesday.
Loving the work already shot she agreed to make her self free to shoot monday night.
Now thats painting yourself into a corner!!

She mentioned some grafitti that spoke to her in volumes about social reality in Dublin
and so I went to check out her suggestion!
Saturday and sunday afternoon were spent dodging showers and checking out the angels to find the perfect perspective.
Pinned that down then drew up a plan.
As always Artur Sikora,and Brian Daly were on hand to light up the night,Gemma Geraghty was charged with keeping us all invisible(a job completed with a little help from the Gardaí)
On a technical front we definitely pushed the gear as far as it could go and there was a part of the building we could not light because the little pocket wizards could not do the distance and pass thru walls as well.
To allude to the process of this and all of the leaving dublin shoots to date i have included a little video piece made up of the layers as they where seen on the ground.Leaving dublin is a documentary piece and is shot at night on location,the scene tripodded
the set lit with one flash head ,a little bit art a time!
I hope it serves to add to the understanding of this a complex work.
My warmest thanks again to all who have sat for me at this a very emotionally charged time of their lives.
please comment,oh it helps!!
also if curious you can click the title at the top of the page for details of the social redevelopment that has never happened!!

Bravo-PHOTOIRELAND!!

2010-07-09T20:07:00.010+01:00

I was delighted this week to travel by bicycle around the city from venue to venue
feasting on the treasure that has been the PHOTOIRELAND FESTIVAL
Real thought has gone into the program and i have to say all the diverse elements which make up the photographic spectrum were catered for.
That i feel is the real achievement of this the First photoireland festival and for this we have to applaud the team who put it all together,Heres to inclusion,here is to the PHOTOIRELAND FESTIVAL.
On a Personal note I will be contributing to a talk on photoblogging tomorrow at the back loft La Cathedral hope to see some of you there.

ON the top of the page there is an Image shot last week in an arichchoke field betweem stPol de Leon,and Roscof,bretagne,france
The shot is part of a sequence i have been working on and just incase you missed it on the last post i have created another link to it here please click!
My mission is to attract some other users of this medium in order to stage a small exhibition in homage to this now lost film type!!

Leaving Ireland steams on and I have 2 shots to set up for the next few weeks,lets hope the rain holds off as i am painted into a corner on the first one. It can only be done monday night and the person ships out tuesday!!

BIRD STRIKE!

2010-07-04T19:41:00.014+01:00

Some times life can throw really strange things your way.
For example yesterday i made the journey from Rennes ,France,back home to Dublin.
On landing at Rennes our Aircraft experienced a birdstrike
which led to a very long delay of 7 hours to our flight.
The main reason was that there was no one available locally to certify the plane fit to fly at Rennes airport.
The answer to this was to fly in another Aer lingus craft
with a technician on board to certify, if possible, or to fly the passengers home if not.
As it turned out all was good and the plane took off around 9.30
7 hours after the scheduled departure time.
The Irony of the the night was that in compensation for the delay we where offered free refreshments on the flight
and for some reason the only item available from the extensive menu of sandwich's was chicken and Stuffing!!
Bird strike number 2!!
An hour and twenty minutes later we arrived in Dublin
So we jumped into a taxi to make the journey home and we where delighted to make it back to fontenoy street in less than 15 minutes.
And now for the weird bit!!
After a couple minutes I entered the main room of the house which had been closed up for most of the previous 2 weeks but
checked on friday afternoon by a friend( who confirmed to me since that it was an empty space)
Sitting on the couch was a Racing pigeon I scanned the room quickly, all the windows where closed, the fire place had a fireguard in place,and apart from the odd splattering of pigeon shite around the place all was sound.
I immediately worried about the health of the bird and tried to pick it up ass i closed in on it it bolted and it left four tail feathers in my hand (which i quickly dropped to the floor)
Bird strike number 3.
In the past I have had some photographic experience with racing pigeons and their owners and when i finally picked it up
its ring showed it was a bird born in 1996 so it was probably over 14 yeqrs old as most hatching happens in spring!!
Well the fact that a bird could make it to this ripe old age and find itself in my living space on "the night of the bird strike" is just mind blowing.
So as is so often the case in Irish Documentary photography, I decided to revisit the site of this final bird strike after the event and photograph the traces of what was left behind in an effort to capture the essence of a strange day.

Unfortunately I had cleaned the shit up immediately so all that was left to me was the tail feathers.

I HOPE I HAVE DONE THEM JUSTICE!!

By the by I visited 3 photography exhibitions,all part of the photoireland festival,and I was most impressed at the breath and depht of the content of all, See the program for the remaining week here!I am planning to get as much of it covered as possible.

Finally I added 4 new images to my type 55 gallery shot in Bretagne over the last 2 weeks click here to view it
Also my holiday postcard page is getting bigger right here
I hope you enjoy it,please comment if you have anything to say about it or any other part of this post
its always a great help to me to recieve feedback

ARRIVED, SAFE & SOUND!

2010-06-21T21:45:00.005+01:00

Made it to France early yesterday morning on a glorius day after a beautiful crossing from cork on the Pont Aven.
All was fine when we made it to our destination, a tiny cottage in the middle of farmland just outside the village of Ploeuc sur Lie.
As stated in my last post I am hoping to Shoot some type 55 film whilst I am here.
I travelled light and just brought the linhof technika and standard 150mm lens,polaroid back,and a bucket for holding wet negs.
As an aid to composition,and as a tool in its own right,
I brought my H3d50 hasselblad,with waist level finder and sekonic meter.( I thought it might be interesting to compose and shoot the old fashioned way to see what i got.)
So yesterday Afternoon after a morning nap(disembarked boat at 5A.M.)I took the camera for a stroll and came back with the picture you see above.It says a lot about how I feel right now,full of hope and expectation for the weeks ahead!!
for some pics of the crossing click here i will add to this gallery as the weeks tick by.
as always click on the image above for a full size view

MORE FILM TALK!!

2010-06-15T01:38:00.004+01:00

As discussed on an earlier postingI would like to, put together a group show of type 55 work.
So far i have put together 5 exposures all taken around the village of Ploeuc sur Lie in bretagne france.I hope to expand this to a series of 10 images as I will spend 5 weeks there between this and the end of august.
With this in mind I am now throwing my gaze outward to the world to see who would like to join me in putting an exhibition of type 55's together!!
The Idea would be to send some rough scans for consideration/evaluation,then if chosen the neg could be forwarded to me here in dublin for high res scanning and printing.
I would hope then to put together a small brochure (blurb softback)and try to secure a venue here in dublin for november or early december.
International participants could also try to get a venue to travel the resultant show in their own country
What do you think!!
There is no set brief for this expo project save that of the beauty of the object photographed,and of the photograph.
Above is shot of Ian which i photographed for a a cd case see his work here
for another view of my set so far click here
To join in this project just use the comments page,
please use the comments page to express interest in general in posting here at the lilliputian

HERE WE ARE NOW.ENTERTAIN US!

2010-06-06T10:00:00.014+01:00

If You are looking for some engaging photo-entertainment Dublin is definitely this place to be this summer.
we have already had a visual treat with the Griffith college summer show,The Iadt dun laoighre show contained many a poignant piece,theD.I.T. show opening on tuesday next,And photoIreland festival is about to happen in july with exciting events and exhibitions happening all over the town.
One of these exhibitions is for me very important as it showcases the work of a very talented group of people who I worked with
during december and january last.
It happened at the national college of art and design,and it was their certificate in photography and digital imaging.For my part I presented and set a project on environmental portraiture.Enthusiasm was high,emails flew,the work was great.Some of the resulting work i had access to is included in the slideshow at the end of the page ,just hit the play triangle in the blogger box at the end of the post.I wish all the group success with this show, their site is online now hereyou can download a screen version of their poster here
As always comments are important so please do express your opinion on this posting,it really helps,and i promise to reply!!

GOING PLACES

2010-05-26T23:01:00.010+01:00

Myself,Artur,brian,and Hugh, took to the streets of Dublin a week late after rain had stopped play the previous tuesday.
Our objective to shoot a glorious parting shot for the Flood_Kettunen family.

They are david flood,minna Kettunen,and 10 month old Matilde Flood.After working in the I.T. sector during the boom David spent the last 4 years in college as a student of photography. He made some money during this time teaching digital practise with the Gallery of photography and the V.E.C.
His Partner Minna worked till Matilde arrived as a media specialist with Microsoft.
They have decided to ride out the recession in Finland, Minna's home country.They reckon the cost of living,the prospects for work,and the level of social service,all make Finland a much better place to be right now.
no difference with technique from the previous shots.the quirky composition is designed to give parity of esteem to all,whilst trying to say there is always a part of you that does not want to leave no matter how much you need to!!
Again nice helpful dubliners where encountered! I have got to say a huge thankyou to the staff of the bistrot, castle market
( go visit!!)
who coffeed us up, and allowed use their outside area as a base!!

david floods graduation show launches next friday details here
its a show that i have not missed for the last 10 years and is always full of top class work,I am hoping this years will be as good as always!
Talking of good shows I've just been to the opening of griffith college's first photography degree show
A fantastic display of work of,showing the many facets of photography which synergise to praise the photographic act in all its diverse forms.
See it if you can over the next few days!!
Coming up also in july is Irelands first photo festival,it has a great line up of over 20 venues and 50 photographers showing all over Dublin details here
All in all i would say we are all in for a busy summer.

Lastly for thos of you interested in a good photographic course the gallery of photography is hosting Kim Haughton who is giving an introduction to documentary photography course over four thursdays from june 24th(places are limited to 6 and fill up fast!!) you can see some work from previous participants here

WOT THE CURTAINS!

2010-05-14T16:44:00.015+01:00

On an assignment earlier this week i had to photograph a set of curtains for an upcoming historical book.
I thought nothing of it arranged the shoot for monday morning and took my self out to Newbridge house
in Donabate North county Dublin.I have been there several times as there is a nice park ,farm,and playground,and
of course the house.I was struck by the 150 year old curtains and all of their grandeur but when examined closer there was
one interesting fault.

The curtains appeared to be rotting in situ and the edges near the ground where missing.

Just like our country i thought!
From a safe distance all looks in tact but up close things are most definatly falling appart on a person to person bassis.Yes Although it would appear to our European partners that Ireland has taken steps to avoid the financial mayhem of an I.M.F./E.U. bale out,things will never be the same for countless thousands of peopleWho will never have the money to pay of their over inflated debts let alone afford to change the curtains!
FOR A GOOD SKETCH CLICK THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE
and please post a comment

IS IT A GOOD TIME FOR A RANT?

2010-05-08T13:56:00.017+01:00

In Ireland over the last 10 years so many industries have closed down as investors shifted their favour from production to speculation.This was fueled by light financial regulation,reckless abandonment of credit standards,and the euros european controlled low interest rates.
These pillars were exploited to the full extent and beyond by those in a position to do so to the detrement of our society.
This is evident in the planned development for Moore street and the jury’s of ballsbridge plan which planned to close a viable hotel and several other buildings,demolish and build a new quarter just because the numbers looked good for profit generation!!.On the other side of the fence,countless people became long distance commuters forced into overpriced housing far from their places of work, and now are trapped in a negative equity box,some isolated from their previous social support structures.
The building business was swollen and propped up our labour market until it too burst.
the results of this flood is still now being felt.
Although this speculative phase has largely been removed from ireland by economic crash
we could still become victims of the International speculative system as countless well resourced number crunchers around the globe exploit the weak in the name of trading numbers.The EURO itself is under pressure and although it would appear unlikely at the moment a domino topple starting at Greece could bring the system into question.
Closer to home a lot of people are still Leaving Dublin.
Last wednesday Night I was joined by Keiko Furamoto a talented paper conservator from Japan. She loved living in Dublin and had planned to settle here but alas it was not to be
and she returned to Japan a year and a half ago.she has returned twice to be with her friends in Dublin who she misses dearly

here is what she had to say about herself“I was awarded 2007-8 Heritage Council Internship -the first conservation intern to be supported by the Heritage Council at the NLI. I worked at the NLI from Oct 2007 to the end of August 2008.
During my stay, I was offered a year extention at the NLI but my work permit wasn't renewed as it had been stated.
I applied for a maternity leave cover position at Trinity college and the job was offered but
my work permit didn't come through. So I left Dublin in the mid Nov 2008.
Since Dec 2008, I am working for the Handa Kyuseido Company Ltd, Oriental Painting Conservation Studio.”
The people of my leaving dublin project are represetitive of the human face of irelands problems.Keiko’s situation is a direct result of our countries attitude to non Europeans.Even when people have a lot to offer our society they are treated with hostility by the governments authorities. A sad reality which will hamper the the enricment of our society.
On the night Artur Sikora Carried the torch and shone it beautifully.
We also met some beautiful people who held back shifting gear from whelans venue until we had the shot Horrah for people!!!

Sorry for so many words but the photographs do need a little contextualisation.
please answer the question posed above in the comments section
IS IT A GOOD TIME FOR A RANT?
I f you like this article please hit the newly installed stumble upon button just below on the right to help increase my readership!!

TAKING DIRECTION

2010-05-02T13:25:00.006+01:00

Firstly, Apologies to my international readers and subscribers. I am going to get all parochial for a minute.
Hopefully i can hold your interest.

As i mentioned before I am involved in presenting a workshop on portraiture at The Gallery of Photography,Temple Bar,Dublin.
I am returning now to that topic as there are 2 upcoming workshops that some of you in the greater Dublin area may be interested in.They happen on 4 consecutive thursday nights between 7and 9.30 in the galleries exhibition space.They start may 13th and july 8th.
The emphasis for the workshops is learning through doing and it is a completely hands on experience for all participants.
I find this appoach to be the best at yeilding results as seen in the above video.
the numbers are small(6 people per class)and tuition is therefor very tailored to the needs of the group from session to session.
for more details go to the gallery's site
for a closer look at the images in the slide show above click here
Please comment if this posting has been helpful for you!

IN TRANSITION!

2010-04-29T12:27:00.006+01:00

Got very close to the heart of the city last night ,shooting by the G.P.O. Arcade on Princes street.
No body egged us but there was one large gang ,security,Garda,and several contract cleaners to contend with,
and trying to keep invisible whilst hanging around a corner with a photography rig is not easy.
But we did it
Ryan Cronin-Neillin was the subject tonight, A student about to graduate and get out,(how nineteen eighties is that!) the fate of many a student to come i fear!!
His location had a memory for him of two weeks spent working in independent newspapers whilst in a transition year in school.
Ryan a final year photography student at G.C.D.on the S.C.R.(very buzzy).he is off to Philadelphia in the summer for a year to start with and I wish him the best.
Artur Sikura and Brian Daly again maintained the peace by helping all to stay invisible between flashes.and a late shower proved my mac and camera to be watertight to a point
it is my intention to continue this project for some time so rather than it loose its momentum or indeed that it may stagnate right here on the pages of this weblog I shall endeavor to move it off to a dedicated site of its own.
once done i will continue to advertise it where i can in the hope of attracting more prospective emigrants to pose before parting.
So far its been very rewarding meeting,scouting,aranging,scheduling.I have enjoyed it very much and have already met some really interesting people.I was thinking of opening an account on viewbook
and was wondering if any of you used their portfolio pages to build projects?
opion on a good spot to continue to build this project on the net would be a great help.
Thanks for all the support for this and keep spreading the word about the lilliputian-its a photoblog for this our small world.
Please comment as it really helps my head!!

THE CITY IS YOUR STAGE

2010-04-20T21:50:00.009+01:00

GO PLAY!!
I ts amazing how ones environment can look so different just by the way in which you approach it.
If you take a fresh perspective all viewers will be stunned by the look of what you have created out of the normal.
Such is the magic of photography.
I was joined last Sunday night by Julie Mitchell, A graphic designer from dublin who is out of work and heading to Vancouver Canada soon.She has been very committed to the process of making this work ever since we made contact some weeks ago.
From suggesting a location,reviewing location test shots,to costume,and even as far as helping with the final edit,Julie has been amazing and its been a pleasure to work with her.Although Julie is currently located in carlow,the shot was made near to her home of some years,Smithfield,Dublin.Her location did not hinder our wish to get this shot edited and up in a flash and we used the public folder of the fantastic idisk from mobile me to pass the full 145mb file back and fourth no problem.

Brian Daly and Artur Sikora were on hand again to handle the lighting stuff and make shure i was not flattened by a luas tram(tripod position very close to tracks)
the shot was lit again using the bowens esperit head and travelpac battery system
All editing was done in photoshop cs4 and final contrast was added by using the color efex pro bleach bypass filter on a layer set to about 20% opacity
So the LEAVING DUBLIN project project continues.I am hoping for some male participants in the next few weeks.
But again if any of you know anyone male or female who is about to leave Dublin for another country please direct them to this page.
I woud be delighted to receive comments on this and all postings

WORK IN PROGRESS

2010-04-12T19:42:00.006+01:00

I would like to start this posting by giving a very big thank you to Aoife McMonagle
for coming onboard my leaving dublin project.
She left Dublin 6 days ago for Toronto,Canada.
She was photographed on Portabello her favourite part of Dublin.
She had worked in Marketing and P.R.
for the Royal Irish Academy in Dawson street Dublin until her contract expired!!
So she hopes to work in Canada and return to Dublin
in a few years.
The shot is a combination of several flashed exposures made from a tripod and merged in photoshop
click on the title for a gallery of the components.
Thanks again to Brian daly and Artur Sikora for help on the night(great flashin!!)
In Other news I have 2 more shoots scheduled for this project,
I am awaiting two 10x8 sheets which i shot on my street last week,
(had to send them to newcastle for processing)
and I am about to go to print with my first limited edition potfolio "Trees"
It looks like its going to be a busy month!!
Comments on content are apreciated as they shape further content

FINE ART PRINTING

2010-04-12T13:24:00.011+01:00

TIME FOR A SPOT OF SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION!!

So listen carfully as i will only say this once,
"I AM A FINE ART PRINTER"
For some time now i have been producing beautiful,archival prints on fibre based papers,
printed with the most up to date epson ultrachrome hdr pigment inkset.
My clients for this work have included such notables as the the National library of ireland,
I produced facsimile documents to replace delicate items on display in both the James Joyce,and Yeats exhibitions,
The National photographic archive have employed me to print 3 of their last 5 exhibitions on meeting house square.
And I am currently producing 40'x40 enlargements of Leabhar na hAiseiri for the National museum of ireland!!
Recently I printed an exhibition for michael Durand which hung in St johns Newfoundland.
Countless students of art and photography have come to love my commitment to quality and attention to detail when working with their presentations.
My print studio was described by one as a cottage industry(i really liked that!!)
Any how if you try it out you will see there is no smoke and mirrors here,
just a 100% commitment to best practise.
By the way thats me in the shot (just for scale)with a fine print by photographic artist Donal Sheenan
its from the series urbis modo.ItS 60x40 inches
printed on hahnemuhle fine art baryta.,
its behind true vue museum glass
its mounted on diabond
and framed in a handmade frame by Ian Monahan.
Its shot in natural light with the old self timer!!
I hope this post brings some of you my way!!
please comment as it will help shape future content

AND SO, WE GO

2010-03-22T23:23:00.012Z

my leaving dublin project has started and I am delighted that I was joined Again by
brian,Artur,and Don,Iate one night last week to kick this one off.
I was even more delighted to be joined by Anastasia Herbert who had this to say.

"I came to Dublin in August 2003, in the boom years for the arts; I'm leaving now for London. Here, in Ireland I've had the great opportunity of working freelance with premier national and city cultural institutions on arts festivals and exhibitions, and on regional arts education and community dialogue projects, too. I will look back on these 6 and half years in Dublin as formative to my career and will miss the wonderful, talented people I've come to know in this busy capital city."

Anastasia was photographed by the backdrop of her choice,the Beckett bridge,from Sir John Rogersons Quay.
The project continues to gather pace with shots planned for tomorrow evening(march 23rd)
and april 17.For those of you out there who are new to my blog this is an art project with no intention other than to imortalise what is being lost to our country,and I am looking for people who would like to participate in making a statement about their imminent departure.
We lit this shot using a bowens esperit head powered by a bowens travelpack
and we carried the light all the way to the stackhouse behind Anastasia's head using the amazing pocket wizard radio tranciever
If you are leaving dublin and would like to join me on this project please mail me at dmon@mac.com.
for the full image please click on the picture above
Please comment on this piece as it will help to shape future posts

Revelation ii

2010-03-14T10:40:00.011Z

In a previous posting I discussed the Idea of getting inside a photographers head and listening to what they had to say about their work.
what they say is not always what you expect. Because, what you bring to their work when viewing is always going to be different to what they brought to the place in time when they made the work.
A better understanding of any art is to be gleaned directly from the artists own statements!!
so here is a couple of video clips relating to Nadev Cander a fine photographer whose work has universal appeal and a wide variety of styles.
one is in the form of a music video,it covers the diversity of the artists work.
and the other concentrates on one piece of work and takes the form of an interview. Here is where we learn what makes the artist tick!!

Please comment on the relevance of this post as it will help to shape future postings

Attention to detail

2010-03-09T13:35:00.010Z

It is interesting how small details can add so much or take away from the success of a shot.
Here is an example of such.
Click on the image at the head of this article for a closer look.
Here you can see how i forgot to move the fridge full of film from under the desk before taking this beautifully composed and Animated shot of the tenacious Gráinne.
Here is an interesting quoteI came across in the book ANNIE LEIBOVITZ AT WORK and its this"Arnold Newman said that photography was one percent talent and ninety nine percent moving furniture"
Now I see the wisdom of this quote.
The image was shot on a h3d mk11 50
and processed using nik softwares bleach bypass filter set to about 30% opacity on a photoshop layer.
Alienskin bokeh filter was used to give the shallow focus.
For a gallery of effective small details please click here

as always comments will be appreciated as they help to shape this weblog!!

A CRY FOR HELP!!

2010-02-28T15:59:00.012Z

You may recall a recent post called in the city.In that post I photographed a young Irish woman who had made her home in Australia.

Later I learned that her sister who was living in ireland was to return to australia to take up residency and her Irish boyfriend was to travel with her.

the reason for their depature is the age old search for a better life.

after the big building crash of 2009 Paul and Aisling both found themselves out of work here in Ireland and so they are taking action,the one that always has played a big part in our irish cultural heritage.Emigration!!!

Paul and Aisling were not available before travelling so Niamh and Chris kindly stood in for

this shot(directly inspired by Paul and Aislings departure.) Its of a young man cut in half and young girl sitting on a suitcase in smithfield outside the last remaining building from its pre_development landscape,the market cafe(now closed because the markets were sold off to property speculators)

It is a shot to mark their passing from one life to another,some thing to mark a decision that will have far reaching effect into their future!!

It is my wish to photograph people( of all nationalities), who have made the decision to move from Ireland for economic reasons,In and around the city,juxtaposed with landscapes that are significant to their pasts.

If that sound like you,or, you know of somebody who is about to move,please bring my proposal to their attention.

I want to make these works monumental,To show those depicted in a true heroic spirit.

For after all they are making a huge jump into the void of uncertainty and this needs to be commemorated perhaps like never before!!

please contact me if you wish to work with me on this project

you can mail me at dmon@mac.com and we will take it from there

Big thanks again to Artur Sikora, Brian Daly,and Donal Sheehan.for all their help on the night.

And bad luck to the guy who tried to EGG us from the 5th floor!!

SHOOTING IN SERIES

2010-02-15T22:43:00.008Z

shooting in series has for a long time been a useful device for drawing people into your work.

It transforms the everyday and the unnoticed into a space where they are central and as much revered by the viewer as by the photographer who drew attention to them in the first place.

notables among series shooters are the greats like Bernd and Hilla Becher,karl blossfeldt,August Sanders ,and indeed of late my good friend Michael Durand.

the key features of all of these artists work is that they will photograph the same type of things over and over again in roughly the same perspective, in the same light,on the same medium,

and with the same format.click on the names above to see their work The bechers shot industrial facades,mineheads and blast furnaces in huge numbers.Sanders shot types of people,usually by profession or by community standing. Blossfeldt shot plants to educate students of sculpture about natural design elements.And Durand made a glorious series of several dublin parking meters,months before they where all decommissioned.

So,To follow this illustrious band of dedicated photographers I too have made my first serious effort of shooting an interesting series.I ts called TREES.It contains 11 images of the trunks of trees shot in beautiful winter light.As with all photographic series its beauty is seen when viewed together and the viewer can delight in comparing shape,form,texture,composition,light and tone.It is my intention to publish these as a series in a limited addition portfolio,perhaps in an addition of ten.I wish to make fine archival prints on fibre based paper,with a pigment inkset.

The first step to achieving this goal is to remove one of these images from the set.

So i would be obliged if you were to counsel me on which image to remove from the 11 to make the perfect group of ten.

This morning I ordered the paper and was torn between Hahnemuhle fineart baryta, or Harman Fibre baryta.the decission has yet to be made at the moment I am leaning towards the harman paper but lets see what happens!!

the work was shot on a hasselblad hd50 dslr and processed in light room with silver efex pro used to do the conversion to monochrome.

I f any of you feel you might be interested in acquiring one of these fine folios please let me know by mail at dmon@mac.com.

as always comments are greatly appreciated!!

CLICK ON THE TITLE FOR THE FULL GALLERY!!

PROJECT NUMBER ONE

2010-02-11T00:41:00.011Z

In an earlier posting I promised to share with you my work in progress,my projects,so to speak

and so far I have shown the polaroid work that i have going on.

But that project is set to run for a long time Here is one project that i hope to conclude by early summer.Althoug barely started 3 years ago I now have the focus and drive to push this one forward to conclusion.Its a little project about the place I live, my block of a street called fontenoy street in dublin 7.

I feel it is a good representational cross section of irish society and

my wish is to root myself in its history ,at this time.

Then,present this place to the world on 10x8 transparency,and leave it behind me as hard evidence of what it was like to live within this frames gaze at this particular time.

there are 14 houses on the block so that leaves 11 left to go to.

Once i have completed the portraits i will then make a digital panoramic print of the block

hopefully without too many cars present.

print the print on beautiful archival fibre paper and there you go!!

wish me luck!!

Again comments are appreciated as they help to shape future posts.

If anybody has any questions relating to photographic practise

just hit the email the author tab on the feed page @ feed://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/qDTf

FROM CHILDREN WE CAN LEARN SO MUCH!!

2010-02-06T00:11:00.008Z

Most important of which is don't be afraid of the unknown!!

computers can go wrong!

Take care!!

Tread softly!!

back it up!!

twice!!

A recent computer fault sent me off down a road and it took me a week to get back!

Thankfully I had the time to give to it.

Coming out the far end I have to say that it is really important to have good technical support.

Michael Maher of I.S.S. a Dublin based tech company was on hand to advise and hand hold through this curious time.

This is what I get for talking about film!!

to Ilustrate this point i have included a picture shot some years ago on a MAMIYA RZ67

and fuji neopan 400 film!!

Again comments will be helpful(share the pain of your computer nightmares), and I hope the image brings back good memories for my good friend Eileen!!

FILM JOY!!

2010-01-29T18:20:00.009Z

a lot of my ramblings to date have been concerned with things Digital. But hey!! there is a far more sinister side to photography once controlled by people who conveniently located themselves in dark basements, and huddled over huge deep tanks of Dev and fixer etc. Oh yes the world of film.

I have avoided talking about this until I had a few credible articles under my belt as I did not want to be misunderstood. you see, I like both film and digital.

They are both very credible media but digital being now the more accessible, complete with instant feedback, has become the medium of the dabbler. Artists, architects, designers, and other creative professionals also use digital photography to document their work whilst the use of film and paper seems to be becoming a minority sport

it is my opinion,( being someone working in both mediums)in some ways that there is less to film photography than digital.

you get what you shoot,right there, shure you got to get it right first time,but that comes with practise,you can get use to that after a few years!!

anyhow! On with the show! Film! I love it.

so I have included in this gallery images shot and Polaroid type 55 film.

( my favourite black-and-white film of all time) it is my intention to continue this work into the future and may invite other practitioners of this medium to join me in an exhibition of type 55

images later in the year.

click the title above for the gallery of 5 images

for info on type 55 film click here

or see the previous article "photographing your breakfast is not a sign of mental illness"

thanks to those who have commented on previous posts please continue this practise

as it is a great help to me!!

IN THE CITY LATE AT NIGHT

2010-01-27T22:53:00.009Z

last week I met a young lady who was in ireland for 2 weeks to be a guest at a family wedding.

It had been a long time since we had met at another happy occasion also a wedding.

although born in ireland Ciara has spent most of her life in australia and is in possession of the best traits

both countries have to offer,in short she is a fantastic person!

Anyhow I thought that we could perhaps make a portrait in dublin city centre that celebrated her irish roots

and her australian sense of fun and adventure.When i asked if she was interested in this she almost jumped ,and said YES!!

so I set about planning,found a location,some help,some lighting,and away we went.

we did the shot around midnight,on custom house key,under a bridge over the river liffey.

Artur Sikora,and Brian Daly, helped out While photographer ,Donal Sheehan documented the proceedings and plied a frozen Ciara with hot choclate!

there is a little bit of symbolism involved in the shot . Ciara is sitting on 4 bales of turf a symbol of her irish home.The modern dress represents her confidence. Whilst her bare feet represent the dispossessed who first settled in australia over 220 years ago.

The shots used a snooted bowens esperit head with a travel pak battery. I was so impressed with this that I bought one the next day click here for the irish suppliers details.and yes i will be using it again soon, so watch this space for more location portraits!!

both shots where exposed @f8 for 3 seconds with a snooted esperit 500 at full power

All my thanks to Ciara for being a great person to work with!!.

click the title above for the full set of pictures plus documentation shots

the first two shots in the gallery are the two final shots from this project

Again please comment on this post as it will help to shape future entries

2010-01-22T17:26:00.011Z

a metaphor for our times

Early last year i was walking down O'Connell street,Dublin.And I passed a building I had passed Hundreds of times in my life.It was the former main bookings office of Aer lingus,

the Irish national airline.This was in its day a beautiful example of Irishness, both in its look and in its ambiance.My lasting memory of this office the warmh which exuded from the people who confidently greeted you from behind the the service counter,as they tapped away on their green screens to bring you up to the minute information on pricing and availability of flights out of and into all of the main capitals of Europe and the U.S.A.

The entrance to the this building was beautifully crafted in polished steel and glass,very clean modernist lines,with a large double glass door which effortlessly swung open with the timidest of pushes.

The crowning feature of this design had to be the winged handles.

You could say this doorway was in itself a beautiful framing of all of Irelands aspirations as it prepared to fly as close to the sun as any other nation could manage.

Anyhow, this all changed when in the nineties aer lingus suspended selling seats from this, and all offices and retired to web based sales.

the Office closed and was never reoccupied.

So back to the day of my stroll.

In the past I had mused over the possible meanings of the wings being bound in chains but never ever read it as a curse.So on this snowy sunday morning in february 2009 I was shocked to pass the building to find,that not only had the chains been taken from the doors, but the wings too had been removed!Two months later the whole building was gone, around about the same time the country almost ground to a halt as the huge bubble that was the irish property development industry imploded on itself!

Personally I feel saddened that such apretty piece of our past can go almost unlamented.

I can only draw sollace from the fact that on two of the hundreds of times that i passed this way I was carrying a camera to document the passing of this little treasure!

for a gallery of both images click here

Please comment on this post as it will help shape the content in the future postings

a walk in the park

2010-01-13T23:06:00.006Z

For the last two years or so I have tried to get out and walk locally.

during the summer months nothing pleases me more then waking early and setting off for a

stroll in through local streets and parks in the morning.

An hour spent in this way is a great boost to the day,and and fills me with the stuff which helps me cope with anything that the day can throw at me!

I always take my camera, standard lens,and a wide angle, with me on such walks.

I enjoy keeping my eye out for little things, In fact it would seem that most of my photographic endeavors are in or around little things.Not huge sweeping landscapes but trees,seats,leaves,bottles,keyholes,small artworks,etc.

early this year like many other european cities(and countries) we had a big fall of snow and I went out for 3 walks during this time.

click on the title above for a small gallery of pictures from these walks

the work was shot on a hasselblad h3d5o camera and the converts where done using nik softwares silver efex pro software for more on this see the previous entry on converting digital colour to monochrome

photographing your breakfast is not a sign of mental illness

2010-01-06T15:12:00.023Z

So here we go into 2010 and enthusiasm is high"It's going to be a great year for me and nothing will stop that"

Is this the normal aspirational response to the start of the next chapter,after the contemplative christmas break and a pretty bad business year?

Perhaps!

But hey!lets make this one a year of action,with projects taken off the high shelf, restarted,and completed.

In fact I have 3 such projects to revive.when I took the books down from that high shelve I was suprised to see that i started one as far back as 2006(also in january)

All of these projects are film based

The first project is portraits of people who live in my block of houses.

Its on 10x8 inch fuji provia.

it has mutated from an aspiration to photograph the entire population of my street in their respective houses(the block is more achievable number(12houses,36 people)).

The second is a project which will run for a long time and i have added to this last summer.

Its a hommage to polaroids type 55 film so far i have made 6 or 7 frames all good.

When polaroid announced they were ceasing production a lot of ebay activity got me 200 sheets at over inflated prices and i also aquired a flextight scanner specifically for this reason.

The third project I started in june 2008 shooting a shot a day,from normal life, on an old graflex 4x5 reflex camera gifted to me by photographer Brendan Doyle .I stopped after21 days.there was a combination some personal stuff ,and the realisation the the graflex could not do everything i wanted it to do (due to max app of f5.6 and limited shutter speeds.)

just before i stopped i noted that future shots should be made on the graflex only when it could cope with the conditions.

so i will endeavor to restart this one,perhaps in a few weeks time and shoot it on the graflex super d or a linhof technika

SO this year i must keep my word and make more personal photographs,both film and digital.

And as I do so I must share them here especially the 3 projects mentioned above (for starters)

As photographers we must work,work,work,to capture all the vitality of life no matter how mundane it might seem.Once captured on your hard disc or film the passage of time adds greatly to the potency and importance of all your photographic endeavors!

So when you rise tomorrow morning please remember it is not a sign of a mental problem if you photograph your breakfast!

The more things you photograph the more you will learn about yourself,your subjects,your equiptment,your LIFE!!!!!