photography tip

Cork City Gaol: inside prison walls

I had many plans for the Halloween blog edition, but none of them worked out because of the rainy weather. So I figured that it would be better if I moved under a roof for my photo shoots, and a prison roof would do just fine.

Cork City Gaol housed prisoners for almost a century and was closed in 1924. This is an image of a cell. Like to try? You may get inside and close the door to experience what life might have been like for a prisoner in the Gaol. An Irish writer Frank O’Connor was one of those who served time in the Gaol for their part in the Irish Civil War, and he later wrote that the cots and blankets were crawling with lice.

There is a cell with some original graffiti left by prisoners who served time here in the 1920’s. I took a picture of that wall and when I came home and started processing it, something extraordinary happened: the ghosts of the prisoners and staff revealed themselves in my images…

This is Mary Sullivan. She looks like a bloodthirsty murderer, but in fact she is a seamstress and in 1865 she received a seven year sentence following her eighth conviction for the theft of cloth. She is just after being deloused according to prison regulations, and ready to see the Governor John Barry Murphy.

This is Thomas Raile. He was convicted of stealing some books. Serving his time in a solitary confinement, he got an opportunity to contemplate his wrongdoings and has turned to religion for guidance. Rev. Nelligan is counselling him, but it won’t help much: on release from prison Thomas won’t be able to get good references and his life will speedily go down the drain.

This young woman is Mary Ann Twohig, a 16 year old mother. She was heavily pregnant when she stole a cloth cap and some kitchen utensils with an intention to pawn them and get some money. Due to the pregnancy she was sentenced to only two months, without hard labor.

This is Dr. Beamish. A warder is walking him to the cell where he is going to attend a sick prisoner. Overworked and underpaid, Dr. Beamish has spent many years carrying his medical bag from cell to cell and fighting all sorts of infections and injuries.

Two off-duty warders are playing cards. In this room lives a warder and his whole family.

This is a model of the Gaol. The wings are currently in derelict condition and closed to public. You might be interested to know what is that small building at the back. Well, there were always prisoners and prisoners. The small building is the Debtor’s Gaol. Some well off people fail to pay their debts and are sent to prison, but not to the main Gaol. They settle with their own furniture and clothes in the Debtor’s Gaol, and even have their food delivered to them.

There is a lot more to see, but to be honest, the wax figures give me the creeps… And it doesn’t matter either they are of the prisoners of the Gaol, or any other person…

And here is an appropriate piece of music – Johnny Cash – Folsom Prison Blues!

Happy Halloween to all!

Cork City Gaol.

Photography tip of the day: Do a research before you buy a camera or any photography equipment, including the batteries you are going to use for your Speedlite. Everything.

Have a great Halloween weekend!

Our times of triumph

When I was very young, I used to read a lot. Some episodes impressed me so much that I replayed them in a real life. As we all know, life and fiction are not the same, so I used to get in trouble on many occasions.

In that particular book, two teenagers, a boy and a girl, had climbed onto the roof, and lying on their back, watching the passing clouds dreamed about the future. The scene looked so appealing that I immediately jumped to action.

Next to my Grandma’s cowshed there was a small annex used for storing a week supply of hay bales; adjacent to it, under the same roof was a chicken coop. My plan was to climb a stonewall, then get up on the annex roof and from there climb on the cowshed roof, high enough to set up the scene as desired.

And I got there, laid out a blanket I brought with me, and sat staring into the sky. My future did not send me any hints. The roof was hard and rough, but I lied down hoping it might help, as per book. Still, my mind was blank. The clouds just passed by, I had spotted a few animal-like shapes, but it was clear that there was no excitement in it, my back hurt and I was getting bored and annoyed. I think it was the day when I learned something about a good literature and a fake literature. On my way down, the roof caved in and I fell in the hay – lucky me. My Grandma was so happy that I didn’t kill myself that she baked a plate of biscuits for me, and we decided to keep the story in secret, for our mutual good.

Later, in my bed, I was dreaming about the future. In my dreams I was a famous artist, and all the children books were illustrated by me. One scene followed another, all in beautiful, rich colors; people and animals did look like people and animals; there were sun spells, fresh breeze, pouring rain and flowing water, and it was all real. I made it live; I was that magician.

Very often we learn the life’s lessons in a hard way. Very often we get slapped in the face, and our efforts don’t impress anybody. But there are the times when we feel like all the spotlights are turned on us, and all the praises and admiration in the world are expressed for us, and these are our moments of triumph even if no one else knows that.

Pictures of my Grandparents and me. In the last image (1914) my Grandma is the one who is standing. The baby is my Great Granddad’s daughter from his second marriage. I named my daughter after her.

Photography tip of the day: For Nikon users starting out 🙂

http://photographylife.com/which-nikon-prime-lens-to-buy-first

www.inesemjphotography Have a great day!

I left my heart in Barcelona

A painter in this photograph is Pablo Picasso. During his Blue period he divided his time between Paris and Barcelona. Picasso museum Museu Picasso in Barcelona is a must-see: there is no other place with such a vast collection of his art, especially his early works.

Picasso didn’t like Gaudí. Strange, because his art was definitely influenced by Gaudí‘s organic geometry. I think that he was just jealous.

Almost everything in Barcelona is “Gaudí“, anyway.

Can you imagine any other place where an architect like Gaudí would get a job in the end of the 19th century? It is why I love Barcelona, for that spirit!

I visited Barcelona shortly before The Prisoner of Heaven English edition was published in 2012 – a book by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, another of my favorite Barcelonians. His books are magic and intelligent, and they are about Barcelona, of course :). If you somehow missed them, The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series will win your heart (The Angel’s Game, The Shadow of the Wind, The Prisoner of Heaven).

Speaking of magic. The Magic Fountain of Montjuïc was constructed in 1929. The light and music performances take place on Fridays and Saturdays every half an hour between 7:00 and 8:30pm ( October to April), and Thursday through Sunday every half an hour between 9:00 and 11:00pm (May to September).

Here is a video from YouTube for you to enjoy 🙂 Watch to the end – it is getting more and more dramatic . 🙂

Some images from Gothic Quarter.

I walked this street to get to the Park Güell.

Plaça de Catalunya.

Vallcarca.

Don’t know what that means – either good or bad 🙂

Street performers across from Hard Rock Cafe.

Last, but not the least, Palau de la Musica Catalana. No photography permitted inside.

Hope you plan a visit to Barcelona. 🙂 Thank you for your comments on my previous post!

Photography tip of the day: Keep your equipment clean. Here is an advice how to clean your camera sensor. If you are afraid of doing it yourself, ask in the shop and they will know. Sensor and lenses have to be cleaned regularly.

http://youtu.be/pesZUj78S6s

Have a great weekend!

Antoni Gaudí – a genius dreamer

When you are moving to another house you cannot help thinking about windows, stairs, IKEA and useful space. I have been doing that for a month, but let’s think about something beyond the usual. Let’s think about Antonio Gaudí – the most amazing mind ever born.

You know I love to share music to illustrate my posts. There is a 37 minutes long project of Alan Parson who is a legend himself. If you want to know more about Antonio Gaudí of Barcelona please find time to watch this video project from 1987: Gaudí.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cfy9KGK5pd8&w=560&h=315%5D

I took a few images of Gaudí’s strikingly beautiful work – Casa Batlló (1904–1906), a building designed to comfortably live in – and the family did live there until the 1950s.

The image from the beginning of the 20th century

Another stunning building with the fleshy, organic look, Casa Milà (1906-1910)

It is sad that many Gaudí‘s projects were turned down because the authorities didn’t like them or abandoned because there was no financial support. Casa Mila was a target for critics for decades and stayed neglected until the 1980s when it was finally restored. Gaudí was too ahead of his time. He designed three dimensional shapes a century before computer imaging.

Palau Güell (1885-1889), Gaudí‘s project for his friend and patron Eusebi Güell. He was the only man who supported Gaudí all his life and understood his vision and a courage of fanatic.

In 1900 Güell and Gaudí started their unsuccessful housing project – Parc Güell. They envisioned a community living in a beautiful natural park, but it didn’t work out the way it was intended. Their project was appreciated a century later: nice to see that architecture has progressed beyond “less is more”, finally.

The images of the exquisite furniture are taken in Gaudí‘s home in the park grounds where he lived until his death in 1926. His bedroom has rather ascetic look though.

There are some more images from the park – an archway designed by Gaudí – a place for beautiful walks and numerous performers.

The archway designed to be a part of the nature, and even the roots of the trees are growing through it.

Park Güell looks like it came from a fairy tale. It is so busy that it is difficult to get close to it’s famous sculptures and other features to take a photograph.

The work of Gaudí‘s life is La Sagrada Familia. “My client is not in a hurry” he is said to have remarked, and it has been prophetic since the work is already going on for 130 years.

There is an incredibly beautiful blog by Indah Susanti, and recently she posted series of exquisite images of Sagrada Familia sculptures. I share a few of my images from inside the basilica. Unfortunately there was no access to the central area of the main nave that day and I was not able to get that iconic image of the ceiling, but I was happy to see the play of light high above, and sit there overwhelmed by unspeakable quiet joy.

Not being a specialist in Architecture I cannot tell what is exactly work of Gaudí and what was added by other architects during almost 100 years since his death, but I am sure that no architect has come close to matching his genius. Completion of the work is expected by 2026.

Gaudí was buried in the crypt of La Sagrada Familia, his unfinished masterpiece. They say that half of Barcelona was gathered there.

A few more images from Barcelona in my next blog 🙂

Photography tip of the day: When you take pictures in the street watch your environment. To get extra light you can position yourself to have a white or light painted wall across from where you shoot so that it reflects light on your subject. In the bright light use an open shadow where it is possible.

Have a wonderful week!

Patterns

Living by the river I took pictures of birds and plants. Living in town I walk the streets and find patterns.

While looking for the patterns my mind somehow shifted to the human behavioral patterns we come across every day, and I thought about constructive and destructive patterns in human interactions. Not being a specialist in human ethology I was simply wondering ” why the hell they keep doing that?”

I love the definition of Culture as a range of learned behavior patterns. I am a “nurture” person all the way, and a believer in education. Not because humans can be taught, but rather because they can learn. If they choose so. No one can change a person, as we well know, but every person can shape themselves, re-build, re-configure – call it the way you like. Every person can learn the patterns and beyond. They can break the patterns they have outgrown.

A couple of days ago a lady I know said that we can change the others with our love. I disagreed. There are loving parents who love all their children equally, but somehow one of them ends up in jail. What is it? Following bad patterns?