Sunset in Dublin

There’s just something about Dublin.  Maybe it’s the Irish people - they are so kind, friendly, and happy.  Whenever I am there, it’s quite enjoyable to talk to a taxi cab driver and learn a bit more about this wonderful city and its inhabitants.

Here’s something I learned last week while in Dublin - they can drink a lot!  I didn’t learn that firsthand, to be clear.  :-)  The cabbie (a grandmother!) asked me if I was going to get a few pints of Guinness, and I said “yeah, maybe a couple”.  She told me that when guys go out for a night there, they may drink 10-12 pints in a night.  Wow!  I think I would be sick.  These are good, hardy people, I guess!  Or they get a lot of practice!

This is sunset from last Thursday evening in Dublin, looking up the River Liffey from the end of their old town entertainment district, known as Temple Bar.  What a great city.  You should make it a point to visit.  And come thirsty!

Lake LBJ sunset

I just want to thank everyone that visited my blog last week and especially those that took the time to leave comments on my pictures.  I really appreciate that.  I haven’t had a chance to return the favor yet because I was traveling overseas last week.

I spent the week in London and Dublin – two towns that I really enjoy visiting - and both were fantastic.  Although I got rained on a bit in both places, I still came away with what I believe will be some beautiful shots, and of course I had some wonderful experiences, saw some fabulous sites, and even had the good fortune to meet up with some great photographers in London.  It was a great week!

In the meantime, please enjoy this sunset from Lake LBJ in the Texas Hill Country.  Thanks for stopping by!

The Parthenon, Nashville

This is the Parthenon in Nashville, TN which is a full-size replica of the original Parthenon in Athens, Greece.  The first time I saw this, I couldn’t really believe it.  It’s just not what you expect to find in a town like Nashville, I guess.  But it is a beautiful structure and it sits in a beautiful park, so who’s complaining?

I caught it on a stormy day with all those awesome, dramatic clouds behind it.  Many people dislike when it rains or storms because it can mess up your photo hunt.  That’s true, but I always find that the benefit is that you get interesting skies, and that’s normally worth it!

Antique gas pumps

I swear, some things are just MADE for HDR photography.  Old rusty stuff is one of those things – it’s just perfect for HDR.  All the nice little details come out through the processing, and when you get some radical clouds in the background, it makes you all happy inside.  Well ok, it makes ME all happy inside.

These lovely antique gas pumps sit in front of the City Garage in Salado, TX which is a great place to shoot.  Whenever I drive to Dallas, I make it a point to stop here.  It’s a small spot so it’s a quick stop, but it’s always rewarding.  Normally I shoot toward the little building which is covered in old gas signs (find all my pics of this place here).  It’s got character.

But on this day I was just loving those clouds so I turned around to shoot them behind the gas pumps.  And then a red truck drove by…

Millennium sunset

Do you ever feel like you will never get your photos processed and shared?  Yeah, me neither :-) .

I was going through one of my old London photo batches taken over a year ago and thought I would give this shot a go.  It was sunset and I was shooting along the River Thames with Mike Murphy and John Esslinger - both locals and great photogs you should follow.  We were next to the Tate Modern, shooting here at the Millennium Bridge.  As you can see the sunset was pretty awesome.

For some reason though, I never got around to processing this pic, and now that I have, I rather like it.  It’s just that I have so many and I try to mix things up for you all, so you don’t get burned out on one place.  (Ok, so I don’t get burned out on one place.)

Anyways – here it is.  Better late than never, right? (And yes, I realize this photo isn’t perfectly centered/aligned.  Call that “artistic license”.  Or maybe the bridge is skewed a little.)