Kinda.

Disclaimer: Traipsing around any kind of ruined structure can be incredibly dangerous unless you keep an eye on precisely what you’re doing.

Anyways.

Some young vagabond(s) had forced open the door of Doughiska Castle in Merlin Park forest, which for me turned it into a veritable wonderland. The keep is wonderfully intact, to the point that I was able to make it up onto the roof of the castle, explore most of the rooms and cells and even go down into the cellar. A manifest lack of torch and flashgun, combined with a very short time limit put me off getting more photos, although I really want to get back into the castle before I leave on Wednesday.

Mayhap I can bug out of work early on Sunday and make a beeline for this magnificent building.

All I really got from the castle were some excellent infrared photos:

Doughiska Castle

The Keep

Doughiska closeup

Looking down

Untitled

In amongst my wanderings and doing of the past week, I had another run-in with the world’s most awesome alley cat:

Tough Cat +1

Incoming terror

She just wants love…

I really love this cat. She’s beautiful, friendly, and very playful to boot.

/lame_blurb

I was in connemara with Mike on Tuesday morning, although honestly most of my photos outside of the IR I took at Lough Corrib were muck. We met Katie in Spiddeal on the way back for lunch and I got sun burnt.

/lame_blurb_2

The vanishingly rare Pink Tree

One alone

I paid a visit to them on Saturday evening, but the light was shit, frankly. Way too bright and flat for any kind of interesting shooting. If we get a dull overcast or bright sunny light tomorrow I’ll go back and shoot more.

The works were honestly fascinating for all of that, with many interesting old and battered things to photograph and gawk over. There was a row of wonderful old and rusted tanks to one side of the building, that made for great photos:

Not the first thing you expect to find..

Just a bit rusty…

There’s more on my Flickr.

16 days. I can’t believe it. It’s not just that 210 days of waiting will be over. It’s also a whole new dammed chapter in my life and I’m in turns terrified and excited by it. Will I turn out like dad? Will I go above and beyond?

I tell myself there’s no point in worrying, that I’ve made my choices and I will see them through to the end. They worrying part of me scoffs and raises another point. I smack myself in the head at this point.

Ah well. Want all, lose all.

I’m going to admit that I’ve been on an absolute forest binge lately; the spot meter on the 30D really opens up forest/foliage shots, which usually involve complex light and shadow. I’ve made several trips to the People’s Park behind work as there’s a beautiful copse with thinly spread trees and long grass:

IMG_4874

There’s a sun here somewhere

And then, Renville:

IMG_5776

IMG_5805