 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
John Eagle's Blog March My new book on Irish lighthouses published by Collins Press
Picture shows my faithful white collie Quisha on the pad at Fanad due for release in May can now be pre-ordered from my Lighthouse dedicated website www.JohnEaglePhotography.com The price will be €19.99 euros but you can order it direct from me for 4 euros discount at €15.99 (plus P&P) and I will sign and dedicate it for you if you wish
Went to the Official Premiere of the new Neil Jordan movie 'Ondine' starring Colin Farrell last night at the Beara Community School in Castletownbere. (A picture I took of Colin with Neil above) It was great to see all the local places I know so well up on the big screen and also catching glimpses of myself. I can be seen walking past a door and into MacCarthy's Bar as part of a funeral group. Colin was very nice to me, we chatted about photography and lighthouses and he was surprised to find my book in Kenmare. A great little movie, I thoroughly enjoyed it and I hope it does well. February 2010
The series 24 is back on our screens, showing on Sky One. As usual there is corruption in the CTU Office, and there is a nuclear bomb gone astray, (how many gone astray til date? I lost count), and the head of CTU doesn't trust the actions of his agents and Jack doesn't want to be a CTU officer, but as usual he is persuaded to be one. The scriptwriters don't care much to stray from the plots of previous Days, they even have a President to assinate again. One wonders if they will ever match the tense keep watching thrill of those first twelve hours of the very first Day when Jack's daughter and wife were held hostage. Eversince then it has been its been pretty much the same plot only different characters. Still I suppose its a way to get thru a Sunday evening. January 2010
Took the above shot from Beara looking at the Kerry hills, (Reeks) 1st week on the New Decade December 2009 After watching the Top Gear drive from Bolivia to Chile I start to wonder how much is staged for the television cameras. I bet they started off where they ended, thinking to themselves that big slope would be fun to drive down, 'yeah but what shall we put before it?' That bit where Clarkson is driving close to the edge on the road to La Paz you will note he is on the left side of the road whereas in every other shot all the traffic is on the right. Why would he be driving on the wrong side of the road? I have just finished reading the proofs for my new book ‘Ireland’s Lighthouses – a photo essay by John Eagle’ which will hopefully appear in May 2010, published by the Collins Press I am realy excited as they are doing a wonderful job of it for me November 2009
It's that time of the year again. My Christmas card is available direct from me with envelope: 10 for €8 +p&p F1, lived up to its reputation in Abu Dabi as being a procession parade rather than a motor race. However the race track was so beautiful I spent most of the time looking at it and the changing colours. October 2009
I have been painting a couple of new oils
Went up to Clare Island 3rd week of October as I needed to get better pictures of the lighthouse for my new book. To view pictures please click here
I flew to America Sept 29th, Dublin to Orlando. My first visit to the United States since my Hawaii trip in 1984. I spent a couple of days in Vero Beach, Florida, with friends before flying with them to New Mexico for the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque which was fun but what really excited me was a couple of drives into the hills. First into the foothills of Sandia Peak, and then to an area west of Santa Fe which I believe is called Jemez where I saw colour that totally blew me away. Later in my trip I went to New England, visiting Vermont and a small part of New Hampshire. What I can't figure out is why can America, heavily criticised for carbon emissions, can get by using 110 power supply but here in Ireland we need more than double that at 240. Wheat problem: Before I went away I decided to have a bowl of soup and some toast. The result, after only a few minutes, was prickly skin and a red raw throat. So I told my friends in America I could not eat wheat, but got envious when they started eating the toasted burgers at Starbucks. So taking a huge risk I had some of the toast over there with no problems whatsoever. I had bread un-toasted, I had burger buns, all the things that would not make me ill. On the jet going over to Orlando they gave me a scone for tea and I got a bad reaction from it, on the jet coming back I checked the bun they gave me for breakfast and found it came from Chicago and I got no side effects whatsoever. What in God's name do they put in the wheat here in Ireland?? In case you suffer as well and need a cure from the effects of Irish wheat, like itchy skin and sore throat... I find by eating an unsweetened pink grafefruit the irritation goes away. September 2009 After months of conveyor belt rain we have been blessed with an Indian Summer here in Beara and I have been taking full advantage of the fine weather by escaping into the mountains to take some shots. The grass is now a gorgeous golden bronze.
So here are some shots if you would like to have a look August 2009 The Tudors series 3 is coming to BBC, having watched the edited highlights on TV3 earlier this year I am keen to see each episode in full. Particularly the last one which was shown the night of a torrential downpour meaning transmission was largely interrupted. I have treated myself to a record player so I can listen to some of my old vinyl favourites. Many of old vinyls haven't really stood the test of time, Klaatu for example sounded awful when I played it again. However a real gem from my archives is the George Harrison produced album 'The Place I Love' by Splinter
Try doing a search for Splinter on Ebay and you get all manner of results that have nothing to do with this group. They seem lost in the void of time, and yet they were really good with a great hit Costafine Town. The music seems to be owned by The George Harrison Estate, so maybe his lovely wife Olivia would allow this fine album (with her much missed husband playing so fabulously with Bill Elliot and Bob Purvis) to be released on cd for the masses to enjoy once more It was called Extreme Lighthousing by some, tearing across the waves to see lighthouses up close and personal. I thought it wouldn't be possible to show people the Bull Rock lighthouse when the Dursey cable car broke down. (Didn't expect that it would take all year to replace a cable!!) However it presented me with a challenge on how to get people to see the Bull Rock.... Speedboat was the answer and what fun it was. Find out more on my lighthouse website click here July 2009 Water Flow
A new photographic exhibition ....................................................................... I wish Ubisoft would get its act together and sort out the disconnection problems of its online gaming. I thought it was just me being cut off but it appears to be everyone suffering because the Montreal based software company can't get it Far Cry 2 right Special Offer A2 canvas print (24x16 inches) €100 plus postage A3 canvas print (16x12) €80 plus postage Available on any picture on my website. No need for a frame, just hang it on the wall. Makes for an affordable present for that special occasion that will be greatly appreciated
On July 8th my show 'In Search of Little People' opens in Dungarvan at The Old Market Arts Centre.
I drove over there in June, taking 20 new oil paintings. You can preview them online in Gallery 3 June 2009 I have just added some new aerial views of the western end of the Iveragh Peninsula. To view please click here Realised an ambition June 3rd when I flew out to the Blasket Islands to re-take a picture of Inishtearaght that had been annoying me since I took it back in 1996.
The picture above was the shot in question, cut off on the right hand side. There was also an orange reflection problem as my survival suit was visible in the helicopter door. So I hoped that one day I would be able to do something about it and June 3rd my dream came true when I flew out there with the very kind assistance of The Commissioners of Irish Lights and Irish Helicopters pilot Cap. Peter Hodges. See picture below.
Click here to see more shots May A fan of The Beatles all my life, the only thing that kept me sane after the droll of boarding school life, I have collected most of their albums and films. The only one missing was Let It Be. I kept hoping it would appear tv. I just wanted to see it again after all these years. Finally gave up waiting this month and bought it off a guy in Australia. It was great to see the movie again, see the 4 rehearsing the songs and getting up on the roof only to have the law step in and shut them up. The dvd has its limitations in sound quality, but the picture has transferred well from video. Apple must have restored the video themselves because the parts of it that appeared on the Beatles Anthology looked great. They should release Let It Be properly on dvd. I have been photographed by reknowned award winning photographer Peter Zoeller. He called to my house in April and took several shots of me in my studio. I am very happy with the pictures he took especially this one:
Portrait by Peter Zoeller I love the new Kenmare Art Gallery website. I am well represented there One of the things people ask me is, 'are you still painting?' like I would think of giving it up for some weird reason. I have probably been more productive in these past few months than at any time for a long while. I have a show coming up at the Old Market Arts Centre in Dungarvan opening July 8th so I am hardly going to be caught napping. Here is one of my new oils, painted during the past week.
The Way through the Forest, just follow the path and enjoy the journey Went over to the INEC in Killarney 16th and 17th to watch the World Series of Snooker. Great to see this level of the game being played in the South and at a venue close to where I live. Also marvellous to see 4 young amateurs being given the chance to play the best players in the professional game. Tony Moore from Cork dazzled against Ken Doherty, as did Jason Devaney from Ballina against Jimmy White and is surely a player to watch out for. I decided before I went over there that I was going for the snooker and not to be a photographer so I only took my little compact Canon with me. So here are some of my pictures. I am wondering how many of the 25,000,000 viewers wondered who that was waving behind the compere. I hope I didn't blot my copybook too much, but we were all urged to give the World a great Kerry welcome....at least that's my excuse.
Yes, that's me behind compere Sean giving a wave
John Higgins, Jimmy White, Sean Murphy and Ken Doherty waiting to sign autographs after the event
For a shot like this I wish I had taken along my EOS 5D mk 2. Sean Murphy lifting his cup, Jimmy White to the right
The Rally of the Lakes came round Kilcatherine today, May 3rd, the usual loud exhaust pipes etc. Also five helicopters showed up, in fact at one time there were 6 in the area. The picture below shows 5 of them sitting in a field just west of Kilcatherine graveyard, and you thought there was a recession in Ireland!
Canon EOS 5D mk2 + EF 200 2.8 April Wheat For many years I suffered from ingrowing eye lashes, and would have trouble getting them pulled out. Many places, like opticians refused to do it in case their staff damaged my eyes. I usually had two, maybe three to be yanked out. I tried setting up my own series of mirrors and a pair of tweezers in a bid to do it myself. Nigh impossible. I got an appointment to go to Cork University Hospital, where the specialist told me in no uncertain terms that I did not have ingrowing eye lashes. I tried to argue, telling her I had had them pulled out on a regular basis. No point arguing with those people, all I was doing was running up a higher car park bill by staying at the hospital longer than I needed. So I wondered what on earth was wrong with me, and tried asking around. I had known for awhile that my body dumps sugar through my eye lids, a not very nice experience but my previous GP had the same problem. So I wondered if this might be adding to my problem and made stringent efforts to avoid anything sweet. The problem lessened but didn't go away. All this while I had eye tests and amazed doctors by reading the bottom line of the test chart. Then one day it hit me, yeah like straight between the eyes! lol. I had gone onto Ryvita to help lose weight, as friends had told me how much wheat adds to being heavy. I gave up eating bread, brown and white and within a couple of weeks my figure slimmed down. But not only did the figure slim down, my eyes became a whole lot better and for the first time in decades I felt my eyes watering again, meaning I no longer needed to use eye drops from bottles. I now knew for certain wheat causes the problem because I was in the local pub for a do and they brought round freshly cut sandwiches and within half an hour of eating them my eye lids became really sore again. Every now and then I treat myself to a slice of bread, but only to regret it. To be honest I don't think the yeast is helping much either, might be why I have trouble drinking things like Guinness and wine. So without bread and sweets my eyes are feeling a whole lot better, and the sensation of them watering up now and then is an experience I am enjoying all over again. Ryvita can be nice too, especially the variety with pumpkin seeds. I will be releasing two new lighthouse postcards towards the end of this month, 2F and 3C. This is with the very kind assistance of Sue Hill at The Herons Cove in Goleen and will have the Mizen sponsorship on them. To see both click here 2 F is below
Fastnet 2 F What I like about this one over the others is you can see the rocks on the right of the main one and it also has a boat in the background Rang a friend at the weekend and found that like me she no longer watches the news, or reads newspapers. So I emailed a few more friends to ask them if they were doing the same. 'Oh, for months,' was the general reaction. If there are so many of us that are bored to tears with the way tv and newspapers doll out the economic drivial all the time why don't they cotton onto it and change to something we want to read and hear about? The day after the Irish Budget on April 7th I bought a newspaper to see what the Budget was all about and it made fairly depressing reading. Afterwards I asked myself, 'do I really need to read this shit?' The answer is most definitely NO. So apart from getting the Irish Times on Saturday, as I always do, (mainly for the excellant Magazine) I have not watched or read any news and my life is so much better. I no longer feel cast down thinking my life is going down the drain. Life has improved dramatically. So if you are a journalist or a newspaper baron, please take note of our reaction and quit reporting on the dull things like this so called economic downturn.
Here's a new oil from me. As the upheaval of life gets greater so does the size of the waves. These ones I am really pleased with, as I have got them actually flowing or at least they appear to. More of my seascapes can be viewed in Gallery 2 It has been said to me that people would not be out in such waves, but the point here is they were not rough waves when they started out fishing. The Beara Camera Club, which I founded in 1991, holds exhibitions in Castletownbere's library window each month. A topic is selected and one can either choose a picture from file or go about taking a picture especially for each show. This month it is Hats and Shoes, and this got me thinking for a long while what I would do. It got the old grey matter churning in my head and I found it great fun to put something together. Below is a picture I concocted with help from Sharon Crowley in her boutique The Dressing Room, Castletownbere's leading ladies fashion wear shop.
Three Castle Head Took some aerial photos of Three Castle Head on April 2nd 2009. This is a fascinating place, castle by a lake, cliffs and an ancient atmosphere. Click here to see my pictures. Gorse
There's a great flowering of gorse this year on the Beara Peninsula. Here we have some of it near Lauragh with Knockatee Mountain in the background Please note, this enlarger below is no longer for sale
Got the great news that my show is going ahead this Summer at the Old Market House Arts Centre in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford from July 8th
I have been painting a lot over the Winter months and my new work can be seen in Gallery 3 I have been re-taking some of my lighthouse shots. Got a great flight April 2nd to the Fastnet,
then back via the Mizen, Sheeps Head and Ardnakinna.
The new helicopter is fabulous, a Eurocopter 135, ever so comfortable and smooth to fly in. You can see samples of my new shots by clicking here One of the things I fail to understand is the purpose of the donkety dong clock in 24 starring Keifer Sutherland. It makes a fierce racket, wakes me up from time to time. Ah maybe that's what its for, to keep us awake as we fall asleep during the padding bits like when the President is getting all lovey dovey with her long lost daughter. Or maybe the clock is there to warn us there is yet another tedious Sky 1 advert break coming up and its time to fast forward on the Sky + Jack tells us at the start of each episode that events occur in real time, not sure what this means either as there is absolutely no way this can be true. One minute the characters are here and before you know it they are all the way across town. They have no trouble getting through the traffic jams, maybe they don't have such things in America lol. When it was shown on BBC then it was in real time, but ever since it went to advert crazy Sky 1, where you only get 38 minutes of each 1 hour long episode, things have gone ape shit. Great to see Formula 1 has moved to BBC, now we can watch it without being interupted to be told what baby wipes and tampons we need to get thru our lives!
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|