Deserted Village: Achill Island
Jun, 2016Views
584
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Awards
People's Choice in All things Ireland Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
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Behind The Lens
Location
This is on Achill Island, in Co. Mayo, Ireland. It is the remains of a village abandoned now, aside from a few sheep. More info is available at http://www.visitachill.com/en/desertedvillage.html A wonderful area for photographers!Time
This was about 1:00 in the afternoon on a blustery dayLighting
The brooding dramatic skies create soft light and add to the image.Equipment
Canon 5DMKIII, 24-105mm f/4L @ 24mm, tripod mountedInspiration
I wanted to capture a sense of time lost, of a people that had left, and a sense of curiosity of where they ended up. Achill Island provided one of the deepest emotional experiences for me in Ireland - a sense of generations that come and go, and leave traces behind. These people lived, loved, played, cried and passed on, and now little remains but the wondering of how their stories ended. A beautiful and haunting spot. We had been to the museum at Achill and had read the backstory. Incredibly moving to walk in places abandoned long ago with now just a few sheep and the wind where a village once stood. Gives you a sense of the passing of time and generations. Of all the things in Ireland, that sense of multiple generations going back hundreds of years really struck me. I think many Americans are comparatively lacking in that sense of connected-ness to land and generationsEditing
HDR using Photomatix ProIn my camera bag
Canon 5dMkIII, Canon lenses: usually an old 35-350 mounted on the body, 24-105 as 2nd favorite, 16-35 f2, fast 50, pancake 40, 580EXII flashFeedback
Take the time to absorb the mood - then try for the image.
