URBAN PHOTOGRAPHS

Urban Expression And Depression By Infomatique

university campus

LOWER GRANGEGORMAN 11 JANUARY 2022

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LOWER GRANGEGORMAN 11 JANUARY 2022

Last year the permanent closure to through traffic on the main road which bisects the new TU Dublin campus at Grangegorman, to improve cyclist and pedestrian safety, was endorsed by city councillors. Traffic surveys conducted in recent years found a “high volume of motor cars travel through this residential area” despite 60 per cent of households in the Grangegorman area not having access to a car and a majority either walking or cycling for their own commute.

Because of Covid-19 my life has been on hold for about two years. In July 2019 I ordered a Sony A7RIV but I did not get it until late in the year and unfortunately because of lock-downs here in Ireland I had little opportunity to use it. Anyway, as I am now planning and scheduling my 2022 programme I decided to gain some some experience using the A7RIV and when I switched on I discovered that it had reverted to factory settings which was annoying as I had spent days customising the settings.

Since March 2020 I have depended on my iPhone and had convinced myself that the results were every bit as good however while the images are impressive the experience is not that great compared to using a proper high quality camera. However, if you have decided that your are interested in photography I certainly would recommend an iPhone [or equivalent] rather than a point-or-shoot camera. I suspect that I will not purchase a Sony A7RV [assuming that one is launched in 2022] but I am almost certain that I will get an iPhone 14 Pro Max in 2022

UNIVERSITY OF LIMERICK CAMPUS ACROSS THE SHANNON IN COUNTY CLARE

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UNIVERSITY OF LIMERICK CAMPUS ACROSS THE SHANNON IN COUNTY CLARE

While the conditions were perfect I was not really happy with the quality of my photographs and I do not know what is causing my problem. My older Sony A7RIII is currently out performing my Sony A7RIV.

I must admit that it never occurred to me that as the Shannon River flows through the university campus that one section is in County Limerick while the other section is in County Clare.

The on-campus University Arena is Ireland’s largest indoor sports complex. Open since 2002, it consists of the National 50m Swimming Pool. The arena’s 3,600-square-metre (4,300 sq yd) Indoor Sports Hall has four wooden courts for a variety of sports, a sprint track, an international 400m athletics track and a 200m, three-lane, suspended jogging track. The facility has a cardiovascular and strength-training centre, a weight-training room, team rooms, an aerobics studio and classrooms. The Arena is often used by the Munster rugby team.

Its €28 million development was made possible with €7.6 million in government grants, a €6.9 million donation from the University of Limerick Foundation, about €4 million in student contributions and commercial funding.[42] Each year, it accommodates over 500,000 customers and many international athletes and teams.[43]

The arena hosted the 2010 Special Olympics Ireland Games, from 9 to 13 June. In one of the year’s largest Irish sporting events, 1,900 Special Olympians from throughout Ireland participated in the games.

UL’s €9 million, all-weather sports complex on the North Campus is the largest all-weather sports-field complex in Europe.[citation needed] The multi-purpose, floodlit, artificial turf park has two soccer, one rugby and one GAA pitch. Third-generation all-weather surfaces are similar to natural grass and are designed for full contact. Each full-size pitch can be sub-divided to create smaller playing areas for various sports. The largest artificial-grass development in Ireland to date, it is designed to World Rugby, GAA and FIFA specifications.

The synthetic surface reduces the risk of injury caused by hard or uneven surfaces. The Sports Pavilion Building has changing rooms, squad and coaching rooms and bar, restaurant and conference facilities. The complex is funded from a number of sources, including operating income and campus-based commercial activities.

The playing pitches opened in July 2011, and the Sports Pavilion was expected to open in November 2011.[needs update] The facility is available to the general public as well as the campus community. In addition to these facilities, conventional playing fields, tennis courts, an artificial-turf pitch, an outdoor athletics track and the University Boathouse are on the Limerick side of the river. The boathouse has Ireland’s only indoor rowing tank, which can accommodate up to 8 rowers simultaneously. The tank can simulate a variety of water conditions, providing training opportunities for rowers to reach international standards. The building also includes a launch jetty into the Shannon, a pontoon and a café.

GRANGEGORMAN AREA INCLUDING THE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS

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GRANGEGORMAN AREA INCLUDING THE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS

Using a Zeiss Batis 135mm lens imposed some constraints but I very much like this lens.

I am due to visit Belfast within a few days and the last time I was there, early 2019, I had a bad fall and damaged two or three ribs as well as my Sony A7RIII camera and my Voigtlander 40mm lens. Not long after that fall I purchased a Sony A7RIV and even though I intended to use the RIII as a backup body I never used it again mainly because I could not get geo-tagging to work. In general I preferred the newer body.

When I visited Kilkenny earlier this year both my Sony A7RIV and iPhone overheated. Ever since the Sony has given weird random problems and become somewhat annoying to use so I decided to give the A7RIII another go and much to my surprise I got, after a lot of effort, geo-tagging to work [not 100% reliable but acceptable]. If I switch off the camera it is necessary to reset Bluetooth.

I know that many claim that the A7RIII produces better images and that it is not worth paying the extra for the A7RIV and I can see why after using the MKIII today.

NICHE by Orla de Brí

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NICHE by Orla de Brí – UNIVERSITY CAMPUS LIMERICK SEPTEMBER 2021 AND MAY 2018

When I first photographed this a few years ago I thought that this was the “diver” and could not find any relevant information but as a result of my 2021 visit and the use of a reverse image search I discovered that the artist responsible was Orla de Brí. I am now in the process of publishing the 2021 and 2018 images.

In 2021 I used a Sony A7RIV with a Voigtlander 40mm lens
In 2018 I used a Sony A7RIII with a Sony FE 24-70mm lens [the better combination]

Niche’ was commissioned for the campus of The University of Limerick. 8 meters in height, it comprises a polished bronze figure with branches on a Corten Steel pilar.

Orla is an Irish Sculptor with a studio in Co Meath. de Brí works in bronze, steel and fibreglass. She has had seven Solo Shows, and has completed 27 site-specific, large-scale public sculptures, in Ireland, London and Istanbul.

Working in both Gallery and Public Art her work is also in many significant private collections both nationally and internationally.

THE LIVING BRIDGE I USED A VOIGTLANDER 40mm LENS

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THE LIVING BRIDGE I USED A VOIGTLANDER 40mm LENS

This visit to Limerick I limited myself to using primes and I am not sure if it was a good idea and I may not limit myself in this way when I visit Belfast at the end of the month. Also, much to me surprise, there was a lot of dust on the sensor which was more than annoying. Much to my surprise as I had my camera professionally cleaned a few days earlier.

The Living Bridge – An Droichead Beo is a unique design by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, London and consists of seven 50-metre spans linked together by piers which create four platforms of refuge for walkers.

The platforms are designed to accommodate social gatherings, informal teaching sessions, music and dance performances, as well as a wide array of educational, social and cultural activities – all contributing to this facility’s status as a “living” bridge”.

The bridge alternates between rhythms of bridge and island, with lightweight bridge structures joining to more solid pier locations. This is reflected by the change in construction materials from steel to concrete and the transition from open parapets to solid pillars and glazed side walls which serve to shelter the “inhabitants” of this animated facility.

The architects designed the bridge to move in a beautiful flowing line across the Shannon, mirroring the river. The design conveys the sense of a series of bridges leaping from pier to pier, each supported by one of the existing islands in the riverbed. This gives the traveller the sense that they are crossing the river on stepping stones.

From the south campus, access to the bridge is through what presents itself as a hidden gateway in the Millstream Courtyard and provides a vital link between the Glucksman Library, Concert Hall and Millstream developments to the Health Sciences and the new Irish World Academy of Music and Dance on the north bank. An impressive Plaza will welcome you to Clare once you have travelled over the bridge.

The Pedestrian Living Bridge project was resourced through a partnership of private and public funding and was assigned to Arup Consulting Engineers in Dublin. Kerin Contract Management in Limerick managed the project while building work was undertaken by Eiffel Construction, France’s largest bridge builder.