Travel for me is 98% about the people and culture. But every once in a while I come across a breath-taking view, an unbelievable sight, something that looks like it belongs in a painting or a movie... and then I love to stop and sit, reflect on the beauty in the world, and try to show that the best way I know how - photography.
Annie and I took a bus tour from Galway to see the Cliffs of Moher (if you've seen The Princess Bride, these cliffs were featured as The Cliffs of Insanity) and today I want to post the views from the trip to and from the cliffs. Tomorrow I'll post the cliffs themselves.
This is what I imagined of Ireland, why just staying in the city for the whole trip simply isn't good enough. And our journey begins:
It was cold and rainy. And WINDY. Very windy. Most of us fell over at one point unless we properly braced ourselves against the wind. Now, when I travel, I often have trouble getting photos of myself and whoever I'm traveling with because I don't want to just hand my camera to a stranger walking by - "Here's a camera worth several thousand dollars. You can try to take a photo of us or you can walk away with it while we pose here and let you get away. And by the way, you know how to get this thing in focus, right?" Ok, so that's a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point. So I try to keep my eyes open for competent camera users I'd trust. Sign number one - I saw this kid with a Nikon camera. 3 points in his favor :) Sign number two - posture when he took pictures. He actually created a tripod for himself and held still and all that.
Sign number three - his equipment was entry level (D5100 and a kit lens) but his composition and the photos I saw were phenomenal. Showed me he knew how to use it, not just have it. And when I finally decided to trust him was when he stood in the middle of the road because that was the only place to get the angle he wanted. Sound like anyone else y'all know??? ;) I fully support risking your life for the perfect shot. Anyway, handed him my camera so Annie and I could be in a photo together with the beautiful countryside behind us. It was cold and rainy and extremely windy, so everyone else had gotten back on the bus and was watched us from my right. Laurie struggling a little bit figuring out how to get the photo in focus with my d800, but I was so impressed that he recognized the difference and wanted to try again! Ended up with some of my favorite photos from the trip. Annie and I are laughing because the wind is knocking us off balance and trying to steal her hat.
There are a couple other photos I liked from this trip, but my wi-fi is struggling, so I'm going to leave it at this for now and come back later to add a few more. It's interesting going to McDonald's more than ever before in my life - in Europe, that's one of the best places for internet connection, but I still find it difficult to want to spend that much time there. Oh well! Enjoy the photos, and watch for the cliffs tomorrow.
