I’ve written previously about the Duke of York Bar in Commercial Court and included a photograph of an old sign at the rear.
This is one of the many old signs at the front of the bar.
Guinness and flowers
Author: J Orr
Victoria Square
Victoria Square is the premier shopping area in Belfast. Opened in 2008 it is the biggest and at a cost of £400 million, one of the most expensive property developments in Northern Ireland.
About 3000 people were involved in the construction and roughly 3000 people are now employed by the various retailers and service industries operating within the square.
Victoria Square will celebrate its 10th anniversary in March 2018.
Family functions
We’re in the grip of winter now and there are few opportunities for outside photography. I’ve been spending time cleaning out my Lightroom catalogue and attempting to learn Photoshop.
I have family in Cavan and visit usually three or four times a year for the usual events like weddings, birthdays, anniversaries and sometimes a family get together just to catch up. It was while cleaning out my Lightroom catalogue that I came upon images from my last visit in August past.
We had been there for a wedding anniversary and while I knew I had taken lots of photographs of the actual function I had forgotten that earlier, between lunch and catching up with family news, I went for a quick walk around the town to find an ATM. Of course I had a camera…
Blue, Red, Yellow
This is a section of Goliath, one of the giant Harland and Wolff Shipyard gantry cranes that dominate the Belfast skyline.
There are two cranes, Samson and Goliath. Goliath is the smaller of the two.
They are a major attraction in the city and have been photographed countless times. The red and yellow against a blue sky make for a striking image.
If you build it….
…they will come.
This building stands in Bedford Street, Belfast. It was originally an office block called Windsor House and at one time was the tallest building in Belfast. In 2015 it was acquired by the Hastings Hotel Group and It will be opening soon as The Grand Central Hotel.
In recent years the hotel business has been booming. A quick search on Google reveals that in March 2017 (the latest figures I could find) there were 27 either under construction, have received planning permission or have applied for planning permission.
The city has been named the top place to visit in 2018 and one of the safest cities in the UK. Tourism has kicked off over the last few years and it is difficult, even on a cold January, to walk any distance without hearing accents from mainland Europe and much farther afield.
Also owned by the Hastings Hotels Group, The Europa is the most well known hotel in Belfast. At one time it was famous as the “most bombed hotel in Europe” or the “most bombed hotel in the world”. Things are much quieter now.
Old signs
The Duke of York Bar is in Commercial Court, Belfast with the rear entrance in Exchange Place. The front of the bar is always colourful with something going on. The rear is quiet with old signs.
Foggy Bangor
You come to Ireland for the friendly people, the scenery, the craic, the food, the Guinness. You don’t come for the weather.
These images show a misty afternoon in Bangor when the temperature was around 4C. The newspapers often feature weather pictures so these three along with others were sent to Alamy Live News. If any are used I’ll post them.
Belfast Cathedral
In a previous post I said that most photographs of Writers’ Square are taken with St. Anne’s Cathedral in the background. This is a photograph of the Cathedral without Writers’ Square in the foreground.
Photographing the Cathedral from the Square gives a straight on front view. There is no parking permitted in front of the church but parking is allowed on the opposite side of the street. This, along with one or two streetlamps on that side, makes for a messy image.
This photograph was taken from the side of the Cathedral with a 24mm equivalent lens. I was able to stand on the road and although there is some distortion it gives an uninterrupted view. The bright winter sunshine warmed the stone, revealing the texture. I returned a couple of hours later but the sun was lower in the sky and the buildings at the rear of Writers’ Square are casting a shadow on the Cathedral.
I had intended to convert this image to black and white (I still do) but I haven’t been able to get it just right so far. When I get it right I’ll post it.