Ice Cream Ireland

 Trying to take photos of ice cream and ingredients without a macro lens has been quite frustrating, so I talked my brother into letting me spend some ice cream money on my Nikon D80. After all, there is the possibility of an ice cream book, and one would want it to look well.

After much research, I decided on a Nikkor 105mm micro lens as well as Nikon’s close-up R1C1 flash system.

I have to say I’m already in love with the lens. I unpacked the lens and took it straight into the garden. The fuscia above and the bumblebee are the result.

I can’t wait to work out the flash system and try it out on food!

Technorati tags: Nikkor, camera, lens, 105mm, Nikon, d80, photography

Here’s a video Sean and I made as a follow on to Ice Cream Magic. You’ll hear about the brown bread ice cream and see production as well as the Dingle and Killarney Shops!

Technorati tags: YouTube, magic, ice cream, blog, video

My niece and nephew are around for midterm break (they live in Germany), and above is a little video we made and put on YouTube to entertain them and ourselves…

Also, I’m happy to have found two new Irish food blogs via their comments here. Check out:

The Humble Housewife - A wide range of recipes from Edenderry, and a very good addition to the scene.

Eat Drink Live - I am positively delighted to see a blog from a Limerick baker with lots to tempt the sweet tooth.

Technorati tags: YouTube, magic, ice cream, blog, video

 I got a package in the post yesterday - the folks at Leica managed to resuscitate my old camera, which is quite amazing, given that it was dumped in the sea. Either that, or they gave up on the repair and sent me a new one (perhaps more likely since it’s positively gleaming).

However, I have to say my cheating heart has been completely won over by my new Nikon D80 in the meantime, and I also love the 1.4 fixed lens I bought for it. It lets in so much light and makes so many things possible.

The above photo was taken just before the Dingle shop closed for the season, just after dark, without a flash. I used a tripod. The blur is a passing car.

Change back from the D80? I think not. I do still love the Leica, though, and I guess it will be my travel camera, since it’s so much more compact…

Technorati tags: digital, camera, Leica, Nikon, d80, photography

 I’ve been a bit distracted here not only with the new camera, Christmas preparations, and planning for next year, but also with a project I have undertaken - scanning slides.

Most of our early childhood and family photos are in the form of slides rather than prints, and I figured it was definitely time to save and share them before they deteriorate further. So I borrowed a slide scanner and got to work. Hundreds of photos on CD will be a good Christmas present for everybody in the family.

There are some beauties among them - above is my brother Sean on his first birthday, working on his sweet tooth in preparation for life as an ice cream man.

On the right is myself (left) and my sister (right) outside the family homestead in Cork with our cousins by marriage, the O’Learys…

Sadly, I still haven’t found one of me with ice cream!

Technorati tags: slide, scan

Christmas has definitely come early to Ice Cream Ireland as I have received my gift to myself, a new camera. I had never bought a replacement for the Leica (that ended up in the sea back in August), and have been getting by with a little Canon that has very few creative controls and isn’t up to the job at all (although it takes decent video).

Anyway, after some research and advice, I decided on a Nikon D80, and it arrived promptly from Technikdirect in Germany, who had the best price. (Note: the manual and documentation are in German, but you can download an English version from the Nikon website. Also, the plug for the charger is continental, but a cord from an old charger of mine fit perfectly).

I bought the body and a fixed 1.4 50mm lens for starters, since there always seems to be low light in this country. I’ll be playing happily for the next few days, and I think the early results, such as Wiebke’s Sachertorte above, look promising!

Technorati tags: digital, camera, Leica, Canon, Nikon, d80, photography

I have been playing with slideshows, which I think could a great addition to a food blog such as mine, especially for recipes or tips and tricks, instead of a video.

The above was created in slide.com. It sure is a pain, though, to figure out how to make it work with Wordpress. (It’s quite easy with other blogging programs…)

Technorati tags: slide, food, blog, new, ice cream

Here’s a little video of Christophe pulling chocolate ice cream from the machine…

Technorati tags: ice cream, chocolate

 I won’t bore you in the future with baby photos of my new niece, but for those family, friends, and relations who have been asking for photos, I put a few on Flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28835008@N00/

Here’s a little video of my brother drinking a milkshake… (If you want to know how to make one, click here).

I’m off to the All Ireland. Up the Kingdom! 

Technorati tags: YouTube, milkshake, ice cream, football, video