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ST STEPHEN’S GREEN 15 APRIL 2023

April 15, 2023 by infomatique

SONY NEX7 CAMERA AND 18-105MM LENS

Cared for by the Office of Public Works, the park is an important public resource in the area, and provides an oasis of green calm in the middle of a bustling city. Its four centuries of history are eventful and complex, involving such important figures as Arthur Guinness, 1st Baron Ardilaun, and Countess Constance Markievicz. The park itself hosts a large number of important sculptural monuments to Irish history. Many species of birds and plants also call the park their home. Public facilities at St Stephen’s Green Park include a playground and a garden for the visually impaired.

A few days ago I discovered that I had a Sony E PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS lens which I do not remember buying and what is even more confusing is that I do not purchase anything other than full-frame lenses. Sony describes the lens as follows: This G Lens for E-mount cameras delivers stunning still or movie imagery with the flexibility of 6x power zoom. Maximum aperture is a constant F4 from 18mm wide angle to 105mm medium telephoto, with excellent resolution and contrast throughout. A lever and ring on the lens barrel allow zoom speed to be freely adjusted as required while maintaining a sure, stable grip.

When I used the 18-105mm lens with my FX-30 camera [APS-C sensor] I was very disappointed with the results as many of the images had focus issues or suffered from motion blur. I could not decide if the lens was the problem or if there was something wrong with the camera body so I used a Sigma 14mm lens yesterday and the results were more than acceptable. However, before concluding that the lens was substandard I decided to try it with my very old NEX-7 body [purchased Christmas 2011].

The Sony α NEX-7 is a digital camera announced 24 August 2011 by Sony. It is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera and as such inherits a smaller body form factor than a traditional digital single-lens reflex camera, while still retaining the sensor size and features of an APS-C-sized model. It is targeted at experienced users, enthusiasts and professionals. It is replaced by the ILCE-6000 (α6000). At the time of its release, the Sony Alpha NEX-7 had the best image quality among any mirrorless interchangeable-lens compact camera which had been tested by DxO Labs and also the best APS-C Sensor camera from Sony. Sony α65, Sony α77 and NEX-7 have similar sensors and received DxOMark Overall Scores of 74, 78, and 81, respectively. The image quality of NEX-7 can be comparable with Nikon D7000 (score 80) and Pentax K-5 (score 82).

I failed to reach a conclusion but I do like using the NEX-7 even though I need to bring at least four spare batteries with me.

TREES AND MORE TREES

April 14, 2023 by infomatique

THE BOTANIC GARDENS IN GLASNEVIN

Because of restrictions that applied as a result of Joe Biden’s visit one of the few options open to me was to visit the Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin … I could not believe how cold the weather was and it rained a number of times while I was exploring the Gardens.

I used a Sony E PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS lens which I do not remember buying and what is even more confusing is that I do not purchase anything other than full-frame lenses. Sony describes the lens as follows: This G Lens for E-mount cameras delivers stunning still or movie imagery with the flexibility of 6x power zoom. Maximum aperture is a constant F4 from 18mm wide angle to 105mm medium telephoto, with excellent resolution and contrast throughout. A lever and ring on the lens barrel allow zoom speed to be freely adjusted as required while maintaining a sure, stable grip.

I was disappointed with the performance of the lens as many of the images were not properly focused and there were many examples of motion blur. At the time I could not decide if the fact that the FX30 does not have a viewfinder might have contributed to the poor performance or that I was to blame. On the following day I used a sigma 14mm lens and there were no issues … at a later date I will try the 18-105mm lens with my old NEX-7 whit is not a full-frame camera.

The National Botanic Gardens of Ireland are an oasis of calm and beauty, and entry is free. A premier scientific institution, the Gardens contain important collections of plant species and cultivars from all over the world. The National Botanic Gardens in Dublin are located in Glasnevin, just three kilometres from Dublin City Centre, and are famous for the exquisitely restored historic glasshouses. The National Botanic Gardens in Wicklow are located in Kilmacurragh, where the milder climate, higher rainfall, and deeper, acidic soils of this historic Wicklow garden, provide a counterpoint to the collections at Glasnevin. The two gardens have been closely associated since 1854. The National Botanic Gardens of Ireland are operated and managed by the Office of Public Works.

A FEW OF THE GLASSHOUSES IN THE BOTANIC GARDENS

April 13, 2023 by infomatique

13 APRIL 2023

The gardens include some glasshouses of architectural importance, such as the Palm House and the Curvilinear Range.

The Great Palm House is situated in the southern parts of the gardens, and is connected to the cactus house on its west side, and the orchid house on its east side. The main building measures 65 feet in height, 100 feet in length and 80 feet in width.

The Palm House was originally built in 1862 to accommodate the ever increasing collection of plants from tropical areas that demanded more and more protected growing conditions. The construction was overseen by David Moore, the curator of the gardens at the time. The original structure was built of wood, and was unstable, leading to it being blown down by heavy gales in 1883, twenty one years later. Richard Turner, the great Dublin ironmaster, had already supplied an iron house to Belfast Gardens and he persuaded the Royal Dublin Society that such a house would be a better investment than a wooden house, and by 1883 construction had begun on a stronger iron structure. Fabrication of the structure took place in Paisley, Scotland, and shipped to Ireland in sections.

By the early 2000s, the Palm House had fallen into a state of disrepair. After more than 100 years, the wrought iron, cast iron and timber construction had seriously deteriorated. Prior to its restoration a large number of panes of glass were breaking each year due to the corrosion and instability of the structure. As part of the restoration the house was completely dismantled into more than 7,000 parts, tagged for repair and restoration off-site. 20 meter tall cast iron columns within the Great Palm House had seriously degraded and were replaced by new cast iron columns created in moulds of the originals. To protect the structure from further corrosion, new modern paint technology was used to develop long-term protection for the Palm House, providing protection from the perpetually tropical internal climate. For Health and Safety reasons, overhead glass was laminated and vertical panes toughened, and specialised form of mastic was used to fix the panes, replacing original linseed oil putty that had contributed to the decay of the building over the century. The Palm House was reopened in 2004 after a lengthy replanting programme following the restoration process.

The Curvilinear Range was completed in 1848 by Richard Turner, and was extended in the late 1860s. This structure, has also been restored (using some surplus contemporary structural ironwork from Kew Gardens) and this work attracted the Europa Nostra award for excellence in conservation architecture.

There is also a third range of glasshouses: the Aquatic House, the Fern House and the original Cactus House. These structures were closed off in the early 2000s, and are currently undergoing restoration. As these glasshouses were specialised in the plants they housed, many specimens such as the Giant Amazonian Water Lily have not been grown in the gardens since the closure of the structures.

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HALLIDAY SQUARE

April 13, 2023 by infomatique

ARBOUR HILL 13 APRIL 2023

Halliday Square is a little sliver of parkland at Arbour Hill, populated by ornamental trees and shrubs and surrounded by terraces of both old and new red-brick houses.

Arbour Hill is an area of Dublin within the inner city on the Northside of the River Liffey, in the Dublin 7 postal district. Arbour Hill, the road of the same name, runs west from Blackhall Place in Stoneybatter, and separates Collins Barracks, now hosting part of the National Museum of Ireland, to the south from Arbour Hill Prison to the north, whose graveyard includes the burial plot of the signatories of the Easter Proclamation that began the 1916 Rising. St Bricin’s Military Hospital, formerly the King George V Hospital, is also located in Arbour Hill.

Arbour Hill is derived from the Irish Cnoc an Arbhair which means “corn hill”. The area was owned by Christ Church Cathedral during the medieval period and was used to store corn. The area first appears on a map in 1603 as “Earber-hill”.

As part of his commissioned symphonic work “Irishmen and Irishwomen”, the composer Vincent Kennedy included a movement titled “Arbour Hill”. This movement is a tribute to the Easter Rising participants buried at Arbour Hill.

WATER FEATURES

February 11, 2023 by infomatique

IVEAGH GARDENS IN FEBRUARY 2023

The Iveagh Gardens are among the finest and least known of Dublin’s parks and gardens. Designed in 1863 they include a rustic grotto, cascade, fountains, maze, rosarium, archery grounds, and woodlands.