remains of the long since departed, a photo from Down, Northern Ireland

Photographer's Note

emigration has been a feature in ireland for several hundred years now, largely as a result of poverty, crop failures, the land system, and a lack of opportunity. cottages like these are scattered throughout ireland, evidence of years of hardship, poverty and emigration.

at the beginning of the 19th century the main industry of ireland was agriculture. large areas of land were under the control of landowners living in england, and much of it was rented to small farmers with little capital and few farming tools or equipment. many of them started to think of leaving and starting new lives.

from 1848 - 1950 it is estimated that over 6 million adults and children emigrated from ireland, ending up mainly in north america, australia and britain.

copyright © all rights reserved.
the use or the reproduction of this photograph, on any media, for profit or otherwise, is prohibited without my written permission.
BMcC

JFS, golus, jhm, SnapRJW, ourania, tyro, worldcitizen, Sonata11, delpeoples, maria-v1981, patdeph, Cricri, adores, Noel_Byrne, kennyblack, elenimavrandoni has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

JFS (32027) 2012-04-21 0:44

Very good shot, fine colours and textures and the feeling of past times. Good work, thanks Brian!

Cheers,
Juan

dta (51280) 2012-04-21 0:47

Hello Brian,
I like a lot this kind of subject . Old abandoned houses are beautiful but gives a strange feeling of sadness .
The close framing works well here (I suppose that you've avoided a dull sky) , and the stone in the corner is an attractive element of teh composition .
Regards

golus (2889) 2012-04-21 1:02

Good Morning Brian,

You've told us a sad story which describes a situation we see in our country more or less the same. On weekends I'm trying to dig villages near to the area I live and I see many desolated and scattered houses around. Your photo conveys this deplorable mood in the most striking way that no one can be oblivious. Let's hope that life will not be tougher for our children too. Thanks for this pathetic contribution together with your excellent notes. Best wishes,

Suleyman

jhm (122314) 2012-04-21 1:18

Hello Brian,

Remains of the long since departed, I though first to a picture from Ireland with the big stone in foreground, and the old house with nature stones built.
A lovely place for enjoy of the nature.
Excellent depth and nice perspective.
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice weekend
John

SnapRJW (18642) 2012-04-21 3:07

Hello Brian - Very attractive textural detail in this shot, and a clever composition with the rectangular patchwork of fields repeating the shapes of door and windows. Quite uncanny how the colours in the old building mimics that of the landscape! A sad story and a very good shot to accompany it. Have a good weekend Rosemary

ourania (12249) 2012-04-21 3:19

Hello Brian,
I like very much your composition, it's wonderful and so effective to illustrate the sad theme of abandoning one's homeland for "luck of opportunities", as you said (this is a striking phrase but so true). From the angle you chose, the abandoned cottage looks like another pattern of the landscape, a piece of the natural patchwork. I love the eloquent clarity, the textures and colours.
This enforced immigration had been a case in the Dodecanese, where I live, a few decades ago. Now it's arising again dramatically.
A marvellous photo, well done and thank you!
All the best, have a lovely weekend,
Ourania

bartekp (4186) 2012-04-21 3:23

Hi Brian,

Very good compo, POV, sharpness,and superb texture.
Atractive colors and light.

Have a nice weekend

Bartek

tyro (13009) 2012-04-21 6:33

Hello Brian,

A very interesting but sad note you have given us about the dreadful poverty and starvation that existed in Ireland in days gone by and when many had to emigrate to live and work in possibly even worse conditions in the industrial cities of England. A history for which unscruplous and profiteering English landowners were perhaps largely to blame.

I love the very natural colours in this picture as well as the simple composition with the cottage lying nicely on the diagonal. What might appear to be just an inconsequential large stone in the foreground actually anchors the composition superbly and leads the eye past the cottage and onwards through the modern metal gate. Exquisite detail and sharpness too.

Beautiful!

Kind Regards,

John.

P.S. What a shame that this little cottage should be left to decay. Are any of these being restored and used for holiday homes?

Sonata11 (28209) 2012-04-21 14:13

Hello Brian,
interesting composition of this old abandoned house with wonderful execution. Beautiful colors, sharpness, texture of this wall and beautiful wild nature. Perfectly well done.
All the best and have a nice WE,
Barbara

delpeoples (44888) 2012-04-22 4:37

Hi Brian

These old homes really fire the imagination as to what life was like for these people back then. Obviously so harsh that they would want to travel to the other end of the world. Your photo has a real melancholic feel to it, alot of sadness and history. You composed it superbly to demonstrate such emotions. Your note is a perfect partner to the photo. Excellent shot, a photo which means something. Thanks for sharing.

Have a lovely day
Lisa

maria-v1981 (10403) 2012-04-22 5:03

Hello Brian,
Excellent note and i will agree with you. Here in Greece emigration is a phenomenon that affects Greece until today. But this kind of photos are always welcome. The colours and the textures are amazing. Excellent result.
Have a nice Monday,
Warm regards,
Maria

patdeph (35738) 2012-04-24 3:47

hello Brian
I like very much the way you have framed the house,a very close framing, that gives a very strong impact.There is a superb harmony of colors in the whole picture,the grasses have the same colors than the door and the shutters,and I love the old textures.Excellent!
Regards
Pascale

Cricri (86295) 2012-04-24 6:00

Hi Brian
Belle façon d'avoir cadrer la maison ce qui rend les détails des vielles pierres encore plus fort, jolies harmonie des couleurs, une très jolie réalisation et présentation
Belle journée
cricri

ciakgiak (30329) 2012-04-24 9:24

Hello Brian,
I relly like this great composition, it's very well done and perfectly composed, I love the rural country with the farm on the right and the natural color of the fields. Congratulations and TFS.
best regards
Giorgio

adores (28178) 2012-04-25 16:33

Hi Brian!
The architecture may be different from ours here, but we have also lots of little houses and villages that have been abandoned, because of emigration or because the inhabitants have just left to bigger cities.
It's a very good shot, with excellent composition, colours and sharpness! Well done!

chrisvek (5423) 2012-04-26 12:45

Hello Brian

Very nice landscape.Great shoot with very nice composition.Great colors and tones.Also very good sharpness and saturation.

Have a good night
Chris
TFS

Noel_Byrne (7209) 2012-04-30 9:06

hi Brian,
as somebody else mentioned above, their is a sense of sadness at these ruined places, and you have captured that well. excellent colours all the way through your picture. Great note also!
best wishes
Noel

Silvio1953 (97953) 2012-05-02 1:01

Ciao Brian, beautiful composition with lovely abandoned house, excellent perspective, splendid light and wonderful colors, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

Fis2 (73010) 2012-05-05 6:17

Witaj Brian!
Curious place, curious old building.
Good frame and perspective.
Excellent colors.
Have a nice sunday
Krzysztof

kennyblack (4105) 2012-05-07 10:09

Hello Brian
Beautiful and at the same time "nostalgic" photos of this' abandonment that forces people to migrate. POV perfect as well as the arrangement of the diagonal lines created by 'grass and the rest of the house. Impressive attention to detail very clear and the colors that create the right atmosphere. Nice work, thanks to have shared.
The best regardès, have a nice evening ... Marino

mjw364 (3612) 2012-06-12 13:25

I like the palette of colours in this image and the texture of the stonework. It gives the feeling of an old photograph. Well composed.

Michael

elenimavrandoni (5789) 2012-12-27 14:04

Hello Brian, historical and remarkable remains of this legendary cottage!If those walls could speak...
Great sharpness and great picture!!
Best regards,
Eleni