Easter 2020. I visit the pretty harbour town of Howth on the north side of Dublin Bay quite regularly. At least I did before lock down. I try to take a photograph on my iPhone(an old iPhone 6) of the port light at the end of the East Pier from the same spot each time I visit. So over the last couple of years I’ve been building up a sequence of photographs of the beacon and the diverse skies that present themselves. Beautiful skies ranging from white to blue to grey to slate grey depending on the weather conditions. Covid 19 and the Lock Down allowed me time to sit down and edit the images and I have produced this little slideshow/movie for your diversion during the lockdown.
The title of the slideshow is Fl(2)WR 7.5S 12/9M. This a nautical chart reference unique to this port beacon. Every lighthouse and lit beacon has one. This beacon being red tells sailors to keep it on their port side, i.e. left hand side, while entering the harbour. The FL(2) tells it flashes twice. The WR tells us the first flash is white and the second is red. The 7.5S tells us the lights flash every 7.5 seconds. And the 12/9m tells us that in maximum visibility the white light has a range of 12 nautical miles and the red 9 nautical miles. All very useful when you are in poor visibility and need confirmation as to where you actually are in the sea.
And if you are locked down and haven’t been to Howth recently here is a little reminder for you…
Stay Safe. Stay healthy.
If you would like to discuss any aspect of photography do give me a shout.
Eugene Langan Photography, Studio Eight, 32 North Brunswick St., Dublin 7. D07 TWX3. Ireland
email:eugene@eugenelangan.com - tel: 353(0)872597907 - web: www.eugenelangan.com