THE COMPOSITION
I've done a lot of work for Kildare County Council over the last few years but nothing like this. I wasn't really sure what to expect when I was asked to photograph the installation of the new bridge in Athy as part of the Athy Distribution Road.
THE PHOTOSHOOT
I was familiar with the area already as I shot the 'Sod Turning' ceremony for the council last year with Minister of State, Hildegarde Naughton although I wasn't entirely sure where or what access I would get to the site. As it turned out, not a lot!
The 'event' involved the installation of two steel girders across the river that would form the base of the new bridge. These weren't any old girders mind, they were two 80ft long monoliths that weighed around 230 tonnes each. Slow and steady was the order of the day.
The Carlow Road had been closed during the night to allow for the first of the girders to make its way down to the river's edge in preparation for the lift in the morning
As so often happens with shoots where you have no say on the day it happens the weather Gods were not on our side. In fairness it was January, but sadly it was dark and gloomy and so I had to work my magic on the images to make them pop. The eagle eyed amongst you will notice that a certain amount of artistic license has been used to create pics with sunny blue skies!
Access to the site was very limited, as only people directly involved in the lift were permitted to get anywhere near. Cue the use of a zoom and wide-angle lens. I also had to be wary of other members of the public who obviously had a great interest in what was going on too. Thankfully, there were plenty of vantage points and the slow progress of the lift meant it was relatively easy to move around without missing any opportunites.
The installation was done over two days so I knew whatever angles I missed on day one could be captured on day two. The only consideration was that the first girder would block the view of the second from upriver and so I had to make sure I was down river to get the shots I needed.
I arrived early on both days before dawn which meant I got a good vantage point. I chose the Old Horse Bridge in the hope of getting a nice sunrise. Whilst it wasn't as bright as I hoped I still managed to get a great shot of the cranes lit up with the first hue's of the morning light coming through.
I had a little time before the work began so I dug into my bag and added a ND filter which enabled me to slow down the shutter speed which in turn smoothed out the water and added a little cloud movement. This was the result.
Whilst the weather had definitely improved for day two it still wasn't sun splitting the stones, nonetheless I was able to get a few brighter shots that I'd been able to achieve on day one. I also got access to the river bank on Dún Brinn and watched as the second girder slowly made its way over to its final resting place.
RESULTS FROM THE DARKROOM
Credits:
@CelticPhotography2023