Quin Abbey Corridor

Quin Abbey CorridorThis is the first of a series of shots I’ll be sharing of Quin abbey.  Quin is a small village in southeast Clare, about 9 miles from Ennis and the abbey was one of the most impressive sites I saw while in Ireland.  Though the abbey is in ruins, it is remarkably well preserved compared to many of the other castles and churches I saw.  The Quin abbey was built in the early 1400’s by the MacNamara family.  Fr. John Hogan was the last person to occupy the abbey, living there until his death in 1820 when he was laid to rest within the abbey walls.  What I found most appealing about this site is that it was not under reconstruction as so many other ruins we saw and there were no signs of modernization about the structures.  It was like stepping back in time.

This shot shows one of the four corridors surrounding a cloister.  Looking to the left between the pillars you would see a small courtyard filled with green grass and some small white wildflowers sprinkled across the enclosed lawn.  I was amazed at the intensity of the colors in this dark, damp hall overgrown with rich green moss.  Ireland is just green everywhere I suppose, even in the dark!  What I love about this photograph is that it looks just how I remember it looking when I was standing there; the rich textures and deeply saturated colors in the damp darkness on the right juxtaposed with the flood of natural light coming in from the left make for a very dynamic and mysterious scene.  I remember feeling like I could have been the first person to stand in that spot in 100 years.  I was also impressed with the details of the columns and stonework and to think they were created over 600 years ago.  Having spent my whole life in a big city in Arizona, I’m not used to looking at structures that are more than 50 years old!

5D Mk III with 24-105mm f/4.0L IS USM lens.  ISO 800, f/4.0, 1/25 sec.