This is a photo-shoot at The Octagon in the Glen of the Downs. It is located in the forest called Glen of the Downs. This is in Delgany, Co. Wickow. 

This first photo is my favourite photo from the day. It was unplanned as the photo-shoot was actually over and we were getting ready to leave. The light was too amazing though and I could see all the minuscule flies floating about. These can be seen as specks in the photo. So my friend went down and starting doing some poses and we ended up with this shot! 

This is from my manual film camera. I scanned in the image at a high res to make sure all the detail came out. 

Another B & W from a different angle. This photo makes The Octagon look a little foreboding which is an interesting way to look at it. But in reality it is a lovely inviting place on a nice sunny day! The underground could be a great place to seek shelter in a sudden downpour.

This is the same building taken from the other side of the glen. I had to climb out onto a rock that overlooks the dual carriageway! This scared the life out of me but I persevered anyway as I wanted the shots. I also managed to take multiple shots of that side of the glen and manually stitch them together to make a panoramic. I then had to carefully climb off the rock which me and my cousin were squeezed onto and get back down! It was definitely worth it though! I had never seen The Octagon from that perspective before as I suspect not many people have. The side of the glen I was on is not as walk-able as the Octagon side.

A bit of history

So a little bit of history on The Octagon. It was built by the La Touché family as part of the Bellevue demesne. This demesne was 300 acres. The Octagon was a tea rooms for the family. Although some people think it was a hunting lodge. Given that the house wasn't that far from The Octagon I wouldn't think it was a hunting lodge. Bellevue house is now gone due to the family running into financial difficulty and left in 1913 and the house failing into disrepair. The house was pulled down in the 1950s. The Octagon remains and is a beautiful spot to go for a walk. It offers great views of the Glen of the Downs and provides an excellent spot for a photo-shoot. It consist if the main area seen in the photograph. But to the right there is another area that seems to be underground. When you go in you find that it is not entirely underground. As seen in one of the photos below there are windows at one end of the room. 

The Photoshoot

A few more from us messing around. The light was just hitting her in the prefect way! Lighting up her hair just so beautifully. 

So below you will find some of the rest of the shots from that day. I will talk more about them under each photo. 

This was taken at the boundary wall of The Octagon. The other photos with the amazing light were taken directly behind me.

From what I can tell the fireplace was located right beside where this one was taken. Maybe used to boil the kettle or prepare some basic food.

This is from one of the windows at the top part of The Octagon.

Another from up above this time standing in the window. Unfortunately the light was just too bright here and I couldn't get a clear shot. I though i would include it anyway just because I like the effect.

So I hope you have enjoyed reading a bit about my local history and seeing the photos I produced from the afternoon up there. I am hoping to get another shoot up there this time with @eriluks and perhaps with me as the model this time. Until next time!