After having lived in inland Germany all my life, I was looking forward to moving to Dublin, a city so close to the seaside, for my studies. My mother, having grown up in Clontarf, a suburb of Dublin, has always talked about how the quality of life is better by the sea. This notion has influenced me and since I have moved to Dublin, I have enjoyed many moments at the beach in the past year, as it still seems like a luxury to me that I should not take for granted. Spending time by the sea has also roused my interest in the many different ways people feel connected to the sea here in Dublin. It is a way of life for many as it can provide a healthy balance between the hustle and bustle of urban life and the tranquility nature has to offer.
I am a student, currently in my second year at Dublin City University, pursuing a degree in communications. I am an Irish and German citizen and I only moved to Dublin after completing my second level education in Germany in 2018. I plan on capturing different aspects of “life by the sea” in a series of photographs. My aim is to create an authentic and aesthetic portrait of what the reality of living so close to the sea can represent. It will depict various jobs and activities that are related to “life by the sea” as well as portraying the diversity of a modern capital city located so close to the sea.
The device I will be using will be my own Nikon D5100 DSLR camera and I will be shooting this project in the time period between mid-October until mid-December. The shooting locations will be all bay areas of Dublin, predominantly including: Howth, Sutton, Clontarf, Dublin Port and Dun Laoghaire.
I intend to approach random people I encounter at the locations I plan on visiting and asking them to contribute to my project by being photographed. However, as I will not be focusing on a specific individual or group, it will be a one-time interaction and they will have no obligation to continue participating further. My intention is to present natural images that show real situations and interesting scenes which may reflect “life by the sea”.
I hope to give people, who don’t have the sea as a “normal” element in their daily lives, a visual insight into this way of life by the sea other than it being an exotic holiday destination. Furthermore, this project will hopefully provide many Dubliners with an authentic documentation of their everyday life in relation to the sea.
During the past year living here, I have learned that the beach can be a normal part of everyday life for some people in Dublin. That is why I would like to capture a moment in the lives of these people and portray how their surroundings influence them.
Megan's Photoblog 
Hi Megan, it’s a good proposal. It would be even better if you considered different times of the day you will photograph, if you perhaps concentrated on one area so you can really engage and explore it. A place that is meaningful to you in some way. Perhaps if it engaged bit more with science around being in nature and wellbeing. Thank you.
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