Shaun Barr
@shaunbarr.bsky.social
Poet, photographer, gardener, writer. Cumbria, UK. shaunbarrphotography.co.uk
‘There is a menace in the air
Of tragedies in the making.’
Charles Simic cutting through in his inimitable way. #poetry #poetrycommunity
Of tragedies in the making.’
Charles Simic cutting through in his inimitable way. #poetry #poetrycommunity
September 17, 2025 at 8:49 PM
‘There is a menace in the air
Of tragedies in the making.’
Charles Simic cutting through in his inimitable way. #poetry #poetrycommunity
Of tragedies in the making.’
Charles Simic cutting through in his inimitable way. #poetry #poetrycommunity
earth / Has of itself no power to make men wise.
September 16, 2025 at 8:18 AM
earth / Has of itself no power to make men wise.
The Guardian’s front page this morning; a headline and image from which most will turn away and carry on with their life, some will deny it’s even happening, and maybe worst of all, there’s the mealy-mouthed politicians’ hollow rhetoric, an empty noise of nothing. How long do you stay silent?
July 24, 2025 at 3:27 PM
The Guardian’s front page this morning; a headline and image from which most will turn away and carry on with their life, some will deny it’s even happening, and maybe worst of all, there’s the mealy-mouthed politicians’ hollow rhetoric, an empty noise of nothing. How long do you stay silent?
‘Even this late the bones of the body shine’
A gem of a poem from Mark Strand.
#poetry #poetrycommunity
A gem of a poem from Mark Strand.
#poetry #poetrycommunity
July 6, 2025 at 5:18 PM
‘Even this late the bones of the body shine’
A gem of a poem from Mark Strand.
#poetry #poetrycommunity
A gem of a poem from Mark Strand.
#poetry #poetrycommunity
There are many hugely revered poets whose appeal you can personally miss, until one poem hits you like a ten-ton truck, and suddenly you have new sight. This was my John Ashberry moment - this is the poem that knocked me off my feet. #poetry #poetrycommunity #poets #writingcommunity
June 28, 2025 at 2:19 PM
There are many hugely revered poets whose appeal you can personally miss, until one poem hits you like a ten-ton truck, and suddenly you have new sight. This was my John Ashberry moment - this is the poem that knocked me off my feet. #poetry #poetrycommunity #poets #writingcommunity
Spend a fleeting moment with this. If ever there was a time to share the sublime beauty of dear Michael Longley…
#poetry #poetrycommunity #poems
#poetry #poetrycommunity #poems
June 14, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Spend a fleeting moment with this. If ever there was a time to share the sublime beauty of dear Michael Longley…
#poetry #poetrycommunity #poems
#poetry #poetrycommunity #poems
June 14, 2025 at 5:49 AM
Showers, heavy at times... Derwent Water, Lake District, looking towards Castle Crag and the rain-soaked fells behind.
#lakedistrict #blackandwhitephotography #landscapeohotography
#lakedistrict #blackandwhitephotography #landscapeohotography
June 7, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Showers, heavy at times... Derwent Water, Lake District, looking towards Castle Crag and the rain-soaked fells behind.
#lakedistrict #blackandwhitephotography #landscapeohotography
#lakedistrict #blackandwhitephotography #landscapeohotography
The most life-altering lesson writing poetry has taught me is how staggeringly different life can be when you face up to self-doubt. Almost like a bully, trying to run away from it means you're never rid of it — tackle it head on and it shrinks away. Keep going! #writingcommunity #poetrycommunity
June 4, 2025 at 7:18 AM
The most life-altering lesson writing poetry has taught me is how staggeringly different life can be when you face up to self-doubt. Almost like a bully, trying to run away from it means you're never rid of it — tackle it head on and it shrinks away. Keep going! #writingcommunity #poetrycommunity
Sunday morning sat by the lake reading some of Neruda's sonnets seems to be a perfect way to start the day.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
Pablo Neruda Sonnet XVII, 100 Love Sonnets
#poems #sonnets #neruda #photography
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
Pablo Neruda Sonnet XVII, 100 Love Sonnets
#poems #sonnets #neruda #photography
May 4, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Sunday morning sat by the lake reading some of Neruda's sonnets seems to be a perfect way to start the day.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
Pablo Neruda Sonnet XVII, 100 Love Sonnets
#poems #sonnets #neruda #photography
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
Pablo Neruda Sonnet XVII, 100 Love Sonnets
#poems #sonnets #neruda #photography
Callanish Standing Stones, Isle of Lewis. 'To live and act, and serve the future hour'. Before Stonehenge, the stones are thought to have been erected between 2900 and 2600 BC. Imagine leaving a legacy of beauty so millennia-defying. #poetry #writing #history #photography
April 28, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Callanish Standing Stones, Isle of Lewis. 'To live and act, and serve the future hour'. Before Stonehenge, the stones are thought to have been erected between 2900 and 2600 BC. Imagine leaving a legacy of beauty so millennia-defying. #poetry #writing #history #photography
Today something extraordinary happened. After 18 months of constant rejections and increasing doubt, for the first time 3 poems have been accepted for publication. To all those struggling to get their poems published: don’t give up, don’t question your worth, keep going, you will get there. #poetry
April 26, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Today something extraordinary happened. After 18 months of constant rejections and increasing doubt, for the first time 3 poems have been accepted for publication. To all those struggling to get their poems published: don’t give up, don’t question your worth, keep going, you will get there. #poetry
From the top of the main street of Haworth, the West Yorkshire village most famous for being home to the Brontë sisters, who wrote most of their most famous works at the Parsonage, now a wonderfully fascinating museum, just a few yards from this street. #brontë #haworth #literature #photography
April 15, 2025 at 5:28 PM
From the top of the main street of Haworth, the West Yorkshire village most famous for being home to the Brontë sisters, who wrote most of their most famous works at the Parsonage, now a wonderfully fascinating museum, just a few yards from this street. #brontë #haworth #literature #photography
Time Out...
Wide open, wet golden sands in which the soft light of low stratus clouds gets caught.
#photography #icm #intentionalcameramovement #seascapes
Wide open, wet golden sands in which the soft light of low stratus clouds gets caught.
#photography #icm #intentionalcameramovement #seascapes
April 5, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Time Out...
Wide open, wet golden sands in which the soft light of low stratus clouds gets caught.
#photography #icm #intentionalcameramovement #seascapes
Wide open, wet golden sands in which the soft light of low stratus clouds gets caught.
#photography #icm #intentionalcameramovement #seascapes
More than ever, love the last stanza:
Every day is a fresh beginning;
Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain,
And, spite of old sorrow and older sinning,
And puzzles forecasted and possible pain,
Take heart with the day, and begin again.
New Every Morning, Susan Coolidge
#poetry #photography
Every day is a fresh beginning;
Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain,
And, spite of old sorrow and older sinning,
And puzzles forecasted and possible pain,
Take heart with the day, and begin again.
New Every Morning, Susan Coolidge
#poetry #photography
March 18, 2025 at 7:23 PM
More than ever, love the last stanza:
Every day is a fresh beginning;
Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain,
And, spite of old sorrow and older sinning,
And puzzles forecasted and possible pain,
Take heart with the day, and begin again.
New Every Morning, Susan Coolidge
#poetry #photography
Every day is a fresh beginning;
Listen, my soul, to the glad refrain,
And, spite of old sorrow and older sinning,
And puzzles forecasted and possible pain,
Take heart with the day, and begin again.
New Every Morning, Susan Coolidge
#poetry #photography
“Listen – are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?”
— Mary Oliver
Two people taking a walk on the wide open, empty white sands of Luskentyre beach, Isle of Harris, Outer Hebrides.
#Luskentyre #photography #scotland #beach
— Mary Oliver
Two people taking a walk on the wide open, empty white sands of Luskentyre beach, Isle of Harris, Outer Hebrides.
#Luskentyre #photography #scotland #beach
March 11, 2025 at 6:20 PM
“Listen – are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?”
— Mary Oliver
Two people taking a walk on the wide open, empty white sands of Luskentyre beach, Isle of Harris, Outer Hebrides.
#Luskentyre #photography #scotland #beach
— Mary Oliver
Two people taking a walk on the wide open, empty white sands of Luskentyre beach, Isle of Harris, Outer Hebrides.
#Luskentyre #photography #scotland #beach
“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.”
— Anaïs Nin
— Anaïs Nin
March 1, 2025 at 2:56 PM
“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.”
— Anaïs Nin
— Anaïs Nin
'Shieling', Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides. The big, brooding sky and brief spell of sunshine lighting up the grasses and the green roof added to the drama of this scene. Used when grazing cattle on upland summer pastures, dwellings like this were once commonplace. #photography #outerhebrides
February 26, 2025 at 1:43 PM
'Shieling', Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides. The big, brooding sky and brief spell of sunshine lighting up the grasses and the green roof added to the drama of this scene. Used when grazing cattle on upland summer pastures, dwellings like this were once commonplace. #photography #outerhebrides
The Irish west coast has so many wonderful gems with constantly changing light and conditions that make it all the more magical. A rainbow over the never less than spectacular Slieve League, County Donegal. #SlieveLeague #Ireland #photography #Donegal #rainbow
February 18, 2025 at 6:17 PM
The Irish west coast has so many wonderful gems with constantly changing light and conditions that make it all the more magical. A rainbow over the never less than spectacular Slieve League, County Donegal. #SlieveLeague #Ireland #photography #Donegal #rainbow
Do you want the truth or something beautiful? Louise Glück could give you double shots of both instantly. A mirror to life. In the UK at least I’m dumbfounded why she gets referenced so little. Each time I come back to this I’m just so stunned by its sheer power and beauty. “Yes risk joy” - #poetry
February 12, 2025 at 12:50 PM
Do you want the truth or something beautiful? Louise Glück could give you double shots of both instantly. A mirror to life. In the UK at least I’m dumbfounded why she gets referenced so little. Each time I come back to this I’m just so stunned by its sheer power and beauty. “Yes risk joy” - #poetry
There's still joy and beauty out there, amid the chaos and ruins of everything around us; we just need to find it, embrace it, share it. #snowdrops #nature #joy #sharing #photography
February 11, 2025 at 6:19 PM
There's still joy and beauty out there, amid the chaos and ruins of everything around us; we just need to find it, embrace it, share it. #snowdrops #nature #joy #sharing #photography
February 9, 2025 at 10:11 PM
“To write well it is entirely necessary to read widely and deeply. Good poems are the best teachers. Perhaps they are the only teachers. I would go as far as to say that, if one must make a choice between reading or taking part in a workshop, one should read.” Mary Oliver #poetry #blueskypoets
February 8, 2025 at 4:21 PM
“To write well it is entirely necessary to read widely and deeply. Good poems are the best teachers. Perhaps they are the only teachers. I would go as far as to say that, if one must make a choice between reading or taking part in a workshop, one should read.” Mary Oliver #poetry #blueskypoets
I volunteer my photography for the local animal shelter, Animal Rescue Cumbria. Love spending time with the dogs, hoping they go on to find caring owners. Prince is a handsome guy with lots of fab images but it's this 'side-eye' profile of him that made me laugh! #dogs #photography #animalshelter
January 27, 2025 at 4:10 PM
I volunteer my photography for the local animal shelter, Animal Rescue Cumbria. Love spending time with the dogs, hoping they go on to find caring owners. Prince is a handsome guy with lots of fab images but it's this 'side-eye' profile of him that made me laugh! #dogs #photography #animalshelter