Views of London- Sunset Over the City

London has, from it's very inception, been dependant upon the flow of trade along the Thames. With the relative cheapness of water-borne transport, this hasn't changed much, a fact compounded by the expensive nature of innovations in water-transport such as hovercraft and hydrofoils. So what you are seeing here is a scene that hasn't changed much for centuries. and in terms of the sunset itself, for millenia.

I don't see London so much as a place to see the contrast between new and old, to the extent that Tokyo is. I see it more as a land of continuity, where even very old things are restored to be still useful in today's world- A tale of two cities!

THE END

Views of London- London Street

Just a London building, but oh, so detailed when the HDR is applied. They don't make them like they used to, and as a matter of fact, they never did make them quite like this!

Views of London- The Gherkin

The Gherkin, or the Swiss Ree Tower, whatever you call it, is quite a unique sight. I'd been waiting ages to get a good glimpse of this mysterious building, yet as it is designed to be unobtrusive, it always seems to be hiding behind something near it, so it's as if the closer you get, the further away it seems. I managed to find this angle, though, which also shows how it fits in with much older buildings. What I like about it is that unlike so many unoriginal modern buildings, it's an experience to behold.

Views of London- The Lion

A Trafalgar Square lion. Puchinka's big brother, if you will. What once guarded an empire is now nothing more than a toy to be clamboured on by kiddies- The meek will inherit the Earth!

Views of London- Hall of Freedom

Another view of the Tate Modern. Notice the motion-blur of moving people and also how something about the place encourages them to each 'do their own thing'. This is in direct contrast to many examples of modern architecture which encourage a uniform efficiency, with everyone rushing in the same direction, concentrating on making it on time to somewhere else, lest, horror of horrors, they be late.

Yet here, despite the building's size, no-one rushes, instead leaning to get different views, chattering, sauntering around and listening to whatever weird sounds are playing, in what has become one of the world's largest installations.

Views of London- Gates of Light

Here is one of my fave new additions to London, the Tate Modern gallery. Built in one of the most ugly and depressing-looking buildings of my childhood, the abandoned Battersea Power Station (also featured on the cover of Pink Floyd's seminal album, Animals). What makes it for me is the sense of vastness in this building and the feeling that the whole thing is a great experiment. It's a delicious irony, that what was once a temple to social engineering should become one to the freedom of the human spirit.

I see the light flooding through the gates as that freedom, with everyone drawn irresistibly towards it, the great flow of liberated humanity.

Views of London- Puchinka

And here we have the cat that my mum calls Puchinka. Nothing to do with the Japanese gambling game by a similar name (pachinko), but a beautiful Persian cat. She likes to come and hang around at the house, even climbing in our third-story windows! The name came from our distant background in Russian culture and the fact that she looks a bit like a snow-princess.

Views of London- Vestry Mews

This is our garden in Vestry Mews, Camberwell. The table is a lovely place to have breakfast or a cool drink, whilst enjoying the fragrances and sounds of nature. Notice the pottery faces on the far wall- all of them were hand-made in Suffolk and seem like the spirits of the place. Also, note the sundial and bird-bath. There's nothing like a warm day in the garden in the middle of summer.

Views of London- Local Rose

Here's a local house in Camberwell- well a local rose, at least. Walking by in the early morning, I was struck by the attention people pay to their gardens, brightening up the street with them.

Views of London- Orange Rose

An Orange Rose.

Hello, back again! After quite a hiatus due to my trip back, it's time to say more about those days in the life I've had over the summer. How better to do that than with HDR and tone-mapping? This is a rose from my mother's garden, at it's very peak. Tone-mapping really brings out the details that the bright sunlight can hide.