If you like Architecture, you will love London’s huge variety of styles, periods and sizes. The City of London’s skyline is rapidly growing taller, from the lone Natwest Tower in the 80’s, then Lloyds and the Gherkin appeared, now we have several new ones of various shapes and sizes.

On a recent trip I enjoyed a couple of hours around this area, walking from London Bridge to the Gherkin and back. Using mainly 70-200 and 12-14 lenses to get different perspectives on the buildings.

 

 

The Walkie Talky – 20 Fenchurch St.

This strange looking building is one of the newest, it’s still under construction. It has it’s own Wiki page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20_Fenchurch_Street) and is famous for melting a jaguar car last year! It’s curved walls focussed light onto the road below, creating hot spots

A team of window cleaners were there – their orange coats making them stand out against the predominantly blue and white scene.

Taking shots with the long lens at acute angles made the most interesting shots. The “fins” converge to give a gradually changing pattern which gradually hides the glass windows.

 

The Gherkin – 30 St. Mary Axe

Again there’s a wiki page on this iconic building here – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/30_St_Mary_Axe

It’s surprisingly small – tall, yes, but the plan area is a very small circle. The amazing helical steel work makes a pattern of triangular glass panels which are a dream to photograph.

From far away use the 70-200 to juxtapose the old London with the space age design of this building.

I did take a lot of photos with the 12mm lens, but close up, it looked very strange. The distortion made it look like a bizarre umpa-lumpa rather than this beautiful structure.

The Lloyds Building

The shapes, reflections and other-worldly look of this structure make it my number 1 building to shoot in London.

Even it it were just fire one escape stair well, it’d be a dream. But we have many lifts shooting up and down, lots of stairs, pipes and steam, reflections in neighbouring buildings… it’s just a true gem which needs to be savoured and studied. Go there on a sunday morning – there will be no one there, no distractions. Just get your wide and long lens and test your composition skills on its infinite possibilities.

 

So Next time you’re in London, before you shoot all the old buildings, take a quick walk around the City – you will get some amazing opportunities, on any day!