Ceiling lights

Sitting in a local coffee shop recently I looked around for anything that might make a decent photograph. I'd already secured the self-portrait posted on the blog before this one. As I looked around I was taken by the mixture of ceiling lights in the shop. Looking further I concluded that the best selection was directly above my head. I remembered, several years ago, taking a semi-abstract photograph of a lamp, showing its effect on the ceiling, and the lines of the corner of the room. Perhaps, I thought, I can make a similar sort of image. I'm reasonably pleased with the outcome.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Who needs window dressers?

Window dressing is, I'm told, a job. If you aspire to the heights of that line of work I imagine you end up dressing windows in somewhere like Oxford Street, London. But, there is another way of encouraging people to stop and examine the items you are selling. Simply cram the windows of your establishment with the multifarious objects you sell. That seems to be the approach of The Architectural Store in Ross on Wye, Herefordshire, which has several windows filled in this manner. And, it works. After I had taken my photograph I crossed the street to look at what was for sale.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Gloomy city

This photograph was taken at the end of January when we had a few days in London. It was taken in the early evening as the daylight was fading and man-made lighting was starting to appear in the streets and offices of the city. Looking at it I'm reminded how hideous most of the new towers are at an individual level, and how they are even worse collectively. I chose to put this shot on the blog now because today, unlike the day I made the image, it seems to capture the gloom that is descending on the city and country as the spread of coronavirus quickens daily.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

The Shard from below

Over the years, during my visits to London, I've documented the construction of the skyscraper known as The Shard. From the appearance above its neighbours of its services core, to its growth to a prominent skyline "under construction" feature, to its completion as a constantly changing, well-named tower, I've regularly added to my stock of photographs of the building. I've photographed it at night, from the streets, in low cloud, from below etc. But one view I hadn't got until my recent visit is a shot from below taken at night. The need to use London Bridge Railway station to travel to Blackheath put me in the right position for the photograph above.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony RX100

Gothic Revival

The nineteenth century revived the use of the Gothic style of architecture. Probably the two UK buildings that most celebrate the "Gothic Revival" are the Houses of Parliament (though this has a classical plan onto which Pugin applied Gothic decoration) and the railway hotel at St Pancras. The latter, which opened in 1873 as the Midland Grand Hotel, was the work of George Gilbert Scott. He was one of the most prolific of Victorian architects, known mainly for his churches, but also for many notable public and commercial buildings. My photograph shows one of the pedestrian tunnels that connect the outside front of the hotel with the platforms of the station. It is a splendid example of Scott's mastery of brickwork, terracotta detailing and light.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Harrods drive by

The photograph above was a snapshot from the car as we drove out of London after a few days there at Christmas. Lest you think otherwise I must point out that I was not driving. Christmas and its associated festivities, decorations etc doesn't quite grab me in the way that it did when our children were small. However, I couldn't let this rather effective delineation with lights of the Harrods store pass without a quick snap.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Evening, King's Cross Station, London

If we travel to and from London by rail we arrive and depart at King's Cross railway station. This wonderful, essentially Victorian building, stands next to St Pancras railway station, another Victorian masterpiece that has quite different qualities from its neighbour. I've photographed the main entrance elevation of King's Cross before in the evening, though on that occasion it was somewhat earlier. So, for this shot in full darkness I stood a little further back, opened the 17mm (34mm/35mm equiv.) lens up to f1.8, and relied on this together with the effective image stabilisation of the camera body, to keep my image sharp. The camera chose ISO 2000 which is quite reasonable should I wish to print from the image

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Ceiling lights

Too many of today's products are styled with an eye to appealing to a buyer, going out of fashion and prompting another purchase before the object itself has completed its potential life-span. Some of the best, however, are designed with function uppermost in the mind of the designer, without an overlay of styling or fashion. The ceiling lights in today's photograph are a case in point. They offer, through the recessed light and the reflectors, lighting that does not glare and functions well in an office (or gallery as in this instance). That they also offer interesting semi-abstract shapes to the passing photographer is a bonus.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10