The other weekend I met my talented Instagram friend Otto, for a photo walk around the city. It had been in the diary for weeks, which meant taking whatever the weather threw at us on the day. As it turned out, it was dull and grey, with rain forecast to move in as the afternoon progressed (what a surprise!).
Here are some images from the day, starting with my favourite.
The Walkie Talkie Building
This was the final location of our walk, on the top of a roof garden on Fenchurch St. The weather had become more unsettled, the wind had picked up, with squally showers blowing in. It felt wild and exposed. We were shooting through glass barriers, and had to deal with rain drops sticking to the surface of the glass. I was juggling a lenskirt (thank you for the loan, Otto!), my reading glasses, an umbrella and tripod, plus my camera bag. There was a lot going on. This photograph was taken the moment that a chink of light broke through the moody grey skies, and I love how it's illuminating the horizon, and the city buildings. I could never photograph the park in weather like this. A dramatic sky needs a vista of some sort, and this spot worked brilliantly. There are still some soft, out of focus blobs of rain, that are ever so slightly visible on the walkie talkie building, and I considered editing them out. Maybe I will at some point in the future, but for this post I've left them in.
Next, I've got a couple of architecture shots from a building near Moorgate. This is sooooo not my usual subject matter, but when in Rome... Also, I promised myself that I would experiment more this year, with different locations, subjects and techniques. Photography is a constant learning process, and I hope that by experimenting a little, I might improve as a photographer.
Look Up 1
Look Up 2
Patterns in Metal and Glass
This image is an architectural detail, from a very well know and photographed building, that stands next to the Monument to the Great Fire of London.
I really enjoyed taking the architecture photographs, but my favourite part of the day was being up on the rooftop, with the views and the invigorating weather blowing across the skyline. To finish off, here's an image of the raindrops on the glass walls, with the shard and a chink of sunset as a backdrop.
Dreaming of the Shard
We've had 2 good photography mornings already this week. A misty sunrise, and a bright, blue sky, foggy morning. There is fog and grey cloud forecast for Saturday, and I might try an urban area for that, rather than the park. Without a little sunlight to break up the murk and the bare trees, the park can tend to look a bit bleak at this time of year in gloomy fog. It's typical that I had 2 weeks off work and the weather was pants, and now I'm back at work, the weather is amazing... :)
I'd like to credit my friend Otto, for being excellent company, and for knowing this part of London so well. His Instagram is https://www.instagram.com/ottoberkeley/ and he is one of my favourite London photographers. For anyone interested in city photography, his work is well worth checking out.
I can be found on...
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cathgothard/
Website: www.cathgothard.com