Black and White London

Recently I finally had the money together to get myself a wide angle lens (a Sigma 10-20mm), something I'd been after for a long time; now I just needed an opportunity to put it through its paces. So it was with great excitement that I found myself with a spare day off work but, as it approached, I could see that the weather was not going to be doing me any favours. The rain that presented itself in the morning could best be described as Biblical. This meant that I didn't have the time to get out of London to somewhere pretty and green as I'd hoped. Fortunately, the weather picked up in the afternoon and I decided to revisit one of my favourite locations: the Thames between Westminster and Tower Bridges. This faithful 3 miles has provided me with many a photo opportunity and family day out alike.

South transept of St. Paul's cathedral

As I was so familiar with the area I wanted to try something other than rehashing the same old photos I already had and, as the weather was rather mixed, I thought I would give black and white photography a try. I had never really taken to B+W in the past, I like to try and faithfully reproduce what I can see in front of me and, as I see in colour, that's how I like to do things. Also, I was aware that with B+W photography you really have to take a different approach to that of colour. It's a much more back to basics technique. By removing the distraction of the colours you have to focus much more on line, form, the Rule of Thirds and so on to still be able to produce a strong image. For example, if a double decker bus creeps into your composition it isn't such a disaster because you won't have a big splurge of red in your shot, but it may still ruin the lines that you're trying to capture.

Underside of the Hungerford Bridge

The moody sky was lending itself to this new format very well, as was the Thames and the many historic buildings that line it. The new wide angle lens allowed me to fit more into my shots then I ever have before but I had to be very careful (or embrace) the distortions that started to creep in once you got much past 15mm. At 10mm it is verging on being a fish eye lens, which is a whole different kettle of fish altogether. With the lens wide open converging verticals became a serious issue, but one that won't be nearly as significant on rolling hills as it is in cities with their rigid architecture.

The view from Canada square

Once I got to Tower Bridge I decided to pop down to Canary Wharf as there are several night time shots I've been wanting to get down there which my kit lens had previously prevented me from doing. The new lens certainly opened these up but as it was very near the summer solstice I didn't want to hang around for the five or six hours until nightfall. Next time I'm down there at night I know I can get what I need. Another new shot that the lens opened up was one looking directly up from Canada Square with the surrounding skyscrapers forming a monolithic frame on each side. I would need the early eastern sun for that to work properly though as otherwise the buildings are all in shadow and too dark.

Pedestrian bridge at West India Quay

Considering I was working with a new lens and a new style I was pretty pleased with my results, I managed to get three or four respectable shots out of an afternoons shooting. Result: more practice required.