Sunrise January 2009

The weather's been very crisp (Primrose Hill's grass was frozen) but mostly dry. I woke up to see some beautiful purple light shining through my window... so just grabbed the point-and-shoot. I didn't have time to make any tweaks to the contrast etc, but felt it was best just to post the image as it is. In the summertime you can't see the buildings through all the leaves!

Primrose Hill in autumn

Followers of this blog know that I regularly take photos of the changing seasons at Primrose Hill, and have done so ever since I first started! I live 5 minutes walk away and just three weeks ago there were no leaves on the grass, and was able to sit and have a picnic with the sun shining down.

Primrose Hill, Easter 2008

I haven't been able to get any decent photos of the snow falling, and it hasn't really accumulated around central London. It's falling right now, quite lightly, and the flakes are kind of small, but it's pretty to watch!

Yesterday morning I walked through Regent's Park and on to Primrose Hill to see if there was any snow action. Apart from a few flakes here and there, it was just very cold!

Also -- I've turned comments off again. Sorry. The last post I made received 1000 spams! I need to upgrade this site and give it a revamp as it is now 4.5 years old.

Snow!

It's been a winter without snow. But finally - in late March of all months - there is a little bit of it coming down right now outside. Probably not enough to make a lasting impact (or indeed to get any good photos out of...) but it's still nice to see a few flakes!

After the rain

Puddles in Regent's Park, after a downpour last month.

Another leaf

Another leaf - in Camden

Autumn leaves

Autumn leaves, outside School of Oriental and African Studies, London

Changing seasons

Last month there was snow, but now all the daffodils and cherry blossoms are out. Regent's Park is the easy place for me to take photos of the changing seasons, I know, but it is still quite apt! All I had was my camera phone, unfortunately, so there's some vignetting around the edges of the pics.

Peeing snowman

People pee on snowmen but can snowmen pee?

Rain, rain rain in London

Today it's been raining all day long. My shoes are drenched. We took a bus down Oxford Street after brunch, and watched the waves of umbrellas bobbing by.

An afternoon at Spitalfields

This morning, it rained. Then it was sunny. Then it rained. Then it was cloudy. Then the sun came out.

Then it rained lots. Then the sun came out (again).

Then we went out to Spitalfields market and had a late lunch and bought some groceries. Then it rained really hard so we stood undercover and watched people walking by. Then the sun came out. And it's stayed out.

The end.

Heatwave in London

It was a heatwave in London this weekend - and it felt just like Christmas time back in the last 1990s. Yes, I'm originally from the Southern Hemisphere. In fact, the mood is rather weird, and I hope the photo kind of explains it. Rob spotted the pink cloud first and I just had to take a photo of it.

Absolutely no one was wearing jackets and the heat was so stifling. The beer and the water was warm, the fridges were defrosting, I braved the hot and sweaty buses but didn't dare take the Tube.

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Most polluted street gets makeover!

Where Euston Rd meets Marylebone road is the UK's worst hotspot for diesel pollution. Unluckily for me, my office is right on this filthy stretch of belching trucks (lorries, as they say here). However, notice how a little snow can sometimes seem like all the fumes are yesterday's news...?

Fitzroy Square, footprints

Footprints in the snow at Fitzroy Square, London.

There one minute, gone the next

I managed to take a few snowy photos this morning with the point and shoot digital camera, just before work began. The snow had accumulated in the parks and on the footpaths. Three hours later, everything had melted and the sun had come out. That's London for you! I'll post them late tonight or tomorrow morning :)

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

OK< so it's not Central Park, but it did end up snowing a little down London way this week. Here are a few photographs!!

Regent's Park, snow view.

View of the Barbican apartments which overlook a snowy square.

A woman goes for a stroll around 9am today.

The football field in Regent's Park is empty.

For my previous snow photos, see these Regent Park ones and these ones taken in Farringdon and Hampstead.

Tantalisingly Close To Sticky Snow

The London weather's been teasing us this week. It snowed quite heavily for oh, all of five minutes. And we got a few bits of dust this afternoon. Then a minute later it became all sunny again. Not good enough... I need to take some more London snow photos! :)

Here's one I took in a hurry from the windows at work just before it stopped... I was actually more interested in taking a short video clip with my digital camera.

Pinch of Notting Hill

Had been a while since I'd been to Notting Hill. As usual, the place was heaving with tourists here and there - definitely a place to hold onto your bag. Stopped and had a nice quick lunch at Mike's cafe, then had a look at some of the speciality bookshops across the road.

Houses of Parliament

Taken a couple of days ago just after the snowfall, opposite County Hall.

After the snowfall

Yes, it really did snow in London! And it was bloody cold. This photo was taken from the second floor of my office. After the brief snowfall in London earlier this evening, the roads are now covered in ice and slush. After work, we wandered past South Bank and took a few photos, but mine are all pretty blurred. We took shelter in a pub while my toes thawed out!

London evening, snowtime!

Exmouth Market, 5.30pm: Snow falls. Hard. For about 20 minutes. By 6.15pm, the city is full of slush and icy footpaths and roads. Traffic is clogged. Yay!

Cold glass window

I was inspired by Hatakeyama's Slow Glass series and decided to take a similar 'raindrops and glass in focus/background not 'image out of my kitchen window one recent afternoon. I wonder it makes you feel warm and cosy inside. (If you recall, this is the same window where our now dormant flower lives! he weather has changed a little since that photo, too. There are still a few leaves on the flower guy, but he's asleep for the time being.)

Other updates to the site: There are now most recent comments listed in the sidebar (not that I get that many).

Am considering adding "seasons" as categories rather than lumping almost everything under "photo". Any thoughts on this?

Have a good weekend!

More Olafur Eliasson at the Tate Modern

Another image of the Weather Project installation at the Tate Modern. We went again on Saturday night, but somehow the effect wasn't the same - not sure why, exactly, but perhaps it had something to do with the lack of daylight coming into the building? There were also a lot more people there from contortionists to students protesting against fees to really frivolous people yelling, "Oh, so good to see you, I like your top!"

Olafur Eliasson at the Tate, smoke and mirrors

Crap camera phone pic for now - will go back to take better ones soon, but I couldn't resist...



Guess who?

So, yes... Went to see The Weather Project at the Tate Modern today... it was very impressive! Enter the Turbine Hall and you'll see a misty, smoky atmosphere with a huge sun in the distance. Look closer and the sun is, in fact, simply a back-lit semi circle reflected in slanted mirrors four stories high. Dozens of people were lying on the ground looking at themselves. We also went to lie down and gaze up at ourselves and everyone else. Smoke and mirrors indeed! Find out more at the official site.

PS: AG, RG is emailing you :)

Taxis & payphones in the snow

On the walk to work

In January 2003 we were treated to a rare sight in London: worthwhile amounts of snow! On the way to work I snapped a black cab etc. It's taken me this long to scan in the film.

My SX-70 bridge polarioid thingie has been getting lots of visitors - there will be more of these types of photos posted here soon, because Mr Gardiner has quite a few more in his album too - the London Eye, the 38 bus, etc!

A Snowy London Morning

Regent's Park in January
Let's hope this season will be as crisp and snow white as it was earlier this year!