A few days ago, I was in central London with some free time. It was a very cold day, but at least the sun was out and London was looking its best. I fancied a gentle walk, as much as anything to take in London's changing riverside.
The pictures here are from a walk between Battersea Power Station and the London Eye along the river bank and popping onto various bridges as I went. It was the middle of the afternoon by the time I started in beautiful sunshine, and I ended well after sunset.
Battersea Power Station is all newly — and beautifully — restored: but, as is the way of these things, it has been repurposed as a shopping centre, a kind of Bluewater-on-Thames, empty of customers on a cold January midweek afternoon. Incidentally, around the Power Station are some very pleasant eateries: I stopped for a late Malaysian lunch at Roti King, a most enjoyable and friendly place.
I won't say much about the pictures, but I'll add a caption to each. I just took the Sony A1, 16-35 and 24-105 lenses. My general philosophy for an afternoon like this is one-camera-one-lens. Two lenses are more than I generally like to carry, but there were some specific shots I'd thought of with the 16-35, the opening picture being one of them. I didn't take a tripod, and for long exposures relied either on the camera's own stabilisation, or just simply perched the camera on a convenient wall or barrier.
One small observation: London felt like it was back to its old self, which is a wonderful relief. There were endless tourists, many from Asia and frequently queuing patiently for the most Instagram-friendly spot for a selfie. I ended the day getting the tube from Westminster where there were hordes of workers on their way home. Unsurprisingly, there were the sounds of a demo coming down Whitehall — the surprise comes from the fact that the nurses are on strike for the first time in my lifetime, and it was their voices I could hear.
Patterns and lines, Battersea Power Station
White suit, black hat
Washing line art in front of new apartments by Battersea Power Station
Vauxhall Bridge lit up in afternoon sun
US Embassy and Flag
The Sky Pool, Embassy Gardens
Looking downriver from Lambeth Bridge just after sunset.
Illuminated Lambeth Bridge and buildings upstream of it.
London Eye and lights along the Albert Embankment path
Houses of Parliament after dark reflected in the Thames
After dark, looking upstream from Westminster Bridge
The London Eye reflected in the River Thames after dark