Acres of glass
Hammersmith, my corner of west London, has more than its fair share of modern office blocks, filling the spaces damaged during the war – sometimes with a lot of over-zealous urban planning.
But this was more of a photographic exercise. In stable summer daytime conditions, I took my tripod and shot three different exposures for each picture to eliminate any handshake. I merged them together to create some richer, denser images with greater tone than usual.
They didn’t come out with that very saturated feel of HDR, but seem to have more impact, partly thanks to the summer skies and bright light I was blessed with.
This set also contains two photographs of Hammersmith’s main church, St Paul’s, to show it’s not all acres of contemporary glass facades in this part of town.
Click first image to launch the gallery
mikeosbornphoto 
Wonderful insight on merging exposure for richer content.. kudos.
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Thank you Magnus. I think it was worth the extra effort. I value your visit and comment.
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A rich selection of images. Like the depth and richness in them but not sure if it’s a benefit of the 3 merged without seeing just one to compare. The Quatro building is intriguing, I had at first thought you had somehow combined different shots from different angles, but this is as is, wow! And damn you, you had me counting pigeons on the church :)
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Thanks so much, Lee. Well there was some variation with the single exposures, but I still made some tweaks in the edit to bring out that solid feel. That’s one corner of ‘Quatro’, I hadn’t seen it from that perspective before! Just glad there is the respite of the church in the midst of all that glass…
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Agreed :)
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Modern architecture and blue skies are a winning combination 😊
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Thanks Mark, I have to agree. Was it worth the extra mile doing triple exposures?…
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That’s hard to say without having the single exposures to compare against, but they do look good with deep, vibrant colours and plenty of detail.
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I don’t have HDR merge on my PSE but sometimes think that effect is a little too removed from the truth. But I think it helped to enrich the finished products.
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Reblogged this on rebloggobbler.
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Thank you for sharing, Douglas!
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You bet! Looking great!
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Much appreciated :)
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My honor! Hope you are well!
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Good, thank you. I trust it’s all good for you over there in the sunshine.
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Indeed! wore myself out yesterday walking for hours shooting in town. Now my brain refuses to do all that much! :)
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It’s hard work, isn’t it? And a break afterwards is only right. I took my camera to some, er, interesting London spots yesterday!
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Yes it is and then you get back home and you are only starting! Your trip yesterday sounds intriguing. I can hardly wait!
PS Haven’t forgotten plan to feature you. Just behind. Will get there! Hope to see your new work soon.
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Thanks Douglas, there’s never any hurry! And too true, the hard work really starts once the material has been gathered… keeping an eye out for your new stuff as well.
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Some nice images there, Mike! Nothing like a decent tower block to get the architectural juices flowing! I’m about to start properly sorting the photos from day out by the canal, so you may even get to see my take on the Trellick Tower soon! :)
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Thanks Richard, and what do you think of the triple exposure effort? I think it may have galvanised the images, but not entirely sure. A bit more Brutalism? Bring it on!
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I think the triple exposure works really well! :)
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I was expecting more of a slightly garish HDR effect, but as it goes I’m not a huge fan of that!
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I love the contrast between old and new and how you’ve used the elements of sun and sky in the photos. Nice work Mr. Osborn!
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Thank you very much, Mr Koostwinder! It helped to have such a clear, sunny day. I’m still wondering if it was worth doing three exposures for each and merging them…
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St Paul’s is a welcome oasis. Rehearsed there once for something or other.
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It is, in the glass and metal desert that is Hammersmith Broadway. But the more contemporary buildings create some smart images!
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They do indeed. You make the area look very exciting! Do you know what I really miss? The mish-mash of buildings clumped together in the middle of the Broadway with the old bus station!
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Oh the bus station is still there, it feels old and clumped to me! The newest addition to the skyline is ‘Quatro’, with more luxury housing blocks to follow nearby…
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I know the bus station is still there but it’s nothing like it was. Perhaps you’re too young to remember what it was all like before they turned it into the shopping mall with bus station on top. It had such quirky charm.
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I’ve been around these here parts for a mere 12 years, so I don’t remember it any differently to now, charming that it is!
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:) I’m now procrastinating by continuing to search for photos of the area in the 60s, 70s and 80s. I should be finishing today’s post. Thank you for a more than enjoyable diversion!
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You’re very welcome! I tend to blame it all on the Second World War, but the mistakes were made when it came to filling those spaces and later, I think.
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Without a doubt.
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