the theme this week was architecture and given that I’m lucky enough to live in a city full of wonderful architecture all I had to do was get on a train and take a picture of St Paul’s, the Tower of London, or even one of the modern monstrosities like the Shard or Gherkin.
Now where would the fun be in that, it’s just not my style to do things the easy way and anyway I really wanted to try to capture some of the gritty old buildings in my own town of Croydon (a suburb on the Southern outskirts of Greater London) it doesn’t have the best reputation and I’m sure that some of you at least will remember the images of large swathes of it being on fire during last years rioting.
I’ve lived here going on for 10 years now and despite one burglary have been fortunate enough to personally avoid any incidences of street crime or antisocial behavior, maybe I look tough or maybe I just look poor, I certainly am not stupid enough to think that this isn’t a tough area and I don’t take too many risks.
anyway this weeks theme has turned into a bit of a photo essay with lots of grimy gritty shots and odd injections of colour.
end of terrace
Above is the end of terrace shot I chose for my actual project submission mostly because I like the strong contrast and lines.
opposite end
This is the opposite end of the same row of terraces.
Grimey Pub
despite walking past this pub almost every day it is so dingy and grimey that I’ve never even ventured through its doors and I like pubs with atmosphere and sawdust on the floor.
honestly it’s lovely
There’s a really odd mix of light industrial buildings mixed in with Victorian era terraces, if it wasn’t for all the satellite dishes this picture could have been taken any time in the last 100 years.
what happened to the window
see there is colour here, one wonders what happened to the window though.
union doors
I love the way these doors look like a union flag
door to nowhere
I can’t recall if it was the door or the pipe that were wonky
an injection of colour
I just liked the lines and colour of this factory
come and visit
it’s a truly lovely corner of south-east England
beach house anyone?
I can honestly think of no reason why there is an Art Deco beach apartment block in the middle of this industrial estate.
who knows
again I’m at a loss as to the point of these decorative touches.
it’s not all bad though
there are some truly lovely architectural touches too.
And nature is even trying to reclaim some of the more hideous buildings
There is even some interesting textures available to be had
I hope that you’ve enjoyed this little porthole into my local architecture and the area where I live.
Next week we’re going to be talking about love and what that means so keep your diaries free.
Please let me know what you think in the comments section below
TTFN
Mr Bunny Chow
The life and photography of Mr Bunny Chow 
Beautiful pictures. I particularly like the door with the spiral staircase.
that’s one of my favourites too, no idea where it was going to or from just a door with no obvious external access in the side of an old factory, a relic of a bygone age I suspect.
as always thanks for visiting Zelmare
Some really good shots Rob. You certainly have an eye for the unusual. Do like some of the colour shots. Must have been a good day!
ta Pa it was a fun evening
A bit heavy on the vignetting with some…no? 😉
Great shots though!
I do have a weakness for a bit of heavy vignetting, personal taste that’s not to that of many others.
Great shots! I especially like the first one. Thanks for sharing these.
it was my favourite too
I was unable to load the “union doors” and it made me curious… What are they hiding! 🙂
I enjoyed reading and seeing all your architecture photos, glad you didn’t went for the easy way.
That old black & white processing and vignetting made me feel inside the ambience.
Hi Rossana,
thanks for stopping by and I’m glad you like the shots, I’m not sure why the union doors won’t open for you, I’ve been back and double checked and the shot is still there, it’s basically a shot of some rusty garage doors who’s bracing looks a little like the union flag, if you are really curious send me an email to rantingmrbunnychow@gmail.com and I’ll send you a copy.
TTFN
Mr BC