During winter, I often notice the city lights more than I would during other times of the year. The short days and long nights highlights the amount of light cities use. They also allow the use of light creatively to offset the bleakness of the time of year.
Much of the city lights are often unnoticed in some ways as they are always there. However, I started noticing the light as I left to and from work. There is a side street that passes under London Bridge’s train tracks. It caught my eye recently as it was light up with purple light. One could easily pass by the side street and miss the purple light – it’s there, but subtly.
I snapped a few shots of it in colour as it lent itself to colour. I am sure that a black and white image would be stunning, but in an entirely different way. What I found important was the colour. It wasn’t simply white light, but purple. I was also interested in how it interacted with its environment. It seemed to contrast against the yellowish light given off by the streetlights, buildings and cars. I did wonder how many people noticed it.
What also caught my eye as I wondered around the Thames nearby was the use of light on the buildings and structures across the river in the City of London.