then and now take two Archives

March 21, 2024

Then and Now Take Two Again – Edinburgh Tram

This is a regular series of blogs about photographs of the same place taken years apart. The first of the posts in this series was of a council building in Manchester. I always thought I should give then and now photographs a go. However what I have started to notice is that I have been doing Then and Now photographs unintentionally over the years and have been taking photographs of the same thing or place from the same view or perspective years apart. Now this has come to my attention I have started to intentionally take photographs of the same place.

This photograph was the Airport Tram stop in Edinburgh. The Edinburgh Tram started running in May 2014.

Though in the early 2000s I travelled to Edinburgh a fair bit, by the 2010s I had stopped travelling up there. In the 2000s I would catch the bus from the airport to the centre. On the 1st December 2014 I made a trip to Edinburgh for a conference, it my first opportunity to travel on the then new tram. I took a photograph from the Airport Tram stop down the line.

Of course you take a photograph and then think nothing of it.

Five years later I am heading off to Edinburgh once more, I hadn’t been to Edinburgh in the intervening period, though I had been to Glasgow a fair few times. Arriving at Edinburgh Airport and heading towards Haymarket the obvious thing was to take the Tram. Waiting at the stop I decided to take a photograph….

Not quite the same photograph, but pretty close.

I was back in Edinburgh in November 2019 as well, but didn’t take a photograph of the Tram stop.

I was back in Edinburgh in November 2022 and I intentionally took this photographs from the same perspective on the 16th November 2022.

It’s actually more central than the other two and it was taken directly into the sun!

On a visit to Edinburgh in March 2024, though I had caught the train to Edinburgh (from London), I travelled back to Bristol by air. This photograph was taken with an iPhone 13.

March 18, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park

I was back at Loughborough University for a conference. I have visited the university a few times before. I took this photograph of a view of the Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park from the first floor of the Holywell Park Conference Centre in September 2007. It was taken with a Nokia N73.

When I looked at the image a few years ago, I couldn’t recall where I had taken it, I knew I had taken it at a MoLeNET planning meeting, but I really couldn’t remember where we had met. MoLeNET was the Mobile Learning Network, which was created by the Learning and Skills Network (LSN) in 2007 to facilitate and deliver a range of mobile learning projects for further education. As well as running projects, I was also a MoLeNET Mentor and helped to mentor other projects in the initiative. We had a fair number of planning meetings, which took place across the UK, sometimes in London, Leeds and this place. Having worked out that this September 2007 meeting was probably in Loughborough, I did a Google Street View search. It wasn’t Burleigh Court (where I had been as recently as October 2016) and I think that’s why I initially I didn’t think it was Loughborough.

So in March 2024 I was back at Holywell Park Conference Centre I realised I could take a similar photograph, so I did with an iPhone 13.

March 15, 2024March 14, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Grassmarket

Though I have visited Edinburgh lots of times, it has always been for work. My first holiday to Edinburgh was in 2021. Then we had a lot more time to explore the city and I took this photograph of Grassmarket. It was taken on a lovely sunny day in August 2021 using an iPhone 8.

So when I was back in a damp Edinburgh in March 2024, and was walking pass the same area, I took the same photograph using an iPhone 13.

February 15, 2024February 15, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Grosvenor Hotel

I recently posted some then and now photographs of The Grosvenor Hotel in Redcliffe Bristol.

The Grosvenor Hotel in Redcliffe Bristol, which has been an eyesore for ages was demolished this week. I was looking through my photographs of the hotel and realised, I had taken some similar photographs of the ruined hotel.

I was back in Bristol in February 2024 and took a photograph of the partially demolished hotel from the same perspective as the other photographs I had taken of the hotel over the last few years.

This photograph was taken in August 2023.

This was a similar shot taken in February 2022.

This photograph was taken in June 2021.

It was a pity it was left for so long, it was a really nice looking building.

February 3, 2024February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Kings College Chapel

On a recent visit to Cambridge in December 2023 I took an intentional photograph of Kings College Chapel as I had taken two other similar photographs of the chapel unintentionally.

I had also taken an intentional similar shot when I was in Cambridge in April 2023. Then it had more scaffolding, and the tree in front had some spring leaves on it.

On a visit to Cambridge, I had taken this photograph of Kings College Chapel in July 2022.

I had been looking at posts on this blog with the cambridge tag when I noticed that back in January 2020 (pre-pandemic) I had taken a virtually identical photograph of Kings College Chapel.

January 15, 2024February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Odeon Cinema

This photo of the Odeon was taken in November 2014 with an Apple iPhone 5s.

The Odeon closed in June 2023 and was taken over by independent chain, Plaza in August 2023. They spent some time refurbishing the cinema before re-opening.

This photo was taken in January. 2023 with an iPhone 13.

Went to see Wonka at the weekend at the new Plaza. It’s lovely musical fantasy film. A great prequel to the classic 1971 film. Great cast and excellent writing. Though it is not set anywhere specifically I noticed bits of Oxford in the background.

However, there was no heating in the cinema. As a result we had to keep our coats on. This did impact on our enjoyment of the film. I doubt I would go again, as it was rather chilly.

January 14, 2024February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Crag Path

In the 1970s and 1980s I would visit Aldeburgh a lot, as we had family there. Having moved to the South West, I have rarely visited there in the last twenty five years.

We had a family holiday in November 2008, it was windy, cold and damp.

I did take a few photographs, using my DSLR Canon EOS400D including this picture of the North Lookout on the beach. From also the same perspective I took a photograph of the houses on Crag Path.

On a recent return visit to Aldeburgh in January 2024 I took a similar photograph using an iPhone 13.

The houses have remained the same, but some have been repainted, balconies added, windows replaced. The parked cars look very different as well.

January 13, 2024February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – North Lookout

In the 1970s and 1980s I would visit Aldeburgh a lot, as we had family there. Having moved to the South West, I have rarely visited there in the last twenty five years.

We had a family holiday in November 2008, it was windy, cold and damp.

I did take a few photographs, using my DSLR Canon EOS400D including this picture of the North Lookout on the beach.

It was the location of the original lifeboat station.

On a recent return visit to Aldeburgh in January 2024 I took a similar photograph using an iPhone 13.

December 28, 2023February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Trinity Lane, Cambridge

This is the view of Trinity Lane in Cambridge, taken with an iPhone 13.

I have now taken this shot a fair few times.

I grew up in Cambridge, but moved away when I went to university in York. I remember rarely visiting the University of Cambridge as a youngster, why would I? However I did do some specialist maths classes at Trinity College, so would walk down Trinity Lane.

This is a photograph of Trinity Lane taken in April 2023 with an iPhone 13.

This photograph was taken in July 2022 with an iPhone 13.

This was taken in the middle of the day in bright sunshine.

I stayed over in Cambridge back in January 2020 I took this photograph of Trinity Lane.

I took this with an iPhone 8 in late afternoon I did edit and enhance the image with Snapseed, but the iPhone was able to deal with the low light conditions so much better.

It was back in March 2009 when I was at a JISC RSC Eastern event in Cambridge I did take the time the day before to walk around the town and took this photograph of Trinity Lane.

It was taken in the early evening with a Sony DSC-W53 camera, which to be honest struggled with the low light conditions.

December 1, 2023February 7, 2024

Then and Now Take Two – Where’s Santa?

I have taken this view at Cabot Circus a fair few times, one big difference this year is that there is no Santa. This photo was taken in November 2023.

This photograph was taken last year on the 26th November 2022.

I remembered I had taken a photograph in the same location, back on December 8th 2019. I was on my way to do a pick up from the Vue Cinema, so I took a photograph of the festive Cabot Circus.

I also wrote about it back then as well and in that post I used an image I found searching Flickr from December 2012. It would seem I am not alone in taking photographs from that vantage point outside House of Fraser.