Friday 4 April 2014

London Smog

London doesn't exactly have a good track record as far as air quality goes.

For days now, a yellowish-gray haze has enveloped the city, stinging the eyes and causing much respiratory distress.  After a brutally wet winter here, some dry weather is certainly welcome.  Unfortunately, the combination of pollution and the mist coming off the Thames with no rain to dampen it has combined with winds blowing sand in from the Sahara has created a perfect smog storm of sorts.

Here's some pictures from the BBC, because I can't be arsed to haul my camera anywhere when the light is this dull.

Pollution in London



 Pictures of the smog get old fast.  "Wow, that's a lot of smog, I hear they have worse in Beijing".   Throw a ham hock in that mess and you'll have a hearty soup in no time at all.

The London skyline seen from Greenwich (buildings in the distance are barely visible through smog)

Cyclist wearing an air pollution mask

London landmarks are kind of dull in the murk.

I haven't been shooting at all lately.  I miss it.  I went for a walk today and took a few pictures, but the fact the lighting is hazy and crap did me no favors.  Everything is turning brilliant springtime green, but you wouldn't be able to see that.  At night, the flares off headlights and streetlights give the landscape a surreal quality.  I also feel the need to wash my face about eight times a day, as my skin will just get a greasy dirt coating after just a quick walk outside.

I hope this lifts soon.  I have already considered putting pea soup on the banished list for life because of this event.

4 comments:

  1. Sounds gross. Reminds me of one of my first trips to Florida when it was so hot and humid, as soon as you walked out the door, you felt the need to take a shower because you were sticky and dirty again. As for shooting pics, take your camera out and work with the smog. You might be surprised at what you get. Try not to look at it as interfering with your subject, but dare I say, enhancing it. When I look at the pictures, all I see is fog, which is only half as bad as smog, lol.
    Go get 'em tiger! Post your spoils!
    Oh and don't hold this against pea soup. (that's my fave soup)

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    1. I went away to the seaside this weekend...it rained in London, the smog is gone. So much nicer now. I'll try to post later this week.

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  2. I love that the cyclist looks a bit like Bane from the last Batman movie.

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    1. That's probably why I have a broken back right now. They didn't like it when I would try to take their masks off. Very sensitive, apparently.

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