The Lloyd's building

I was reviewing my photos from London and realized that I have several posts to do with pictures that I hadn't posted while there.  One of the buildings that I love the most is the new Lloyd's of London building at the intersection of Leadenhall and where Lime Street turns into St. Mary.  Kitty corner is the Swiss Re / Gherkin building.  So it is a great place for architecture photography.

To me, it is a fascinating structure.  It is steel and glass, hard edges with rounded parts, imposingly solid yet has open space and a peek through (or two) where you can glimpse the street beyond.  It is made up of wonderful contradictions all within one huge building.  I walked around and around, getting close up and then moving back -- trying to capture what I find so intriguing.  I don't know if I had much success, but here are a few:

The first view I had of the building came when I was going north out of the Leadenhall market.

The entryway is really cool -- I tried some different filters to see how different the same shot could be.

I saw people going up and down in these boxes.  Can you imagine riding these elevators?

And then the peek-a-boo places that add whimsy for me and make the structure more approachable and less industrial.

To top it off, it is smack in the same neighborhood of really old churches and the new signature piece of the city sky scape, the Gherkin.

Everywhere I went I saw buildings to photograph.  It all seemed so different from my neighborhood.  However, I hope I will take inspiration in the detail.  There are beautiful places near home and I shouldn't leave the camera on the shelf when I go out.  I may not see the dramatic, but I bet I could find the whimsy, a structure that is actively harmonious or in contrast with its natural environment, striking in its vision, round windows in a boxy structure, blue doors, fun weather vanes -- that I find so pleasing, if I look close enough and with enough attention.