Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben)
Below is the Elizabeth Tower photography portfolio. You can read more about the tower below, or head straight to the thumbnails to view the images.
At the north end of the Palace of Westminster, rising 96 metres above the Thames, is the clock tower most of the world calls Big Ben. Strictly the name belongs to the Great Bell hanging inside it, all 13.7 tonnes of it. The distinction is largely lost now, and the tower answers to both.
It was designed by Augustus Pugin as part of Charles Barry’s rebuilding of the palace after the fire of 1834, and it was the last thing Pugin drew before his death in 1852. The tower was completed in 1859. Its four dials are each seven metres across, and for many years it was the largest four-faced chiming clock in the world.
The name is much newer than the building. Until 2012 it was known as the Clock Tower, and it was renamed to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee.
The tower is unusual in that it reads clearly from a great distance. Its silhouette holds up across the whole width of central London, which is why it appears in a dozen of the images here, from Hyde Park Dusk and Sundown Over Holborn to the views from the top of the Shard. It anchors a view in a way few buildings of its height manage.
Between 2017 and 2022 the tower was wrapped in scaffolding for a major restoration, the clock stopped and the bell largely silent.
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Shard 360 Gigapixel
London from the Top of The Shard A Shard 360 Gigapixel 360 panorama captured high above the city. Shot from the very top of The Shard, more than 300 metres above the River Thames, this Shard 360 gigapixel panorama offers a rare opportunity to explore London’s skyline in exceptional detail. to explore London’s skyline in…
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London from The Leadenhall
Leadenhall Building Panorama This Leadenhall Building panorama offers a rare view over the City of London from more than 200 metres above the streets below. The image was captured from the roof of the Leadenhall Building, known to many as ‘The Cheesegrater’ due to its distinctive shape. It forms part of my series of high-resolution…
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Palace of Westminster
Dramatic skies over Westminster After a gloriously hot summer, late August brought dramatic skies and storms to London. The light on this particular evening was quite something, lending an ominous feel to the sky over the Palace of Westminster. I struck it lucky on this particular shoot, although it wasn’t without risk to my medium…
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Gigapixel 360 Panorama from the Shard
This is a 360 gigapixel panorama which I shot from the crane at the top of the Shard, London Bridge while it was still under construction. At the time of its opening, The Shard was the tallest building in the European Union. As at 2025, it’s the second tallest (outside Russia), beaten only by the…
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London In Detail
In this panorama you can view The Shard under construction, with Canary Wharf seemingly just behind it. The level of resolution allows you to zoom in and see an incredible level of detail. Please click the ‘Fullscreen’ button for the best viewing experience and you can further explore the image to find many more of…
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Hyde Park Dusk
Aerial London panorama by Hyde Park with views of the Serpentine, Albert Hall, Battersea Power Station, London Eye, the BT Tower, The Shard with the City of London and Canary Wharf in the distance.
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The Shard London Bridge – Blue Hour
The Shard is one of London’s most exciting buildings. It was completed in 2012, then becoming the tallest building in the European Union. I shot views from the Shard for the developer, and the sheer height of the building has made it one of the most exciting series of cityscapes I have worked on –…
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Sundown over Holborn
Panorama looking from Holborn over London at sundown. This London cityscape includes the following landmarks: Shard London Bridge; Strata Tower; Guy’s Hospital Tower; 33 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin); Tower 42; the Heron Tower; King’s Reach Tower; the Barbican; Canary Wharf; the Tate Modern; the London Eye; the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
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Waterloo Bridge London
London panorama captured from Waterloo Bridge over the River Thames looking west along the South Bank towards Festival Pier, Hungerford Bridge, the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
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Sunlit London Panorama
Panorama looking across Westminster towards the City of London, with the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the BT Tower (Telecom Tower), the London Eye, Lambeth Palace, Shellmex House and over in the City, visible are Tower 42, the Gherkin and St Paul’s Cathedral. Zoom in to view the details and spot Nelson’s Column, the Oxo…
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Golden Mile
London Skyline Panorama This London skyline panorama is titled ‘Golden Mile’. Capturing it took a couple of evenings of standing around on top of a building. It had been a warm day in London and the heat of the city could still be felt as the sun set – it was great not to be…