The Gherkin
This page brings together a collection of The Gherkin London photography by Will Pearson. It captures one of the most recognisable landmarks on the city skyline – Norman Foster’s 30 St Mary Axe. The 40-storey tower was completed in 2004. It instantly became a defining symbol of modern architecture in the City of London.
The Gherkin was at the heart of a building boom in London’s financial district that continues to this day. Its curved, tapering form and make it instantly recognisable from every direction. It’s now such an iconic part of the City’s skyline that it’s hard to remember that it was highly controversial in its early days.
The gigapixel panoramas and high-resolution images of The Gherkin London reveals how precisely engineered the structure is. Its glass panels catch and reshape the light throughout the day. It adds a wonderful curved silhouette to the skyline, contrasting with nearby landmarks such as the Leadenhall Building, 20 Fenchurch Street and the Lloyds Building.
Standing on the site of the former Baltic Exchange, The Gherkin London marked a turning point in the evolution of the financial district. It introduced a new architectural confidence that continues to shape the skyline. The Gherkin London photography captures that sense of innovation and the building’s role as both a focal point in the city s changing landscape.
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Leadenhall Building 360
Captured from the courtyard of the Leadenhall Building, this interactive 360 panorama puts you at the heart of the City of London. It includes iconic landmarks including the Lloyd’s Building, the Gherkin, the Scalpel and St Andrew Undershaft. The scene reveals the historic layers of the City, where medieval churches sit alongside cutting-edge skyscrapers. Below…
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Bishopsgate Rising
Documenting the City of London’s skyline is a project I envision taking the rest of my life. The changes have built pace so much over the last decade. Shooting medium format allows me to capture beautifully sharp images, and see so much of the detail in the scene. 22 Bishopsgate (TwentyTwo) dominates the City of…
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The City Awaits
City of London Photography The City of London skyline is constantly evolving. And never more so than in late 2018, when I shot The City Awaits. At that time, the Square Mile was in the midst of an extraordinary construction boom. Tower cranes marked the horizon, new skyscrapers were rising almost daily, and the landscape…
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London Begins
A London Sunrise Panorama A new day over London, and the sunrise washes over the city. The square mile is drenched in light, the enormous buildings momentarily insubstantial. Usually, it’s the tall buildings that are the heroes of any cityscape. But here, the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court at the British Museum really proclaims its…
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London Wide
As a cityscape photographer, I’m often asked “what building is that?”. The London skyline is evolving so rapidly, it can be hard to keep pace with all the new additions. To answer that question I’ve built this ‘enhanced gigapixel’ – where information is overlaid onto the image. You can click on an info point to…
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Artillery Ground, Evening
This cityscape overlooks a part of the City of London that many of those dashing down the streets of Finsbury will never see. The vibrant green of the Artillery Ground contrasts sharply with the surrounding buildings. It belongs to the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC). The HAC building, Armoury House (not in view here), overlooks the…
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City of London Dusk
This gigapixel cityscape captures the City of London at dusk, as the windows light up and the city gets ready to wind down. Any fears about London’s future look utterly unfounded when you look at this skyline. When I started shooting the city the major buildings in this view would have been Tower 42 and…
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Silver Gilded Photography at Sotheby’s
I’m delighted to have had one of my silver gilded photography images selected for an exhibition at Sotheby’s, London. Silvered City is a panoramic view over some of the City of London’s most iconic buildings. There is immense drama in these buildings, but their seriousness is lightened by the City’s oldest famed building peeping through…
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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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30 St Mary Axe 360
Dawn to Dusk from The Gherkin In this 30 St Mary Axe 360 you can explore the views from one of the City of London’s most iconic buildings. Although 30 St Mary Axe, commonly known as ‘the Gherkin’, is no longer among the very tallest in the City, it still stands out as one of…
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Canary Wharf Panorama
The Isle of Dogs This Canary Wharf panorama captures the dramatic skyline of London’s financial hub, viewed across the River Thames looking over towards the Isle of Dogs. Located on the banks of the river, the area once housed the West India Docks. As container ships grew in size during the 1960s, the docks gradually…
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Silvered City
Silvered City is a high resolution cityscape showing the changing face of the City of London‘s skyline. The image captures many of the capital’s most recognisable buildings, seen here under the soft, reflective morning light that gives the photograph its name. In this view, St Paul’s Cathedral is the historic heart of London’s skyline. After…
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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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Lambent London
City of London Photos ‘Lambent London’ was photographed from the summit of 30 St Mary Axe, better known as The Gherkin. From this height, City of London photos can reveal the intricate mix of historic and contemporary architecture that defines the Square Mile. The image forms part of my series of high-resolution panoramas documenting the…
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London from The Shard
A changing view across the capital Captured in 2014, ‘London from the Shard’ was taken from the very top of The Shard, 310 metres above the city. My shoot position was around 60 metres higher than the public viewing platform on the 72nd floor. From this vantage point, London appears immense: a city of movement…
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Constant Thames
Tower Bridge Panorama This high resolution Tower Bridge panorama follows the River Thames as it flows through the centre of London. Past HMS Belfast, More London, including City Hall, towards Tower Bridge, resplendent in blue and white. Across the river, in the City of London, many of its iconic skyscrapers are bursting into light as…
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Infinitely London
London photos documenting the skyline Infinitely London is part of an ongoing series of London photos capturing the capital’s skyline as it evolves year by year. This high-resolution panorama captures a moment when several of the City of London’s now-familiar towers were nearing completion. A point in time when London’s architectural identity was shifting from…
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Greenwich View Twilight
A Twilight gigapixel panorama shot from Greenwich looking towards Canary Wharf with the City of London in the distance. The River Thames flows past the Millennium Dome (the O2) with the many skyscrapers of Canary Wharf, including one Canada Square, towering above the river. Further into the distance you can see the iconic structures of…
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Into The City
Here you can really look into the City – the panorama is incredibly high resolution so whilst you can stay panned back to take in the views over the Barbican to the Heron Tower, Tower 42, The Gherkin at St Mary Axe, the new Rothschilds Bank HQ at St Swithin’s Lane and the Shard, go…
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London Landmarks, Autumn Evening
London’s tall landmarks bound together in one panoramic image as the sun sets on an autumn evening. From Earl’s Court, Kensington Gardens and the Albert Hall towards the west, then across the Serpentine to the iconic Battersea Power Station, Crystal Palace, Big Ben, the London Eye, Thames House at Vauxhall Cross (the MI5 building), Westminster…
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London Stilled in Evening
London’s brief stillness in the minutes after rush hour has ended before the evening’s activity truly begins. The panorama takes in most of London’s major landmarks from The Shard to Canary Wharf, The City of London with St Paul’s Cathedral, with the Thames dividing the city and the Tate Tower bisecting the image. Fine Art…
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Twilight view from the Shard
Twilight view from the Shard – London’s tallest and most spectacular skyscraper, The Shard at London Bridge. The River Thames sweeps past the illuminated City of London from Tower Bridge past London Bridge to Millennium Bridge and beyond. Many of London’s landmarks are visible in the cityscape, from Canary Wharf to the towering City of…
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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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View From The South Bank
Panoramic view from the South Bank London looking out onto Canary Wharf, the City of London, The Shard, St Pauls Cathedral and The Olympic Village. This is a very high resolution panorama, you can zoom in to see details and further explore London’s landmark buildings, including Tower 42, 30 St Mary Axe, The Barbican, Heron…
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Shard London Bridge Summit
This 360 image was captured at the top of the Shard London Bridge, 310m above London, on the night of the student protests in November 2010. You can see the police helicopters hovering over London above the demonstration. Technically this was a very difficult shoot, I was on the crane at the top of 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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Nautical Twilight, City
Panoramic London cityscape at twilight with views over the City of London. The Shard lit up though still under construction can be seen in the far right of the image, with familiar buildings the Gherkin (St Mary Axe), Tower 42 and the Heron Tower in the City of London to the left. The image is…
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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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Shard View at Night Panorama
I captured this panorama of the London skyline at night from the Shard at around the 35th floor, whilst the building was still under construction. The Shard’s height has given me the opportunity to show the London cityscape from a new angle, looking down on the Thames as it snakes through the city from London…
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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 –…