Sights of London: Buckingham Palace

Note 1: High resolution images of some of the following photos are available. These photos are marked with [HiRes] tags in their captions. Click on the photos to view their higher resolution images.

Note 2: Various facts obtained from Wikipedia. All external text-links lead to the related Wikipedia articles.

November, 2009. I went to London for a short trip. I had my borrowed Nikon D70s with me and was very looking forward to that day. It was a great opportunity to take the SLR for a spin before turning it back in.

[HiRes] Princess Diana Memorial Walk, not far away from Buckingham Palace.

The short visit to London was very eventful. So eventful that I was too emotionally occupied for photography. Luckily, thanks to the great sights of London and the surprisingly cooperative weather, I still managed to pull off some satisfying shots despite not being able to put my entire heart into it.

The first place my friend and I visited was the Buckingham Palace.

[HiRes] Façade of Buckingham Palace.

It was conveniently located just some 20 minutes' walk away from Victoria Coach Station, central London, where I disembarked from the tiring midnight bus.

[HiRes] Main gate of the Buckingham Palace.

And I thought Buckingham Palace was in Buckingham.

Most people recommend visitors to catch the Changing of Guard, but we were too early for it (we arrived at 6am in the morning and the Changing takes place at about 11am).

Photo caught from a site unknown to me some 10 minutes walk away from the Palace. I assumed they were the Queen's Guard in training.


[HiRes] Caught in the same site.

Nevertheless, there was still a great deal to look around the Palace. There are all sorts of pillars with ornaments and statues all within sight of one another.

[HiRes] Ornament on a pillar just outside the Palace.


[HiRes] This looks quite classical. Must be hundreds of years old.

I spent quite some time wandering around, clicking away, and to be honest I'm not entirely satisfied with my collection of photos yet.

[HiRes] Queen Victoria.


[HiRes] Ebony and Ivory.

Not that the photos turn out bad, but I think I missed a lot of good opportunities.

[HiRes] Reach for the sky...

Caught this though.

[HiRes] A carving of a wreath, saying "Malay-States".

Perhaps I should visit the place again some time. More photos of London coming up.