The problem with before and after photos during construction

Trying to find a spot at the beginning of a construction project from where to take regular photos from is getting harder and harder due to the number of projects on the go in Dubai. The first project I started to document was the building of the Dubai Water Canal however within a few months, my view point was now the middle of the 120m wide and 12 m deep canal. So I've started to look for 'above' photo vantage points.

Recently I've been documenting a build in the UK on the old Qinetiq site in Malvern. Without realising the order of the build, I returned the other week to discover the view of the build is blocked already.

Well I can provide an updated photo of the view from above, easy. However I'd made an error of judgement....the weather. If I'd just looked out the kitchen window before I set off, I would have realised I couldn't see the Hills from the ground, therefore it was unlikely I'd see anything from being up there.

The road from The Beach to Bluewaters - Dubai. 6 years apart.

My first visit to Dubai was January 2014. The rocky outcrop I'm sat on was the harbour wall for the Marina. It's now the half way point and bridge support to Bluewaters Island. I can only access this spot now from the bridge 30ft above as in the second photo.

Directly behind me (to my right) is the Sheraton Hotel where these photos of Bluewaters land being built in the sea were taken from and Ain Dubai.

January 2014

January 2020

Close up of the differences. 

2014

2020

How many did you find?

You can see the harbour wall from The Beach, where both photos were taken from. This photo was taken from the Sheraton.

Looking back from Bluewaters to The Beach.

 

Museum of the Future. 3D printed building in Dubai

Located by the World Trade Centre, off the Sheik Zayed Road in Dubai, stands the Museum of the Future designed by South African Architect Shaun Killa. A large part of the building is 3D printed.

I've been photographing the construction of many buildings in Dubai since we moved there in 2014. I find it fascinating watching them grow in such a short period of time. This is one of the few projects that is actually finished and not still being developed.

The Museum of the Future was due to open in September 2020 ready for Expo2020 which has now been delayed till next year, but was only completed last month.

April 2018

September 2018

June 2019

My husband sent me this photo earlier in the week. 

November 2020

For all the other construction photography photos I've been taking over the past few years, please click on the links below.

Week 158 Dubai Bluewater Islands and Dubai Eye. Man made island a 210m high Big Wheel
Week 159 Dubai Dubai Marina - Reflections
Week 160 Dubai Dubai Frame. A window between the Old and New Dubai and a 150m high glass floor.

Week 161 Dubai Dubai Marina 3 years apart.

Week 162 Dubai Dubai Water Canal Bridge Construction and reconfiguration of roads

Week 163 Dubai New Metro Line for Expo 2020
Week 164 Arizona and Nevada Hoover Dam 2002 - 2010
Week 165 Dubai Dubai Opera House What a difference a year makes
Week 166 Dubai Unfinished buildings. The Pentominium
Week 167 Coventry Mixing the old and the new. Coventry Catherdral
Week 168 Dubai New Dubai Metro Station 
Week 169 Dubai The new extension of the Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa 
Week 170 Dubai Hotel fire After the Address fire 
Week 171 Dubai Unusual designs The Opus Building
Week 172 Dubai District Cooling. Keeping the desert cool.
Week 173 Dubai Can I visit the Burj Al Arab
Week 174 Dubai The Almas Tower
Week 175 Dubai The Cayan Tower
Week 176 Toronto The CN Tower
Week 177 Nevada The Paris Hotel 
Week 178 Dubai Ibn Battuta Gate
Week 179 A Wedding Our first child got married
Week 180 Dubai The World's Tallest Tower
Week 181 Dubai and Wales Al Fahidi Fort and Chepstow Castle 
Week 182 Dubai New Metro Station in Al Furjan 
Week 183 Dubai Ski Dubai
Week 184 Another Wedding
Week 185 South Africa Life in a township
Week 186 Austria Ski Jump 
Week 187 Dubai Green Plant Bio Dome 
Week 188 Dubai Update on the Metro Station
Week 189 Dubai My view from the balcony changed in 8 months
Week 190 Greece Just how instagramable is it?
Week 191-192 Dubai Before and After. 3 months out of Dubai
Week 193 Dubai Building a boat in the sky
Week 194 An African Sunset
Week 195 Building with boxes Charity work in South Africa
Week 196 UK wedding and a year of travel

What I've done in my 4 weeks of lockdown - Gardening

I'm supposed to be going back to Dubai on Monday, but flights with Emirates are cancelled indefinitely. Part of my trip home was to organise a move from the villa to an apartment and finish sorting through our belongings to see what we were shipping in May back to the UK

My aim on this trip to the UK for 4 weeks was to visit family and finish the decorating in the house and order new carpets, ready for when the furniture arrives.

Well none of that happened, including the decorating, no point rushing it now and besides the weather has been excellent so I've been spending most of my time in the garden sorting it out.

When we got our house back after 9 years of tenants the garden looked like this

We had a lot of work completed in the house prior to me returning the end of January, but the outside had been neglected other than having all the waste removed left behind by the tenants.

The garden currently looks like this

I've had the windows and conservatory cleaned and gutters emptied, new fence panels, shrubs and trees dug up and removed, borders tided, path and patio reclaimed, garden levelled and reseeded, repairs made to the sheds and cleaned, compost bin emptied and a new one started, lawn mowed (well strimmed actually as I don't have a mower) seeds planted and bedding plants ordered from a local nursery.

Compost bin emptied

New compost bin started

Garden waste bin delivered from council and sorting through contents for composting, general waste and filling the bin for collection. 

Guttering and panels repaired

Peas and tomatoes planted out

New border dug

Paving slabs from lawn removed

New grass seed 

DIY plants pots from recycled tins and bedding plants in

I was working on the garden from Day 1 of lockdown for 4 weeks. I've also done a lot of crafting, letter writing and started on redecorating the house. I'll show you all that in another post next week.

Dubai Water Canal - Tolerance bridge

 This is Tolerance Bridge at the Dubai Water Canal.

I spent a week in the UK in October 2016, before I left the supports were in place, on my return the bridge was up as it is now. 
The Bridge has a 180’ high arch supporting a 690’ long and 20’ wide meandering pedestrian and cycling path below. 
The bridge was inaugurated by Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak, Minister of State for Tolerance on International Day of Tolerance 2017, which falls on November 16th each year.

View of the area, from Safa Park, after the canal was dug, but before it was filled with water. Construction started in 2014.

Tolerance Bridge supports October 2016

View of Tolerance Bridge from Safa Park

Since the opening of the footbridges across the canal, work has then started on the building of new accommodation, restaurants and hotels along the newly created water ways.

November 2016

April 2017

March 2019

You can read/see more photos of construction projects in Dubai and around the world that I've been documenting by clicking on the links below:

 Dubai Bluewater Islands and Dubai Eye. Man made island a 210m high Big Wheel
 Dubai Dubai Marina - Reflections
 Dubai Dubai Frame. A window between the Old and New Dubai and a 150m high glass floor.

 Dubai Dubai Marina 3 years apart.

 Dubai Dubai Water Canal Bridge Construction and reconfiguration of roads

 Dubai New Metro Line for Expo 2020
USA Arizona and Nevada Hoover Dam 2002 - 2010
 Dubai Dubai Opera House What a difference a year makes
 Dubai Unfinished buildings. The Pentominium
UK Coventry Mixing the old and the new. Coventry Catherdral
 Dubai New Dubai Metro Station 
 Dubai The new extension of the Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa 
 Dubai Hotel fire After the Address fire 
 Dubai Unusual designs The Opus Building
 Dubai District Cooling. Keeping the desert cool.
 Dubai Can I visit the Burj Al Arab
 Dubai The Almas Tower
 Dubai The Cayan Tower
Canada Toronto The CN Tower
USA Nevada The Paris Hotel 
 Dubai Ibn Battuta Gate
 Dubai The World's Tallest Tower
UK & UAE Dubai and Wales Al Fahidi Fort and Chepstow Castle 
 Dubai New Metro Station in Al Furjan 
 Dubai Ski Dubai
South Africa Life in a township
Austria Ski Jump 
 Dubai Green Plant Bio Dome 
 Dubai Update on the Metro Station
 Dubai My view from the balcony changed in 8 months
Greece Just how instagramable is it?
 Dubai Before and After. 3 months out of Dubai
 Dubai Building a boat in the sky
South Africa An African Sunset
South Africa Building with boxes Charity work in South Africa
 Dubai What are they building now? World Trade Centre
UK Monmouth Building work in South Wales
 Dubai The cladding is going on, on the metro station
 Dubai They're building on the beaches in Dubai
Hong Kong Building with Bamboo
Egypt Cairo Probably the largest construction project in the world. The Pyramids
South Africa Christmas gift giving in a South African township
South Africa A sense of community in South African Townships
 Dubai Al Furjan Construction Project