Then and Now: Images of Vancouver

Last week I wrote about Darren Bernaerdt who teaches Photoshop at Langara College. Each year Darren sends his students to the Vancouver Archives to look at old photographs, choose one that resonates with them, research it and then go out and photograph the same scene from the same angle and merge them together. The results are amazing, and I’ve been posting different ones on Facebook all week.

The image from Gastown pictured here is by Andrea Silvestre, a second year student in the Professional Photo Imaging Program. Andrea told me that a lot of her classmates chose street scenes for their subject, but she wanted to be different. “I found that past work that featured a specific landmark or an action scene was far more engaging, interesting and beautiful in terms of the contrast of then and now,” she says.

Andrea loves architecture and spent hours looking for an image before narrowing her search to Gastown. “I came across the picture of the Hotel Europe and I knew that was the image I was looking for. It was a statement building that was so interesting in itself, but had enough around it that I could create this fantasy world of then and now coming together.”

She shot the image with a Canon 24mm f/3.5 Tilt Shift—a special lens, she says that is used for shooting architecture. Andrea works as a freelance photographer and her goal is to evolve her business into the wedding photography industry.

Andrea’s photograph and the rest of her classmate’s images are at the City of Vancouver Archives until the end of June. While you’re there don’t forget to pick up a set of 12 cards for $10 that feature the images, and at the same time, feel good about supporting the Creative Arts students at Langara College.

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