....how lonely are your branches

Brightside Road

2010-01-09T10:03:00.000-08:00

Leyland Road

2010-01-09T10:01:00.000-08:00

Burnt Ash Road

2010-01-09T09:57:00.000-08:00

Off Handen Road

2010-01-09T09:54:00.000-08:00

Newstead Road

2010-01-09T09:52:00.000-08:00

Prairie Road

2010-01-06T10:25:00.000-08:00

Queenstown Road Station

2010-01-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

Clapham Common North Side

2010-01-06T10:20:00.000-08:00

Stormont Road

2010-01-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

New Kent Road

2010-01-06T10:05:00.000-08:00

Jedborough Road

2010-01-06T09:58:00.000-08:00

2010-01-03T14:01:00.000-08:00

One day, a few years ago, whilst walking to get my lunch in Battersea, South London, I spotted a discarded Christmas tree on the street. Just ten days after it had taken centre stage in someone’s living room, illuminated with glittering fairy lights and crowded with wrapped gifts, it had been strewn, without a second thought, into a the long, empty, grey London street. Something about the way it lay there, so lifeless, reminded me of the forensic photography I’d studied during my degree, so I snapped this sad tree, and the many others I have seen since.

Since then I have amassed a few hundred Christmas tree images – friends and family love the images (some sad, some quirky, some a little ‘Where’s Wally?’) so now it’s time to share with everyone else too.

I’ve set up this blog, How Lonely are Your Branches, as a means to share my photographs and hopefully to inspire you to post some too. I want it to be a tongue in cheek post-Christmas portfolio but also to make a more serious comment on the increasingly throwaway nature of our society. These trees that we see unceremoniously dumped down side roads, in the middle of roundabouts and floating down the Thames could have all gone to better uses – which I’ll be posting here too.

This year there will be around eight million Christmas trees in UK homes. If all these were recycled to make ethanol, it would fuel a car to drive 198,400,000 miles. That’s the equivalent of driving around the world 7,967 times!

So, I hope you've enjoyed your festive season and got creative with that tinsel – and remember, a tree is not just for Christmas…

Lavender Walk

2010-01-03T13:22:00.000-08:00

Upper Richmond Road

2010-01-03T13:20:00.000-08:00

Clapham Common North Side

2010-01-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

Treport Street

2010-01-03T13:17:00.000-08:00

Earlsfield

2010-01-03T13:14:00.000-08:00

2010-01-03T13:10:00.000-08:00

Sugden Road

2010-01-03T13:08:00.000-08:00

Eltringham Street

2010-01-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

Nanden Road

2010-01-03T13:05:00.000-08:00

Lowndes Road

2010-01-03T13:03:00.000-08:00

Grosvenor Avenue

2010-01-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

Pondockie, Oxford

2010-01-03T12:58:00.000-08:00

Kingham Close

2010-01-03T12:56:00.000-08:00

Cadogan Place

2010-01-03T12:51:00.000-08:00

Old Street - St. Lukes

2009-12-01T14:44:00.000-08:00

Robertson Street - Battersea

2009-12-01T14:42:00.000-08:00

Virginia Road - Bethnal Green

2009-12-01T14:39:00.000-08:00

Belgrave Square

2009-12-01T14:36:00.000-08:00

Housing Estate - Clapham Common Southside

2009-12-01T14:35:00.000-08:00

Upper Richmond Road

2009-12-01T14:33:00.000-08:00

Outside Streatham Cemetery

2009-12-01T14:29:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T14:20:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T14:09:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T14:05:00.001-08:00

2009-12-01T13:55:00.000-08:00

One day, a few years ago, whilst walking to get my lunch in Battersea, South London, I spotted a discarded Christmas tree on the street. Just ten days after it had taken centre stage in someone’s living room, illuminated with glittering fairy lights and crowded with wrapped gifts, it had been strewn, without a second thought, into a the long, empty, grey London street. Something about the way it lay there, so lifeless, reminded me of the forensic photography I’d studied during my degree, so I snapped this sad tree, and the many others I have seen since.

Since then I have amassed a few hundred Christmas tree images – friends and family love the images (some sad, some quirky, some a little ‘Where’s Wally?’) so now it’s time to share with everyone else too.

I’ve set up this blog, How Lonely are Your Branches, as a means to share my photographs and hopefully to inspire you to post some too. I want it to be a tongue in cheek post-Christmas portfolio but also to make a more serious comment on the increasingly throwaway nature of our society. These trees that we see unceremoniously dumped down side roads, in the middle of roundabouts and floating down the Thames could have all gone to better uses – which I’ll be posting here too.

This year there will be around eight million Christmas trees in UK homes. If all these were recycled to make ethanol, it would fuel a car to drive 198,400,000 miles. That’s the equivalent of driving around the world 7,967 times!

So enjoy your festive season, get creative with that tinsel – and remember, a tree is not just for Christmas…

Jaron