Thematic Photographic - Big

Carmi at Written, Inc., posts a photographic challenge each week called Thematic Photographic - this week's theme is "BIG."

The Shard seen from the Thames River

This gleaming glass tower rising up over the Southwark in London is called The Shard London Bridge. When it's finished in 2012, it will be the tallest building in the European Union.

The ancient and the modern - the medieval Southwark Cathedral and its neighbor, the Shard

It's called "The Shard" because its architect, Renzo Piano, likened it to a shard of glass. Rising up in the sky like a splinter, its glass facade and panels will reflect back the sky so that the massive tower changes as the weather changes.

Sometimes you can only get an idea of "Big" by pulling back. Here The Shard is seen from the Tower Bridge, where it rises up over London's egg-shaped City Hall.

Or back even more. From the Limehouse section of East London, The Shard is the most prominent landmark on the skyline.

Distance lends perspective. Seen here from a high building in New Cross in Southeast London, the London skyline shows The Shard and other prominent skyscrapers like The Gherkin. The still unfinished Shard tops them all - and it's still rising.