Cambridge: Massachusetts or England?

Context. In photography, cropping out the context can transport a scene in time and space. In movie making, we know that the shots are framed to crop out the suspended microphones, crew members and other equipment. Placing old cars on a cobblestone street with period buildings can transport you in time to the 1930s or ‘40s. Toronto is frequently used for city shots, as its urban architecture is similar to that found in many US cities.

Cropping the surrounding buildings from a photograph of a garden in the city may give the impression of being in the country. It’s what you leave out that often defines the shot.

Here in Cambridge, the campus of Harvard University features many architectural styles that illustrate the school’s English roots. Cropping out the busy streets of the city (with obvious American cars and signs), produces scenes that could as easily be encountered in England as in Massachusetts.




Above and below: Scenes from the Divinity School.





Above and below: scenes from Harvard Yard.





Below it's the Charles River, not the Thames. But the Weeks Footbridge would be equally at home over either river. Some high rise towers in the background hint this is an American scene.



Below, this Harvard hall could be right out of a London scene, perhaps with Peter Pan leading the children out of the dormer window to Never Land. The US style traffic signal and sign say otherwise.