Tampa has a wonderful history and is lucky enough to have had its earlier days photographed by local photographic studios, such as the Burgert Brothers and Robertson & Fresh. Unfortunately, many of today’s residents are out-of-touch or unaware with their city’s history.
A finalist in Creative Tampa Bay’s 10/100/1000 project, Tampa Changing, re-photographs historical photos, specifically the ones that show a building that still exists. Bryan Weinstein, the project’s coordinator, attempts to take re-photographs from the same angle as the historic photo, and then superimposes the two on top of each other. This combination of new and old photos allows people to see how much the original scene has stayed the same and how much has changed.
Bryan’s inspiration for the project came from his love of travel, history, architecture and of photography. After traveling around the world and photographing a variety of countries, he realized he had lived here his whole life and, to some extent, had been taking Tampa and Florida for granted. Last year he decided to change that. He discovered there is a trove of interesting history and beautiful, although sometimes neglected, architecture in our own backyard. Bryan wanted to document Tampa’s history and architecture so that everyone would be more aware of and appreciate it more.
Tampa Changing combines history with art and hopes to inspire more people than a typical art or history project would. Future plans include expanding the project to include a larger area of Tampa Bay in cities such as St Petersburg, Clearwater, Sarasota, and Lakeland.
You can help Tampa Changing grow! If you have any historic photos of the Tampa Bay area, please let Bryan know. He is also looking for amateur and professional photographers to contribute re-photographs of their own.
For more information, contact Tampa Changing.
by: Megan Hendricks
BUZZ editor, Creative Tampa Bay
Source: Brian Weinstein, Tampa Changing
Also published in Creative Tampa Bay’s Buzz, May 11, 2011