A series of photos 'then and now' on streets around the world, proving the great influence of time

After many decades, there are places that develop rapidly but there are also places that only remain in memory.

Throughout the history and development of society, photographs have always played an important role in preserving and reflecting every aspect of that period. Thanks to that, we can sit back and admire the adaptation and gradual improvement of humanity through each period, no matter how difficult it was.

To show the great changes in society, photographer Nicole Lashar took pictures of the streets and compared them with pictures taken decades ago, creating an impressive "then - now" photo series .

Regarding the purpose of the photos, Lashar shared:  "When I started with photography, I was excited and passionate about pursuing it like traveling to new cities and exploring the art and architecture there.

Photography allows me to combine photography and travel into a new experience. At first, I didn't care too much about the results, but rather the experience of exploring new places and going back in time to find past perspectives of these places. 

The more I continue to take these types of photos, the more I see their importance as they show us the differences and developments of places  over time and help us better understand the society of that time," the female photographer added.

Hikmet Kaya Forest in Türkiye in 1980 and now

Haarlemmerdijk Street in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1971 and 2020.

Boston - The freeway in 1990 was moved underground and replaced with green space in 2010.

Paris streets after the great flood of 1910 and now.

Youngstown Falls in 1951 and 2022

Roman Theatre of Cartagena, Murcia Province, Spain in 1991 compared to 2021.

Kharkiv, Ukraine 2015 and 2022

Minami-Sanriku Town, Japan developed rapidly in less than 10 years from 2011 to 2020.

Old Town Square Poznań, Poland during World War II compared to 2021 Poznań, Poland.

 Besikli cave tomb in Hatay, Türkiye in 1932 and 2018.

When asked about the difficulties in carrying out this project, the female photographer said:  "The biggest challenges for photographers when taking a 'then and now' photo series are finding the source of the original photo, finding the exact location because these addresses are rarely known, and how to get the exact angle of the photo in the past. 

To make the photography process easier, I would first select a location based on proximity to the city and the number of old photos of the building. I would then search the image database for high resolution images and use Google Maps satellite imagery to ensure the building was not demolished and have other reference points to help re-photograph the site and take the shot."

Positano, Italy in 1920 and 2020, after 100 years this place still has a beauty that is hard to match anywhere else.

Butchery Lane and Canterbury, England in 1895 - 1920 and 1992 - 2022

The 1,000-year-old Toghrol Tower in Rey, Iran. The first photo was taken in 1840.

Gooderham Flatiron Building, Toronto, Canada in 1895 and in 2022

Famous Manhattan, New York, USA in 1851 and 2022

The North Pole 103 years ago - today

Chichén Itzá Ruins, Mexico in 1892 and now

Berlin Kreuzberg, Germany in 1985 and 2018

A corner of Utrecht, Netherlands in 1982 compared to 2020

Shambles Street, York (England), which served as inspiration for "Diagon Alley" in Harry Potter in the late 1800s and today

Bishan Park, Singapore in 1988 and 2020

Moscow 20 years apart

The Flatiron Building in New York in 1917 and 2012

Singapore in 2000 and 2022

Dutch island in 1930 compared to 2020

Dubai Marina 2000 - 2020