Photographer revisits sites from her time studying abroad 30 years ago

It’s been 30 years since Lisa Werner, a professional photographer from California, studied abroad in Europe.

While in Germany to study its language, Werner, then just 27 years old, spent much of her free days behind the lens and traversing the length and breadth of the gorgeous country, snapping photographs in Strasbourg, Heidelberg, Mainz and Cologne.

This year, she sets out to retrace her steps from the 13 photos she scanned from her collection. This time, with an iPhone, she recaptures her poses at the exact same spots.

The results are incredible.

To get to the same location in Mainz, Werner had to clock in 20,477 steps on that day, although she said “seeing Steinberg Winery near Eltville was worth it”.

Source: Lisa Werner Photography

Though some locations look like they’ve not changed, there are subtle differences, such as more flowers or a taller tree. Apart from the different clothes she was wearing, the old photos and the new ones look quite identical. The old photos look like the new photos put through some nostalgic-looking Instagram filter.

In her photo taken at Heidelberg, even the random tourists are posed almost the same way!

Source: Lisa Werner Photography.

Werner said she was sad when she reached the last location on her list, Cologne, wishing she had scanned more than 13 images.

“I hope to visit all of these spots again in another 30 years!” she said on her blog.

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