In the southwest corner of the University of Florida’s campus rests one of its oldest agricultural buildings, a former barn. Originally constructed in 1946, the barn housed mules used in the research efforts of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, and was surrounded by large plots of farmland used for research. The barn was later converted into a print shop and renovated into offices for UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. 

Now hidden behind more modern buildings on Mowry Road, this gem caught the eye of UF/IFAS Communications photographer Tyler Jones. 

“I came across historic photographs of Gainesville and UF’s campus. And I became really interested in Re-photography of the historical photos of places that were familiar to me,” he said. 

Re-creation photography – or Re-photography, is a technique where new photos are taken using the same viewpoint and subject as an older photo to produce a “then and now” image. 

The painstaking process involves studying the old photos and positioning camera angles to most closely mimic the original, often using a wider shot. In post-processing, this allows him to crop or shrink the new image to match the building proportions exactly. 

For Tyler, re-photography is more than just an interesting technical process; it’s an opportunity to observe the passage of time. 

“The thing I like most about re-photography is being able to see two images side by side, so one viewpoint, and take in decades of change at once,” he said. 

Thanks to Tyler’s labor of love, the history of this once-humble mule barn can be better preserved for generations to come.  

Watch the video above for an in-depth look into the process of Re-photography.

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