Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye, 15mm, F 16, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

A while back, I shot around this abandoned set of train tracks in Somerville with my buddy, Laz.  It was an awesome area, ripe with all sorts of UrbEx HDR opportunities.  Sadly, the week after we shot in the area, Chris told me that the entire place was closed off, the tracks were ripped out, and it was being converted into a bike path.  Super.  The other day, I was meeting up with Chris to go on another shoot but I was early with time to kill.  So, I took the liberty of some mild B&E and headed into the closed off area.

It really was tragic.  They had razed the few abandoned buildings that were there and left nothing but a blank slab of concrete floor.  Totally disenchanting.  But, they did also leave this freakshow of construction equipment.  There was really only one lens to use here: the fisheye.  Consider this making lemonade out of lemons.

But, there real heart of the story is this: don’t take anything for granted.  The phrase, “I can just come back next week, or another time, or even tomorrow” may prove to be some famous last words.  If you’re at a scene, you have your camera, and you see something you like, just get the shot.  If it means having to get off of the bus, make a U-Turn, park awkwardly (but safely), do it. Get the shot that may not be there later on.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17 mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

Ahhh… the turnstiles of Boston’s MBTA system.  I am especially fond of when they close the hip-crushing jaws on me just when I think I am safe to pass. 

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17 mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

In order to get some uninterrupted shooting done in the Davis Square T Station, I paid it a visit in the late evening.  It was really nice to have the station pretty much devoid of any passengers.  I was especially happy with how this escalator shot turned out.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17 mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 5 Exposures

It’s pretty crazy, actually, that just a few weeks after shooting these abandoned train tracks in Somerville, MA, they were ripped out and are no longer there.  I was told that the city is prepping the area to extend the adjacent pedestrian walkway further into town.  A little bittersweet.

So maybe I have a problem. Depends on who you ask, perhaps. I love derelict places. The kind of places with broken glass everywhere, going crunch under your sneakers. Where the walls have poster-sized holes broken through, exposing pipework covered in a patina of rust. I could do without the rank odor that usually accompanies such places, but you take the good with the bad if you want to get the shot, said a wiser man than me. But, I really do love seeking out these places. If you manage to hit ‘em up just right, at the right time of day with the right type of light, you can really make some art happen.

I guess there is a term to describe this type of photography. Loosely, it is referred to as UrbEx, or Urban Exploration, photography. You scout out your town, or whichever town you happen to be in, for the dingy, forlorn districts. The places with the structures that are probably on the latter-end of their half-life. Places that can use about a year’s worth of landscaping and at least three seasons of Extreme Home Makeover. These places, they really make for some wild photography. You just need some intestinal fortitude and a little derangement in the curiosity department. And a camera. Check those things off of your list and you are ready for some UrbEx shooting.

The reality of shooting UrbEx is that it more-than-likely involves some sort of trespassing, so keep that in mind. It also puts you in a situation where you may not be the only person occupying the vicinity. So, caution should be considered during your shoot. Just be careful and aware is what I’m saying.

My first real foray into UrbEx shooting happened earlier this year. I scouted out an area in South Boston, near where I work. I saw a few structures surrounded by a chain link fence that was bent to the point of it being more of a netting on the ground than an actual deterrent. So, a few days later, after some fancy ducking, crawling and shimmying, my buddy Kevin Burns and I found ourselves next to a glorious structure of abandonment and neglect. Ripe for some bracketing. We went to work. After a few minutes of shooting, some dude who was squatting in this structure popped out and scared me to the point where I was wielding my tripod like a battle axe. Turned out that the guy was pretty cool and let us be (after I gave him the only dollar in my wallet… I am a plastic sorta guy).

Being a touch obsessed with HDR-style photography, UrbEx particularly lends itself to this processing choice. If you happen to find yourself inside one of these structures, HDR can help you properly capture all of the gritty detail on the walls, ceiling, floor and even outside any windows by exploiting the dynamic range across several exposures. And, while it may be a byproduct, HDR does help bring out textures that are normally subdued in single exposure. And let’s call a spade a spade – when you’re doing UrbEx photography, detail and texture are two major components. You really want the viewer to feel like they have to wash their hands after looking at these shots. Or, at least use some Purell.

I recently had another mini UrbEx shoot with my good buddy, Chris Lazzery, around his dwelling in Somerville, MA. Not to say that Chris lives in a place suited for UrbEx, but… well, yeah. I guess the reason that I am bringing up this most recent shoot is to illustrate that UrbEx photography isn’t necessarily only about finding dingy buildings that have the structural integrity of a cardboard box. It’s about scouting out the nooks and crannies of your city or town or neighborhood. Maybe it’s a set of railroad tracks that lead to nowhere, literally. Or the underpass of a road or bridge that is covered in some awesome graffiti. Could be some funky industrial-style warehouse doors that have got to be hiding something even cooler inside.

So, I challenge you. Take a day and forget about the destination. In fact, make sure you have no destination in mind. And just walk around. Go down the dark, narrow side street. See how close you can get to that freaky looking building over there. A hole in the fence? Can you fit through it? Cool. So far, so good. Push yourself to find the beauty in the ugly. See what there is to see. Get creative with your angles and perspectives. Maybe put on a longer lens and forget going wide. Hell, bring a macro along and have your own impromptu Macro Party.  I guarantee you will have absolutely no shortage of things to focus really closely on.  Bottom line: try it out.  Just be smart and be safe and maybe even be a little legal.  Just a lil’.

Technical Notes

All of the shots posted in this entry were taken with the Canon 5D Mark II.  As you can see in the gallery below, just about every shot was taken with an ultra-wide angle lens.  A lot of the shots were taken with the very capable Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM.  The really nice thing about this lens is that you can open up to an f/2.8 aperture.  This comes in very handy when you find yourself in dimly lit areas and need to squeeze in as much light as possible.  It also gives you some great bokeh and a fantastically wide view, especially on a full-frame camera.  It does suffer from softness at the edges and some chromatic aberration, especially when you are shooting wide open.  Still, it is a very strong L-series lens.  The rest of the shots were taken with my latest investment, the often-mentioned Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L.  This lens constantly shows exactly why it costs what it does and proves that it is worth every penny.  When you’re dealing with all of these structures, it is great knowing that this lens will provide you with perfectly straight lines, getting rid of a lot of the barrel distortion that you would normally get with ultra-wide lenses, like the aforementioned Canon 16-35/2.8L II.  The Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye made a cameo, too.  I love the effect that you get when you get really close to a defining wall or door.  It’s easily the most fun lens that I own (with a close second by the Lensbaby Composer).