# Urban Exploration



## ProsPhotos (Aug 3, 2012)

I have always been interested in Urban Exploration photography.  Anyone here have any suggestions on where to get started, or even how to find places to photograph?


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## MLeeK (Aug 3, 2012)

I absolutely LOVE urban exploration. 
I follow Richard Nickel who is one of my very favorite urban explorers. His Blog


I spent some time emailing back and forth with him because he had done an exploration of a few places close to me and he gave me some advice. The short of it:
Get up EARLY. Before sun up. Don't park near the site you are exploring. Don't go alone. Do not take obvious risks. 
Go in before sun up. 
It's easier for a photographer to ask for forgiveness than to get permission to go in. If it's something you plan to do regularly you will get arrested. Take nothing away from the scene besides pictures. 

How to find places: Keep your eyes open for EVERYTHING. There are places we overlook every day. I have done a few that are in obvious places, but most things are overgrown and go unnoticed. 
There is someone else on here who does a bit of urban exploration, but I can't remember who it is. It's one of the guys and that's about all I can remember.


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## tirediron (Aug 3, 2012)

There are a couple of members here who post "urban decay", but their names escape me at the moment.  I second all of MLeek's points; you can't be too careful.  I love this sort of work, but unfortunately, there are only a couple of buildings in my whole region, and they are secured very well...  around here if a structure is boarded up, the bulldozers usually follow in a day or two.


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## ProsPhotos (Aug 17, 2012)

Thanks for the advice.   I don't have a lot of options either, but there are a couple of places I would like to try out.  One of them is a building/factory that I can see from the freeway, but I have not stopped to see if it is fenced off, gaurds on duty, etc.   It is for sale, I just wish I had the $$$ to purchase it.


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## sapper6fd (Aug 20, 2012)

There is a term for this  it's called "breaking and entering", "criminal trespass" and "trespass by night"  all of which carry large fines and / or jail terms.  Just as we photographers expect others to respect our intellectual and digital imaging rights, we should do the same to others property rights.  Should you choose not to then you have zero right to get upset when you see someone using your photos elsewhere without your permission.  It's the same thing.

And don't forget as you walk out of that building that you have illegally entered to grab those pictures - you're walking out with all the evidence of the crime on your memory card.  if you fall and break your leg - or worse yet, die because of your own stupidity after breaking into a building / warehouse / factory with poor lighting late at night or early in the morning, make sure you leave a waver that you have signed pinned to your cheat stating you or your family won't sue the property owner for your injuries after the device they placed on the doors to keep you out failed because you decided to go through a window instead  

Urban exploration is not only dangerous, 99 times out of 100 it's illegal, and in the end it costs the property owners financially to replace locks or windows, in lawsuits due to injuries, and graffiti removal.  Let's not forget about those that slip in after you left the window open or broken that steal all the copper wiring or pipes for scrap which also costs the property owner  

Dumb dumb dumb idea


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## PlanetStarbucks (Aug 20, 2012)

Just curious...are you talking about that abandoned factory at about 50th south on the east side of I-15?  I've looked close at the location a few times to see if there's easy access, but it's all fenced off.  I live in downtown SLC, btw...so I've been dreaming about photographing that place.  Also that abandoned Mountain Cement plant just off the 600 south exit.  Unfortunately, that place always has security around it.  

I think you'll have to really gauge whether the risks of that kind of photography are really worth it.  No doubt, it's a really cool style of photography but a lot of buildings that are abandoned still have plenty of security to keep us out.  If they don't it'll be loaded with crackheads.  What times I have ventured into that realm have been in places I knew for sure there was no one anywhere near...like ghost towns and abandoned mines far out of town.


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## Farmclicker (Aug 20, 2012)

I am not it is dumb as Sapper6fd said it was because apparently a lot of us routinely do this.

It is actually kind of funny, there is two urban exploration threads going on at the same time on this forum, and it is like one set of people have not discovered the other set. Anyway here is a link to the other discussion going on simultaneously.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photographic-discussions/294907-abandoned-areas.html

Myself and Jaemie have had good luck, first just going for it, and then getting permission from the owners when we got caught. As a general rule of thumb, as long as you leave only footprints, and take only photographs, you will be left alone. That is easier said then done sometimes, but it is the mantra of those of us that routinely do this.

Another rule of thumb is to never say a real live location of a place to explore and never to say how you got in. To do so just invites too much trouble.


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