Of my favorite things in this world to view from behind a lens, abandoned buildings are among the top five. There's something so dramatic, devastating, and strangely beautiful in the peeling walls, the haphazardly hanging light fixtures, the machinery left, the discarded papers, and the stretches of dark tunnel like hallways.
It's always exhilarating to get into these locations but I try to keep myself from disturbing anything. I simply want the photographs of some of the building's history. It always interests me to see what was too unimportant to be taken when the building was left. So many small personal affects have been found. Sometimes they'll even leave patient files behind, which I just can't understand.
Here are some of my very favorite captures among my collection:
"Cry Wolf" (c) 2009 A. Fusion
This was an abandoned hospital in CT that we made the trek to. HELP was already written on this wall. It was a tricky catch as this hall was actually pretty much completely dark. I didn't have a tripod obviously, so I tried every technique to brace myself, but each shot blurred. Finally I just threw myself against the wall and snapped. I got it on the first try and ended up with a much better angle than before!
"Empty Promise" & "Tooth Ache" (c) 2009 A. Fusion
These two were taken at the same hospital in CT. For some reason they decided to leave the dentist equipment behind, perhaps because it was already broken and not worth the time and expense to move. It's one of the strangest things I've found so far.
"Escape" (c) 2009 A. Fusion
For some reason, looking through this tiny window into the desolate hallway gave me the feeling of what it could have been like for a patient, being trapped there, no matter if they needed to be there or not. It would still be hard to be held against your will in a facility that lacked personality and smiles.
"Stairway to Heaven" (c) 2009 A. Fusion
Each stairwell caged you in as you ascended or descended to the next level. Although I can see the functionality of these, I couldn't help but feel like a caged animal anyway. It just added to the horror of being held against my will, whether for my own good or not.
You can find more of these at my Flickr or Deviantart pages:
Thanks for reading!
Ange
