Why people decided to start urbexing

Good morning all its been a long time since i posted so its good to be back!!!! Try and bair with me, im gona rattle on a bit here!!

im hitting the final year of my photography degree and i was looking for a little bit of input from any one thats willing to share how they feel about urbex in genral and what kind of feelings the imagery evokes for your self's personaly. that could be the photos you,ve done your self or photos you,ve seen and just gone "wow thats amazing!!"

I know it sounds like la de da crap !! but if anyone could give me some imput i would really appreciate it!!!

Again good to be back. Ben

It is rare than anyone answers questions like this seriously, and asking a question like this on a random internet forum is pretty poor methodology if it's for an essay or dissertation. But good luck with it!

You might do better telling people specifically why you're asking (as in the title of your project and what you'e hoping to achieve from it), and asking if anyone would like to participate, then emailing willing people specific questions.

it was a shot in the dark, al just go off the contextual side and start trolling sites and librarys!! and this isnt a random forum i used to post here a few years back

It's a random forum as far as your tutors and the people who mark your papers are concerned.

Mainly the money and the girls....

With me, its because:
a) I'm really nosey
b) I work in architecture, and spend all day putting buildings together, at the weekend I like to see how they fall apart!

Natural progression, as a kid I used to go out exporing the countryside and the odd building I came across as and adult I still do I just take photos of them now.

Didn't that Bradley Garratt donut do a la de da piece of crap dissertation on why people Urbex or something? Can't you just rip that off a bit? haha

Stupid answer: why not?

Serious answer: I am a great believer of 'living in the now' (eckhart tolle anyone?!) and when completely alone in a previously bustling \ inhabited \ public space I get a great sense of that.....that and its exciting, fun, cheap and a great source of interesting photogenic material.

I'm a.just a nosy sob no other reason.

Because these places wont be around forever hence why I sometimes have my mini explorers with me
Because I am so nosy
Because the camera catches things the eye doesn't
History and Mystery.

SlimJim said:

Didn't that Bradley Garratt donut do a la de da piece of crap dissertation on why people Urbex or something? Can't you just rip that off a bit? haha

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ha ha ha ha i wish i could they check everything now adays

I was imtroduced to Urbex photography by a mate. Not actually taking pics at that stage but looking through them on sites like this and a certain other site (not named as im banned from it lol) I fell in love with pics of High Royds and it still is my dream to get in there. Not to sound melodramatic but a family member was admitted to the lovely De la Pole Asylum nr Hull when I was younger and I always remember the noises and the smells. Chances are if I did get into an asylum I would probably be in floods of tears. But that's my story. Boring as it sounds but I love military sites, train stuff and railways and of course asylums which im still yet to do.

Hello Marley85 , Why do I Urbex? For me its recording social history mainly pubs I do other things but because pubs are vanishing now at a fast rate IV realised that if I don't get the camera out their will be no record for future generations to enjoy. In my area the closure rate has increased dramatically recently with pubcos selling off their estates and many have been sold for demolition . Its surprising how many people are interested so much so Iv been interviewed by a University paper and local radio! Yes its an hobby for me but it would seem I'm recording a vanishing trade. Ironsky.

Always been fascinated by abandoned buildings, love a bit of history and heritage

I've always been fascinated by derelict buildings and tunnels. Explored my first ones 21 years ago.
I also enjoy photography, and this combines both of these interests perfectly

Don't know about pretty poor methodology but I think its a fascinating question that dosent get discussed enough!
Ok as a child we used to love exploring as many did, & were terribly excited to find "say" our local pillbox.
Roll on 25 yrs & I discovered some local mines which have been for me quite frankly like a mythical legend.
Finding these took me straight back to my childhood & combined with the "risk" giving me a adrenalin buzz which I find harder to get the older I get, and I was hooked.
So the photograph element? I had no idea at first there was one!
I didn't realise there was a secret cult I now know as urbexing and very quickly realised photograph is the only way to express this interest.
I am er... not very good at it, but do love taking pics & enjoy as much looking at others. I almost get the buzz of being in some of the places and with the reports can get a sense of the atmosphere.
I think some of the best pictures however leave a feeling of being a bit disconnected, its almost as if they are to good to of been took by "normal people" like myself and are more like a magazine page... its a fine line for me that one!

I like a chase aff the polis.

It's always kind of been there with me, since junior school days;
As a kid I used to go out and find places to get in to, just general intrigue and nosiness I guess, and getting a 'buzz' off of being somewhere you shouldn't really be.... Just exploring. We had a few places, including a Mansion just down the road which has long since gone. I remember getting on the bikes after school just to go down there and fuck about, great days.
Move on a few years and we used to run a little sound system, so we'd sniff out places to have parties. Bit naughty really but we'd always find somewhere open and had a pretty cool following, so never left any real mess and if the Police did turn up with the criminal justice act, we'd just go as requested. (check my halo)
Brilliant fun.... We had a couple of derelict slaughter houses which gave a 'different' kind of atmosphere and backdrop to the parties, not to mention some pretty good soundproofing/acoustics whilst throwing silly shapes and having your eyes vibrate with (probably) dangerous levels of low frequency sound waves bouncing round the room... Again, great days.
Move on 20 years... 20 YEARS!?!?! where does it bloody go!?
I was working up in the middle of London as a commercial electrician for the past 4 years doing fit-outs for some pretty posh estate agents... This involved going into some pretty grotty places to put in temporary power supplies before the works could start. Nobody liked doing it, so I was the one scratching around underneath the cities pavements with a torch, that was probably the bit I most looked forward to doing. WEIRDO
I've since left all that and am working for myself locally, so that's given me time to hook up with an age old friend of mine, Rob Cachewoo......
It started in an air raid shelter and has progressed on to all sorts....
Maybe in a way it's going back to my childhood, maybe in a way it's also the 'buzz', but we definitely have a lot of fun along the way though, that's for sure... A bit of adrenaline to keep the tickers ticking...
But mainly, walking around some beautiful buildings that are possibly in threat of getting knocked to the ground to make way for new purposes... It's a bloody shame sometimes, it really is.
So, in the essence of DP, I do love trying to document lovely places that may never be seen again.

P.S. I've just won a proper camera on eBay, so no more of my rubbish phone videos.

UrbanX said:

Mainly the money and the girls....

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Botheration! Forgot that one.

I really appreciate all the people that gave me there input iv been looking and alot of what is here is very insitful and helpful. thanks again.

P.S is it ok to use some of the statments in my work, minius the author took keep enevery ones identity hidden!!!