(ohiotrespassers) wrote in message news:…
our website is dedicated to documenting modern ruins & urban decay. we have photographs of abandoned hospitals, prisons, factories & asylums in the midwest. the site was created with photoshop & dreamweaver, please check it out & let us know what you think;
http://www.ohiotrespassers.com
It’s an ambitious endeavor and as much as I admire your effort (and access!), I’d like to see the photos with more of a concern for composition, technique and light quality.
A couple suggestions: upgrade your camera asap, it seems to be a relatively low megapixel resolutions (2 mp?), coke bottle optics and the worst offender – direct flash! Get a solid tripod and try using your camera with long exposure inside dark rooms and you’ll see a dramatic difference in light quality and room modeling. Treat your photography of objects and rooms as if you were doing a "portrait," thus light quality is the defining factor. If you don’t understand this yet, don’t worry, just look at other photographer’s work.
I’m impressed with the thorough writing and background knowledge. What you’re doing is an important historical documentation, thus, you shouldn’t squander the opportunity with sub-standard photographic documendation. I know you may be able to go on site only when your schedule permits and probably can’t always wait for the weather (and atmospheric light quality) to be "optimum," but a couple hints might help. Many photos seem to be very flat in contrast, try kicking up contrast in photoshop. Also, try and model buildings with side lighting (that is, shoot when sunlight is low on horizon in either morning or late afternoon). Buy a supplemental flash (or a couple of them) with "slave" triggers (if you don’t know what this means, ask your camera shop sales person, they can help you with this) so you can illuminate rooms and exteriors with a bit more aesthetic quality.
Check out the following photographer’s work and imagine what THEY could do if they had YOUR access:
http://www.jeffbrouws.com/readymades/index.phtml http://www.thenocturnes.com/troypaiva.htm Here are a couple of my photographs of ruins, btw:
http://www.amenfoto.com/gallery/modestoandvalley/greenhouse_ lamps_shell.html http://www.amenfoto.com/gallery/mexico/isla_mujeres_condos_2 .html Hope this helps.
Adrian
"The Pen is Mightier Than the Pendejo."
ttp://www.amenfoto.com/ 
