How to Photograph Abandoned Places

I love abandoned homes and buildings. Photographing them is a great way to preserve history. I was recently looking back at some of the photos I've taken over the last two decades and realized that many of them have now collapsed or been torn down to make way for newer structures. You never know what treasures a photograph will be to future generations.

Photography Basics

Pay attention to framing. Show the entire house and it’s surroundings, just as you first saw it. Let your audience be drawn to the home like you were.

Capture the ambiance of the room by looking from within and without. Begin by looking through a door, through a window, or through a hole. Next look from within the room to the outside. Get a feel for the people who lived there and what they saw when they sat at the dining room table or on the front porch.

Focus details such as spider webs, discarded items, textures, rotten wood, peeling paint, or cracked plaster. There is always an interest in the hidden.

Take pictures from creative angles, low to the ground looking up, from a high vantage point looking down, or standing close to a wall looking up to the roof or molding

Preparation

The Boy Scout’s motto is "Be prepared." You would do well to be prepared too.

Before:

• Try to find details about the structure and past owners. If you know the current owners of the property, contact them and ask permission to photograph the building. Most are happy to share the history of the place and give you tips on what to look for and the details you should notice. I usually go to the nearest home to ask if they might know information about the building. They’re usually a good resource.
• Let someone know where you’re going. I always let my husband know where I am. If I don’t make it home, he knows where to start looking.
• Always think about the weather and protection when choosing your clothing. Wear boots and clothes that will protect you from both the elements and debris. In urban settings, you may even want to wear a hard hat and dust mask.

During:

• A flashlight, LED light, or even the light on your cell phone will aid in illuminating dark areas. A flashlight is also a creative source of light that can aid in bringing a photograph in a dark room to life. I don’t normally carry a flashlight, but usually have a book light in my camera bag.
• A tripod will aid in getting good photos of the dark interiors of a building. You definitely need it for longer exposures on overcast days.
• A wide-angle lens is a must. I currently use a 18-50mm f/2.8, which gives a good range to capture the overall setting of the home and a little bit of zoom to capture the smaller details.
• Always make sure you have a cell phone. You never know what kind of trouble you might come upon. You wouldn’t want to be attacked by a vicious varmint (a/k/a spiders, bats, rats, snakes, rabid ‘coons, or other harmful animals) or fall into a hole or through a floor and not have a way to call for help. I recently explored an abandoned house located about a quarter mile from the road. As I was walking through the woods, alone, I realized it was still deer hunting season and I wasn’t wearing any hunter’s orange and could be mistaken for a beautiful doe. I started making a lot of noise, turning on my cell phone music and singing out loud. I’m sure I scared away the larger animals, but the smaller ones hunkered down and popped up as I approached the old home giving me a fright.
• Always be aware of your surroundings. Watch out for holes, broken glass, rusty nails, dirty water, and leaning structures.  I was exploring an old building in the woods and found a very deep open well in the back. It was large enough that I saw it, but that’s not always the case.

After:

• Always shower and change your clothes immediately upon your return home. Throw your clothes in the washer too. Ticks are a problem in our area and they are fast moving little critters. They’re a bad source of lime disease, so you don’t want them around. Also, some of the urban buildings can contain asbestos or other hazardous inhalants. Better to be safe than sorry.

Reference:
Digital Photography School: How to Photograph Abandoned Places
WikiHow: How to Photograph an Abandoned Building
Current Photographer: What Abandoned Places Can Teach You About Photography
Photography Minded: Abandoned Building Photography Preparation
Photography Minded: Shooting in Abandoned Buildings
Ghost Hunting Theories: Photographing Abandoned Places
My Modern Met: 25 Bone Chilling Photos of Abandoned Places
Photography Blogger: 30 Cool Abandoned House Pictures
Digital Photography School: 20 Beautiful Examples of Urban Decay Photography