Same place. Different person. Wisbech.

If you stand in one spot and wait, things will eventually happen. 

Just pre focus, set the exposure and wait. 

And if your really lucky, well not that lucky because the majority did, people will look at you and give you that 'ugh!?' face.

Finding the light in Wisbech

I'd like to start with; i know where the Light cinema is in Wisbech. 

Thats not the light i was looking for.

Light and shadows. 

The golden light in the evening and the shadows that stretch along the pavement creating abstract shapes; dividing expanses of space with lines.

Photography is described by Wikipedia as;

Photography is the science, art and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film.

So whenever you have a camera in your hand your chasing the light, i do it intentionally.

Said many times, Wisbech is a great place for street photography. 

A quick drive after work on a friday evening, racing the sun, ideas in my mind, please don't turn cloudy.

 I'm stood in my usual places waiting for people to walk out of the shadow.

Sometimes they run from the shadow.

Sometimes they stare into the darkness.

Detritus.

The divine light?

Walking away.

The working man.

The window.

The window pt 2

Wisbech Urbex, Despair

Urban exploring is something i don't do often anymore.

I've been focusing on weddings, photoshoots and street photography.

A little frustrated with myself too, I've not enjoyed exploring like i have have in the past. Perhaps i expect too much, or I'm lacking the creativity too make something out of nothing.

I'll continue to explore when the opportunity arises, perhaps enjoying more what i see with my eyes rather than what i see through a camera. 

As a total opposite from what i written in the above sentences, what i did enjoy about this explore was that it wasn't alone....ive made a new friend.

The internet, it's made the world grow inwards towards the self, for once though its been used to meet new people. 

Through an instagram follow I met up with Jack Smyth, a photographer from March, Cambridgeshire. Sunday morning, 8am, Wisbech, the site; an empty factory/warehouse that has been stripped and left abandoned.

Access was easy enough.

The site comprises of a large warehouse building which is segregated into 4/5 separate rooms that resemble coldstores or chillers, an office section and a number of smaller chiller units.

Inside, wiring has been dismantled and sold for scrap, all thats left is a pile of copper-less wire and a few desks, with a couple of extras thrown in for good measure. 

Guard cat

Work free office

From what?

Desperate place for a desperate measure

The waters been left on and so theres pools of water throughout.
Trusty waterproof boots.

Danger.

Bazaar things happen

Darkness

This was the most interesting thing found for me until moments later.

Dizzying heights

The main building is vast; a black hole.

I had to shoot something to make use of having a companion.
What can you do when theres harsh light and deep shadows, use both and create a silhouette.

A sobering thought to end with:

Imagine being homeless.

Alone.

Cold.

Where would you go?

This is a stark reality, that may never cross your mind, for some though they live this despair everyday.

I felt awkward and ashamed for invading this persons space.

Everyone's got their own demons.
Some physical, some mental.

Its easy to judge but whats their story?

The Characters of Wisbech, the Town in Decline.

You don't need a city to shoot street photography. You can do it in your home town.

Ive started to do it around my home town or village of Sutton Bridge.

If i had to choose my favourite nearest location though it would have to be Wisbech, without a doubt,

A town of many cultures. At least one third of the population is thought to be eastern european. 

A town in decline.

Even in my lifetime, I've seen the town spiral downwards, as the 'big named' stores have come and gone, the small local business have shut down. Mostly whats left is phone shops, coffee shops, Poundland x2 and Eastern european convenience stores, other store fronts lifeless or boarded up.

I suppose what i do like whilst at the same time hate about the place is the characters and the litter roaming the streets. 

Drunks, jobless' and bear cans strewn in the gutter. 

Maybe a paradise for those of us who like their hobby photography to be grimy, very different from my weekend wedding work.

I'll start with my favourite alley in the town, Scrimshires Passage. Some seriously old buildings with peeling paint, padlocked doors and an archway to provide contrast between shadow and light. I always head there hoping to catch someone walking through. 

This day i met something else, shoes, new shoes left on a window ledge. 

Only 10 seconds after taking this shot a drunk cyclist came through and asked me if the shoes were mine. I then had a conversation with her about how much i think she could sell them for. Good luck to her and her new items for sale.

The reason i love this alley so much.

When standing around in dark alleys for too long you start to get stared at, please, keep on staring.

Notice the beer can on the right

I manual focus a lot these days as it allows me to wait for someone to walk into the shot. I truly love this image.

Cool dude

The look, the 'why's he taking a picture of me' face.

Another can.

I wonder how long this couple have been in love?

Modern love?
Quick love?
Love you long time?

I still return to the penguin street art.

Whoever the street artist is, i do hope they continue.

Wisbech; the town i grew up in, lots of good times spent with mates.

Look after it.