Abandoned Asylum

[Illegally_Alive]

Hey All, these are from an asylum I went to today. It is the first time I shot RAW+L JPEG. After some tweaking of raw images, they look waaay better than the unaltered jpegs, and it looks like this is the only way I'm going to shoot from now on!
This asylum was open from 1856 through 1993. Having been abandoned for so long there was almost nothing left inside. Also construction has begun, and the buildings are starting to be converted over to serve new functions- such as apartments-- (creepy apartments). Sorry, no pics of the construction (it's boring anyway).

ASYLUM!

Bathroom
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/bathroom.jpg



Room for one
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/bedroom.jpg



Stairs to a tunnel
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/Stairstotunnel.jpg

more to come...
let me know what you think-
Ben


p.s.

here's the unaltered jpeg of the bathroom:
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/IMG_8826.jpg

[STARRIDER]

excellent images...

[jporter12]

Ya know, I think I like the unaltered jpeg bathroom shot better than the raw conversion. I think I like the shadows better. As an abandoned asylum, I think the shadows actually work better, dark and dreary, as an abondoned building is, especially an asylum, but really, that's just my opinion on it....

Excellent photos!

[sixshot]

Interesting shots.

[kenyc]

Love these, especially the stairway! :)

KAC

[CrazyCrease]

Creeepy
but cool shots none the less

[DwightMcCann]

I used to live like that before I got me a girlfriend! Superb opportunity ... I love old rundown buildings! Great work.

[CyberDyneSystems]

Makes my skin crawl....
Excellent pics.. good luck with the RAW .. it's a very helpfull tool.

[MCB]

Yeah, very cool pictures.

I agree that it would be more spooky/creepy with different lighting. More shadows would be good, or maybe get shots around sunset (tripod and longer exposures?). If you have the guts to get caught in there after dark, that is. :) I think I've seen a couple horror movies that started with something like that. :) Good luck.

hey, I see you're near boston. could you send me a message to let me know where that place is? Looks great. :)

[thor67]

totally awsome, I wish i could find a place like that around here....

abandoned factories and buildings are so cool, especially if they havent been too disturbed its like a frozen moment from the past that we can reflect on and learn from ....

[Illegally_Alive]

Thanks for the replies!
Normally I would agree with jporter12 about the shadows, but I just finished a 20 picture series from another asylum which were shot on ilford 3200 and printed with a 4 filter (so high contrast and grainy) which were very dark and moody- and after those I felt like these ones should be a little more colorful and bright. Also I feel that having them bright and colorful creates an interesting juxtaposition with the associations of the mental asylum, but that may be reading in a little too much.

-B

[Illegally_Alive]

Oh... p.s.
I would never go into an asylum at night! They're scary enough as it is in the day! Besides, danger is not my middle name, and a lot these places are falling apart as I write this. There are collapsed floors and weak roofs, not to mention that flashlights can be seen from farther away.

-B

[Illegally_Alive]

more.....

55 second exposure
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/room.jpg

Huge table sink, 6 ft. long.
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/sink.jpg

View from inside a room
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/viewtoahall.jpg

[Illegally_Alive]

and still more
http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/IMG_8814.jpg

http://www.illegallyalive.com/northhampton/cageroom.jpg

And that's all folks....

[ddelallata]

Now I see why you were wearing the protective mask in your self-portrait. Watch out for that lead paint. Excellent pics.

[d100763]

great subject. I like the converted Raw files. Why the 55 second exposure? Lighting conditions? The pics with metal gates are my favorites. I like the one with the bedframe the most, it seems somewhat haunting... Good work on a fresh topic