In this body of work, I kept strict parameters of what I wanted photographed. This has kept me at a variety of desolate locations away from the eye of society. I stay almost entirely at industrial ruins around the Phenix City and Columbus area.  It is a personal goal of mine to take pictures of something you haven’t truly seen; to break the mundane mold of the overdone photograph. This edit of work titled Ruins Series #1: Brickyard, I have captured some of the endless possibilities that this space has to offer in terms of texture and composition. While this type of photography has the label of Ruin Photography (or distastefully Ruin Porn), I feel as though I’m expanding further than just capturing the history or pure sensation of the ruins. I’m heavily influenced by photographer Anthony Hernandez who captures ruins in the Los Angeles area for the equilibrium of “beauty and brutality”. I want my viewers to be welcomed in this space of forgotten decay and to conceptually grasp the forms and compositions that these places can offer.

     While working in these abandoned places, I have broken my mental barrier that all artist face at times. This space has become my workshop; my own personal studio. There is a calming feeling of being utterly alone in a desolate place with a camera in your hand. I confidently talk to myself out loud about what I am finding and how best to photograph it. While I take certain risks to obtain these photographs such as trespassing and possible injury in these decrepit dwellings, this only fuels my drive to keep working harder on the “perfect” image. These photographs are also printed at a larger format to convey the sense of weight and presence in the space they are presented.

     Ultimately, I believe there is more to my work than just the joy of looking at structural decay. As humans, we are drawn in by these forms and we hope to identify a history or purpose to the abandonment of the location. Exploring the conscious thought behind Ruin Photography will never be truly understood, but with my work I hope that others will take up the torch and explore what society has left behind.

     To finish off this series of work, I want to explore my true fascination for cinematography. While working in this space, it is impossible for me not to imagine how the location can fit in to a more narrative media such as film. I am currently working on a script for a short film that will utilize the decay of this decrepit space for a story I believe needs to be told. This will complete the use of this location in my mind and will lead to the exploration of other such ruins.