If you’ve ever seen an oil refinery, you might have been struck by the byzantine arrays of pipes snaking seemingly in every direction. For people over a certain age, it might remind them of the classic “3D Pipes” screen saver from the nineties. But unlike in that computer program, each pipe in this dizzying mass has a purpose, and every twist and turn is taking it to some destination. For an urbex photographer, it can be both an exciting and daunting challenge.
Some lucky circumstances brought me to a large oil refinery under demolition recently. My friend and I had access to the site for a couple hours, with essentially free reign as long we didn’t do anything reckless or stupid. The time constraint makes for an invigorating shoot. I let muscle memory take over for the setting up and taking of exposures while concentrating on moving around seeing the most possible.
The first time around with any new subject matter always leaves something to be desired, and the bland sky on that day was miserable for photography. However, I’m not entirely unhappy with my results. I’ll leave it to viewers decide what they think for themselves.
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T A B U L A R A S A photography 