FrozenSurfer
Here Fishy Fishy
Here are some shots from the Buckner Building in Whittier AK. Once the largest building in Alaska, it was built by the military to house nearly every resident of the port town of Whittier, Alaska. It was designed to be a "city under one roof" and includes everything a "normal" city would have; Theater, Medical Ward, Cafeteria, Staterooms, and of course a jail... The town of Whittier is built around the ice-free port that houses more boats than it does people. Boasting a population of less than 300 people, Whittier is a modern day ghost town. In 1964 a 9.2 magnitude earthquake ripped the small city apart, killing 14 people and deeming the Buckner building unsafe.
Laced with asbestos, mold, mildew and various walking hazards, the building has remained an abandoned wasteland. All 5 floors are flooded from the melting of Whittier's average 253" of snow, leaving all floors an ice skating rink in the winter. Calcium deposits hang from the ceiling in the form of stalactites, graffiti and spray paint cover most of the walls, and almost every room has been hit with some form of a bat or axe.
Equipped with a full face respirator, steel toe boots, full coveralls, a hard hat, 80lbs of camera gear, and enough flashlights to light the entire city, we entered the building at the basement. Working our way through the building we captured what most people will never see; the inner workings of a trashed building. After 11 hours of walking and taking pictures, we barely scratched the surface on the amazing features of this building.
A word of caution to those of you interested in doing this; We received written permission from the now private owners of this building before entering. This building is UNSAFE to be inside. We had MULTIPLE ceiling collapses and wall failures while inside. Do not attempt this without permission and protective gear, you will get hurt and probably arrested! Before attempting this my tetanus shot was updated (as was my life insurance) and we carried multiple "animal and transient" protection devices (completely in compliance with Alaska's lack of a conceal and carry law.)
The following pictures are just some of many shots we took. All of these were taken with Tokina 12-24 lenses on various Canon bodies. All colors and effects were done while the shutter was open. The only PS that was applied was sharpening, RAW conversion, and occasional saturation reduction. Most of these shots range in time from 1-10 minute exposures.
Enjoy
Sorry for the watermarks... these days you can't be too careful
Laced with asbestos, mold, mildew and various walking hazards, the building has remained an abandoned wasteland. All 5 floors are flooded from the melting of Whittier's average 253" of snow, leaving all floors an ice skating rink in the winter. Calcium deposits hang from the ceiling in the form of stalactites, graffiti and spray paint cover most of the walls, and almost every room has been hit with some form of a bat or axe.
Equipped with a full face respirator, steel toe boots, full coveralls, a hard hat, 80lbs of camera gear, and enough flashlights to light the entire city, we entered the building at the basement. Working our way through the building we captured what most people will never see; the inner workings of a trashed building. After 11 hours of walking and taking pictures, we barely scratched the surface on the amazing features of this building.
A word of caution to those of you interested in doing this; We received written permission from the now private owners of this building before entering. This building is UNSAFE to be inside. We had MULTIPLE ceiling collapses and wall failures while inside. Do not attempt this without permission and protective gear, you will get hurt and probably arrested! Before attempting this my tetanus shot was updated (as was my life insurance) and we carried multiple "animal and transient" protection devices (completely in compliance with Alaska's lack of a conceal and carry law.)
The following pictures are just some of many shots we took. All of these were taken with Tokina 12-24 lenses on various Canon bodies. All colors and effects were done while the shutter was open. The only PS that was applied was sharpening, RAW conversion, and occasional saturation reduction. Most of these shots range in time from 1-10 minute exposures.
Enjoy
Sorry for the watermarks... these days you can't be too careful
Those look really nice!
