Urban Exploration Photography: A Guide to Creating and Editing Images of Abandoned Places

Urban exploration photography—sometimes called "urbex”—is a unique photographic genre that requires specific skills in order to produce compelling photographs. In Urban Exploration Photography: A Guide to Creating and Editing Images of Abandoned Places, photographer Todd Sipes walks students through everything they need to know about composing, shooting, and processing photos of abandoned, man-made structures.



Sipes begins with a focused discussion on preparation for this unique genre of photography, including what to bring, both photography-related and other (such as clothes and accessories). Then he dives into the chapters on shooting, where he covers the role that composition plays in urban exploration photography; the three major shooting styles or uban exploration photography; general guidelines for camera settings and gear; why you should bracket your shots; and how to approach shooting in the dark (including light painting, using flashes and gels, and using an intervalometer). He also covers what kind of subject matter to shoot, including organic and synthetic elements present in the urban exploration environment (such as overgrowth, graffiti, paint, and machinery), as well as qualities of light to look for when shooting abandoned structures.



In the second part of the book, Sipes tackles post-processing, including discussions of the various "styles” in urban exploration photography, as well as the actual post-processing techniques that take place in Lightroom and Photoshop, as well as third-party plug-ins. He also dedicates a section to "Things to Avoid” in post-processing, such as "HDR fever,” "over-saturation,” "halos,” and "chromatic aberrations.”