Introduction

The original concept behind my work was abandoned railway stations. I thought this would work well with my environment brief as it had to include nature and any abandoned place gradually gets overgrown with various forms of shrubbery. I wanted to work on how nature adapts to abandoned places the longer it is left in a derelict condition.

Beginning the Research

I began by searching for photographers whose work was similar to what I had in mind. I researched Joel Sternfeld, an American whose large format documentary photos had produced a series of images called The High Line which gave me my inspiration.

Joel Sternfelds The High Line

 I liked the way his images portrayed there had once been a railway line there. I also liked that the area had been turned into a nature reserve. It gave a peaceful haven amongst the hustle and bustle of New York.

I decided there must be lots of abandoned railway stations and tracks in London, or surrounding areas, which have been overtaken by nature and this would fit the criteria of bringing nature into the project.
I wanted to show how nature had adapted to abandoned places.

 Inspired by Sternfelds work, I began to research disused railways in London and surrounding areas. I came across an area in Finsbury Park which was originally the Northern Heights Line. The way it looked was very similar to the photographs in The High Line so I decided this would be perfect and went there to take my first test shots.

 Although the line had closed in 1970 there were some elements of the original Crouch End station still visible. However, it was disappointing in that it did not have the railway tracks, like Sternfelds images had. It looked more like the nature reserve it had become. If you hadnt known what you were looking at, it would not have portrayed the image I was aiming for.

Crouch End Station

 I thought I could keep to my original context when I read an article on Richard Beeching who produced two reports in 1965 which identified over 2,300 stations marked for closure. (Known as the Beeching Cuts)

Protests saved some, but mass closure happened which left me thinking there must be plenty of other disused or abandoned stations around.

www.derelictlondon.co.uk www.underground-history.co.uk www.abandonedstations.org.uk www.urban75.org www.disused-stations.org.uk

I used various websites such as the ones above to attempt to find somewhere that would be suitable.

 The websites I looked at showed, what I thought, was plenty of options. However, they proved impossible to access for various reasons.
already redeveloped, couldnt get access, rail tracks had been removed to stop theft

 Whilst looking at the Derelict London website, their Churches and Cemeteries category gave me my next inspiration. Staying with the abandoned places/buildings theme, I changed my focus to churches.

My next research took me to St Dunstan in the East, an old church with a lot of history. It was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London. However, when it was bombed in World War II, it was decided not to rebuild again. Two walls with beautiful architecture is all that remains.

However, this has been turned into a walled garden by the local authority, so the building would not fit into my context as it has not been abandoned.

St Dunstan in the East

My Final Decision for my Concept

More research led me to my final decision. St Lawrences Church in Brentford, Middlesex is a church full of history dating back to the 15th century. Since its closure in 1961, it has stood empty and neglected.

Its very overgrown, so it fitted my concept.

The church has been a Grade II listed building since 1991. Although there have been many plans for it over the years, none have ever happened.

Equipment Choice
Zenza Bronica camera 6x6 160 ISO colour film Light Meter

Tripod

First Attempt

Contact sheet 1

 However, I was not happy with the result once I developed the film. The exposure was wrong and many of the shots were not in focus. Although, I did feel that the angles I had chosen to take were quite good but could be improved on next time. I then researched photographers to see how they used angles to give meaning and effect to their shots. I decided I liked the way Rob Cartwright sometimes shoots things from a low angle to achieve an almost sinister look.

Second Attempt

Contact sheet 2

 My second attempt was better, but still not as good as I wanted it to be. Again I used the light meter before each shot and I tried to take the tower from the perspective of a low angle that Rob Cartwright uses sometimes in his work. I wanted to try to play up to the natural character of the building being an old, abandoned church. Unfortunately, some shots were still not in focus but there was a definite improvement on the first shoot. As the weather was quite gloomy too, I thought if I shot my next photos on a brighter day, this might improve the result.

Third Attempt

Contact sheet 3

 My third shoot was in brighter weather than last time, so maybe this helped as there was an improvement. Some were still out of focus, so I need to concentrate on this element next time. I continued with the low aspect as I feel this shows the tower to its best advantage. This building, which once stood so majestically in the town, now looks sad, dejected and unloved in my images.

 My research also took me to the following websites that made me realise that there is a lot of conflict going on between the local residents and the property developers. The planning application showed what the developers want for the area, whilst the websites of the local community tell of their opposition to the plans.
Brentford Dock Residents Association Brentfords local website Hounslow Councils planning applications

 Whilst decisions are being made on its future, St Lawrences Church is so badly neglected that nature is taking its course.
It is now on the English Heritage At Risk Register. According to Duncan Walker on the Brentford Dock Residents website:
It embodies the spirit of hundreds of years of Brentfords past, but sadly now, its fabric is being left to rot.

As Nature is part of the Environment brief, this is area I focused my final shots on.

 The whole building has over time become a vision of greenery. Shrubs have pushed their way through various areas.

Ivy cascades down the walls from the roof and up the walls from the ground. It creeps over, with other greenery, the broken tombstones.
The church door is surrounded by ivy making its way further across the entrance.

 The overgrown greenery tells the story of years of neglect. However, what really made it clear that the church has been abandoned for so long is the trees that are growing out through the brickwork under the roof.

The size of them show just how long they have been growing there.

Final Shots

Contact sheet 4

Critical Appraisal
The concept I chose to explore for my Environment Project was abandoned/derelict places and how nature adapts to abandoned places, the longer it was left in a derelict condition. I decided to begin by looking for abandoned railway stations. My initial research led me to the work of Joel Sternfeld. The High Line images gave me my inspiration. I liked the way his images portrayed that there had once been a railway line there even though we could no longer see the tracks. I also liked that the area had been turned into a nature reserve. It gave a peaceful haven amongst the hustle and bustle of New York. I realised there must be lots of abandoned railway stations and tracks in London, or surrounding areas, which have been overtaken by nature and this would fit the criteria.

The various places I visited to assess whether they would be right for my project, and the research I did to locate the places, all helped towards me gaining contextual and critical knowledge of the environment. The understanding of what was expected allowed me to look at the areas with a critical eye even though at first I thought they would be a good choice. This allowed me to disregard them and go back to my research.

The research and visual references that I looked at was extremely important and helped me throughout the project. By searching for environment photographers, Joel Sternfeld was the one who gave me my inspiration. After my first shots, I decided to research techniques used by photographers for high buildings. I liked how Rob Cartwright photographed some of his subjects from a long angle perspective which gave the illusion of a building looking slightly sinister. I decided to use this technique on the tower, as I felt it may give my abandoned, derelict church more atmosphere and enhance the image. I came across the work of many photographers that I had not heard of during my research which helped with ideas. Another part of my research taught me about conflicting issues that arise between developers and local communities during regeneration. Politics and money seem to override community feeling. It seems to boil down to money equates to power.

I feel my final images convey the force of nature, especially the one with the tree breaking through the brickwork. Although I took many images of the church from different angles, the ones where I focused on the nature element turned out to be the best so they were my choice for my final prints. I am happy with how I have managed my studies throughout this project. I planned and researched continuously, I attended all my lectures to gain more knowledge and I returned to the church many times to improve my shots. However, I do need to reflect on improving the focus of my shots and angles I use. The Bronica camera was a challenge for me because getting the right exposure and setting the aperture was very hard. I just couldnt seem to get the hang of it, although with more practice I will overcome this.