Wednesday 23 March 2011

Decorated

My friends, this week I went out to Northbridge and Mount Lawley, around about a 30 minute drive from my house, There I saw things like a 10 on 1 fight at the clubs and a man running from side to side in a dark alley. But, thankfully, I also saw some really cool looking buildings that had been decorated with a few coats of spray paint.


Below is what I think is a pretty cool alley behind a row of restaurant's and bar's which I have to say, If I was a homeless man or had been out all night and needed a place to stay, I would totally hit up this alley and one of it's fine dumpsters.


At the end of the alley I found what looked to be a face oozing out cheese on a electrical switch box's door. Although this kind of style doesn't involve paint, only paper and glue, It's really effective and last's a long time if it doesn't get wet.



Cheese Man?


Moving on into Mount Lawley I was hit by the renown Pacific Hotel, which I will defiantly be hitting up some time soon. But instead, I walked through more alleys and was a little surprised to find that there wasn't to much to see at all.

I did find some pretty awesome looking characters on the back of a local bar along the main strip. It is a similar style to that I photographed last week in Joondalup, however these guys had a slightly darker feel to them.
  
I wish the car had parked elsewhere.
                                                     
A little over decorated, but fuck, I like it.

I have a small sneak peak though, of what is over the wall of the infamous Abandoned Pacific Hotel. There was a small pole next to the wall which I managed to just quickly climb and take a look, before continuing on.

I must admit, I'm looking forward to going back and checking the place out, head to toe, and I'll tell you now, from the amount of art I saw from where I was.. There is going to be a lot of picture's in the blog following my visit. 

But for now, you can take a peak at the 'teaser' pictures of the Pacific Hotel.




Flash, I know, Ewww Icky, But it was the only way to light up back there.



Some of the picture's I also took this week are now part of my header image and background, as I figured it was about time I changed my blog layout a little bit :)

If you like my work guys, please be sure to vote for me HERE  muchly appreciated, stay cool.

Till next time, my friends.

ZAKEYY OUT

Saturday 19 March 2011

Corrupt.

Don't you just hate it when you go out to to take pictures and you get some amazing shots of old abandoned alleys and buildings, just to find out that they corrupted and you have lost over half the images that you took?


... Yeah, I hate that too.


Unfortunately this very thing happened to me, just now, which means, instead of having a nice collection of images to show you guys, I only have a few that a worth to upload.


Well, lets start this.


The first image I took was on the side of a building, which very soon you will not be able to see as they are currently constructing a building right up against this piece of art. Only a small jump-able fence is what stops general public from being able to see this masterpiece and all because of a construction site, you cant.


Now, I'm pretty sure this was commissioned (Allowed by the local government), as there is a police station right around the corner from this, and the picture dose not really show the size of it (This is a 3 story building), but that really does not matter, because even though this is perfectly legal, it's still an amazing work of art.


A soon to be invisible, masterpiece.

The next couple of images I took are facing the image above, just across the construction site. Commisioned again, maybe? This one i'm not to sure about. But one thing is for sure, It's also about to be ruined by the building that is rising up next to it.



It was a small shame that there was all these ladders and fencing all over the wall, because it hid away alot of the art, and also reflected alot when my flash went off, making it hard to take the photo.




A very alternative style.


I couldn't let this part of the painting not be seen.
So after walking around Joondalup (Where these images were taken) for about an hour I decided to shoot a different area, Wanneroo, A nearby suburb only 10 minutes away. It isn't hard to find graffiti in Wanneroo, It has a reputation for drugs and violence which comes with alot of 'taggers'. This is all mostly from the local gang; 'The Wanneroo Boys'. But what is hard to find in Wanneroo, is street art that isn't just a worthless scribble of somebodies name.

After looking through parks and old buildings and car parks I only managed to find just 2 places that looked worthy of a photo. The youth centre, which had altered it's BBQ to the bonnet of a roadster and also but a nice font on the back..




As well as finding the youth centre, I also found a small piece of work that had been painted onto a power box in a park, In the northern sections of Wanneroo. If any of you are familiar with Banksy, I think that the artist behind it was either inspired, or just wants to copy him.

Either way, I thought it was a nice little piece.

There is a small rat on the lower part of the box.

I will be going to the Power Station in Fremantle sometime next week I hope, I haven't really the time to go down currently. All the pictures here a just local and no more than 20 minutes from where I live,

I just figured id give bloggers another view of North Perth, that nobody else seems to want to capture.

ZAKEYY OUT



Monday 14 March 2011

Where do I go?

It's been a while since I blogged, so I figured i'd make write a quick one up. I have not really been up to much, so there isn't much to say. I have been studying at TAFE/College and working all week.


I'm dying to go out and take some pictures, but i'm not sure where to go.
There isn't really any place that is cool around where I live. Perth, Western Australia.


I'm thinking maybe to go and check out the Abandoned Fremantle Power Station, which I hear is a huge maze of awesome street art and amazing wreckage. It was closed in 1985 and since then has been given a fresh coat of paint.
Inside Fremantle Power Station (NOT MY IMAGE)


Gotta say, that looks pretty cool. But there is a few other places id like to check out in the coming week.

Another, is the Abandoned Pacific Hotel in Mount Lawley, which I cant really find to much information on, but I have driven past it many times, and all that is stopping me from just walking on in is a 2 meter high red fence. There is no barbed wire or anything that could hurt me, or cause a problem.


There is however one thing that could get me into some trouble.
The residents who live in the surrounding houses have been known to call the police the moment they hear or see anyone moving around in the old hotel, under the assumption that they are crack heads.


Even though i'm just a simple kid taking some pictures, the police wont care, trespassing is trespassing really, even though nobody lives there, But meh, i'll check it out soon.


Inside the Pacific Hotel (NOT MY IMAGE)
The last but not least place I wish to visit is a spooky one. I have been here before, and been chased away my locals. We got a good look around the outside, and even spookier, we climbed through a smashed out window into the inside. I'm talking about of course the abandoned Mental Asylum in Mount Claremont.


Inhabited now only by pigeons, who stare at you and never move (Trust me, I saw them).


Sadly, I didn't bring my camera with me last time, which is why I want to go back, I did however take my iPhone with me, and took one picture, only lit up with a torch that I had. Trust me, this place is pitch black and cold as ice.


The thought that people who were mental were held captive in this old building is a very creepy feeling, there are scratched out parts in the walls, creaky floor boards and a really creaky old staircase. A great place to go if you want to see a ghost.


The Image I took with my iPhone


So, bloggers.

Where should I go first?

I want to see them all, and I will see them all, once I find the time.


ZAKEYY OUT



Wednesday 9 March 2011

A Photography Cruise

A week or so ago, I got a new lens for my Nikon D3100 and decided to go on a 'photography cruise' with a good friend of mine, Ben. We both hopped into our cars wired with 2 way radio's and found a old run down 7 story carpark building.

There was graffiti, which looked amazing, all the way through it. There were cars that had been left to rot which had broken windows, stolen tyre's and more rust than metal. The carpark was located to a very popular beach, believe it or not.

As we climbed up and up each level of the car park we eventually hit the top 7th floor, there was nothing there, no cars, no graffiti, all there was, was a door, which we only found because a rat ran over to it and climbed through a large kicked out portion of the old wooden door.                     


Ben, observing the kicked in door.
We decided that we should check to see what was inside the old emergency stair case, I mean, who wouldn't?

What we found?.. A mess, an absolute wreck, the walls were coated with graffiti, the room wreaked of fowl smelling odors which I dare not to imagine what could be producing them.

I looked down over the stair railing, a long 7 stories down you could see at the bottom lay emptied cans of beer, soft drink, energy drinks as well as a load of rubbish left over the years. However looking up the stairs, which I could only imagine would take you onto the roof of the building, as we were on the top level, there was a blue tarp hanging over the railing.

This seemed odd as who would of left that behind? Did someone camp out?..

I took some pictures, with each flash of my camera the dark, cold room lit up brightly illuminating every cob web, dead bug, mouse and a lot of rubbish laying about.



Ben and I decided to climb up the last flight of stairs to see what was right above us, what else was left behind for us to find?

We climbed up kicking the cans as we climbed, holding our breath not to smell the fowl odors in which the room was using as oxygen. I managed to take one photo, I was standing directly behind the tarp you see in the picture above, facing back and up the final flight of stairs.

The only picture I managed to take.

After I took that one image, a man popped out from laying right there, center of the image just out of sight. Screaming for us to leave him alone and to get the F#CK out of his room. This came as quite a shock, scaring the living snot out of myself, and Ben.

We couldn't of raced back down the stairs faster and out through the hole in the door, breathing in all the nice ocean fresh air that the outside area was filled with. Looking back at the door from a safe distance we heard rustling, as though he was moving his presumed beloved tarp. Shadows could be seen in the small amount of light that was in the room.

We decided it was best not to go back in to get more pictures of the crazed man, however I can give this brief description of him:

  • Long, greasy grey hair.
  • A dark grey beanie.
  • Long dirty, dark brown jumper.
  • Yellow teeth.
  • Squinted, with his left eye entirely shut.
  • Very sweaty.

Who was this man?..
We decided it was best not to go back and find out. We are both under the assumption that he is some poor old homeless man using the old carpark as a beach-side shelter, king among the 'hobos'. 

But, we cant rule out that he is not some old crack head using the location as a local drug shop for his selective customers.

or even possibly a washed up man who partied to hard the night before and found refuge, I mean, there are lot's of pubs and clubs around the area.

But, decide what you like, I really don't know what to think of him, I didn't really get time to look at him or ask him who we was as I was kind of startled to the sudden "WHAT THE F#CK ARE YOU DOING? GET THE F#CK OUT OF HERE YOU C##TS THIS IS MY ROOM" just after I took a photo.

All I can say is, I'm glad that I had the camera strapped around my neck, and that this was one 'photography cruise' that I shall not forget.

ZAKEYY OUT!

Tuesday 8 March 2011

Current favorite song

The song that I have grown fond of over the last few days what actually voted #2 in Triple J's Top 100 of 2010 just behind Angus and Julia Stone's, Big Jet Plane which is also a very good song. But I really have fallen in love with Little Red's,  Rock It.

Why?..

Well its simple really, the voice of front man Adrian Beltram is very unique, they certainly don't sound like any other band going around at the moment. They sound more of a band from the 80's, well this particular song does at least.


The use of a cheery and catchy piano rhythm has really suckered me in as well. The song is very fun to sing along to and is very quickly climbing into my Top 25 Played playlist on my iTunes. 


But still very far behind top of list songs:


Where is my mind? by the Pixies, which has been a greatly loved song of mine for a long time now.


and pretty much every song on Phoenix's album 'Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix' which has still got to be, in my opinion, the best album to of been released in recent month's. Well, year's now.


ZAKEYY OUT!

Sunday 6 March 2011

Weekend.

Its a Sunday. Weekend would normally be over, but no, not today its not. Infact, im only half way through my weekend, thanks to labour day tomorrow and then just a free day off of work on Tuesday.

I love life.

Thursday 3 March 2011

A night out.

Went out with friends tonight.

The night involved going to a beach, dragging a ferrari, mcdonalds and just the company of good mates.

Another wonderful summers night in Australia.