Alex Luyckx, Milton, ON
Member Since February 2011
Artist Statement I am a self-trained photographer with a background in Information Technology based in Southern Ontario. I’m drawn to lines, and shape in the buildings I photograph, and shoot straight from the hip and heart when photographing people, aiming for a whimsical flare, candid and off the cuff. But it’s when I’m inside the abandoned that I really come to life.
I picked up my first camera in 2002 and started poking around abandoned house in 2005, and that has always been the draw for me. When I go into these places I aim to capture some morbid beauty and this piece of a buildings story, often not seen by the general public. It is a unique experience wandering halls that once were alive, noisy generating floors stilled only my own footsteps echoing through ancient super structures. As a large part of a community of similar minded people several of whom I count as friends, inspiration comes from many of them, combined with my own analytical mind to create the images that I do.
It is these abandoned buildings, and decaying urban environments that drive my motto: capturing beauty in everything. Weekends and evenings will often see me off on some new adventure, or back to an old familiar building, looking for a new angle or view.
When I started my journey in photography I shot exclusively in the 35mm format, progressing from a rangefinder (Minolta Hi-Matic 7s) to a SLR (Minolta SRT-102 & X-7a), eventually landing on a Nikon F80 as my primary camera, digital was picked up in late 2005 with a DiMAGE Z2. Taking the leap in 2007 I purchased a second hand Nikon D70s. It was not until 2009 that I started working backwards, picking up a few Twin Lens cameras and medium format film. I continue to shoot primarily in the Digital format, sporting a Nikon D300 with a full range of professional Nikkor lenses.
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