Fort de la Chartreuse: an urbex photography location for beginners

Thursday 1 October 2020, 16:32 by Kim Schröder | 8,018 views | 11 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Would you also like to get started with urbex photography? Finding good locations is not easy. I will show you how best to go about it if you want to take great urbex photos.

Finding locations

You search for locations that have an urbex name. Every location you find in online blogs, websites and so on has an urbex name. This is because the real name of the buildings is never mentioned.

Locations are never made public, as this is the biggest taboo in the urbex world. No urbex photographer will simply give you the exact location of a place.

And not without good reason. In practice, it turns out that well-known locations are abused. Copper and metal thieves, groups of youths, but also simply destructive people who enjoy pulling everything off the walls and covering it in graffiti, so that nobody else can enjoy it anymore.

Some people have very little respect for other people's property. This is the main reason why an urbex photographer never gives away an exact location.

Google is your best friend

So if you want to go urbexing, you will have to put in some effort, which means a lot of Googling, online searching and research.

Once you have the urbex name of a location you would like to visit, you start Googling. There are always tips to be found in blogs, stories and accounts from other people that you can read online.

You search for factories, houses, castles, hospitals, cemeteries, churches, schools, institutions, care homes and so on.

If, for example, it says that it is a factory that has existed since 1962 and went bankrupt in 2004, that is clue number one already.

That is how you continue your search. It is a bit like solving a murder case: investigating and looking for clues to arrive at the solution.

Google, Google Maps and Streetview will be your best friends if you want to go urbexing.

A lot of work, but hey, you have to put in the effort.

België

There are only a limited number of urbex locations in the Netherlands. This is because a building in the Netherlands is quickly put to a new use, sold or demolished, and also because many buildings are occupied through anti-squat arrangements.

In Belgium, it is a very different story. Abandoned buildings are only demolished after years, so empty buildings and houses often stand vacant for years.

In some cases, nature has been allowed to run wild. This makes it unique and beautiful to see.

So once you have finally solved your 'case' and found a location through Google, make sure you double-check it.

It happens so often that your location may already have been demolished, sold, restored or, as regularly happens, completely 'trashed'.

Fort de la Chartreuse

Not far from the Dutch border, in the city of Liège, lies Fort de la Chartreuse. Almost every urbex photographer has been here, and for many it is their first urbex experience.

Probably because it is very easy to find and is listed by name on Google.

The fort was built in 1817 on the orders of King William I. (Yes, that Dutchman.) The fort played a role in the defence of Liège during the First World War.

On 7 August 1914, the Germans managed to occupy the fort. During the First and Second World Wars, Fort de la Chartreuse was used as a prison by the Germans.

At the end of the Second World War, the fort was used as a military hospital for the American Allies. It then served as a barracks for a while, and since 1982 the fort has been abandoned, with nature slowly taking over.

Especially if it is your first urbex experience, it still gives you a strange feeling. It certainly had an effect on me, especially after looking into it and learning the history behind it.

The fort is also a great location for a photoshoot, by the way.

Go and take a look, and let me know in the comments what you think of it!

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