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I started shooting at the age of 16, so about two years now.
I started urban exploring about last summer
when I started linking up with people
that shoot with the [INAUDIBLE] and stuff
and kind of got into the whole urban exploring scene.
I followed them on Instagram because I liked their photos.
And I just hit them up and asked them if they want a shoot.
That's how you meet new people, and luckily the people I've met
are good friends of mine now.
Instagram really helped me get together
with all the other people that had the same kind of interests
as me.
And that wanted to like urban explore New York City,
and then I would also bring my camera along.
Back then when I first started doing this,
I didn't really know much about photography.
I did get a lot of tips and tricks
from people I chill with and hang out with that do photos.
I just bring my camera and shoot on auto,
and eventually my friends and people I've met
gained some pointers and tips and tricks,
and I started shooting a manual and learned
how to really use my camera to its full potential.
Well, we met-- we used to work together.
We met at a coffee shot.
And then one day after work, you had brought your camera, right?
Yeah, I'm just going to shoot around.
He was like, oh, I know this rooftop we can go on.
I'm like all right, let's go, and we went.
The night after that, I was out and he called me.
And he's like oh, I just climbed the Williamsburg Bridge.
And I was like, oh, my God!
Yeah, we've been arrested together.
We were like-- they already have our names.
But, yeah, like 30 cops and a SWAT team.
Yeah, SWAT too.
They dragged us through Times Square in cuffs.
Yeah.
I mean, I think at first they thought we were jumpers.
So when they-- I remember doing a couple of feet shots,
and then looking down to the lower part of the roof
and seeing the cops.
I've been shooting urban exploring
for about two years at most.
It's probably, I guess, the most exciting thing I've ever done.
That's all I can say, really.
Especially being from Brooklyn, New York, not many people
explore the city.
So, you know what I do is I take it into my own hands
and I tend to go places I guess where I'm not supposed to be.
I actually got into photography a long time ago,
due to me being a skateboard filmer at first.
I guess sometimes we abide by the same rules.
Skateboarding and urban exploring photography--
when you go to a certain spot you
can't skate it because there's usually a security guard there.
When you're skating, you want to be recorded.
You want to be filmed just like all the pro skaters.
So when you get into that idea of wanting to be filmed,
you tend to pick up the camera and start shooting photos.
And mostly everybody that I shoot photos with skates.
For a while, me and my friend [? Naisha ?]
had been scoping out a 432 Park [INAUDIBLE].
And we thought it was a possible project
that we can maybe sneak into the building and get to the top.
So we decided to just go for it.
Eventually walked up all the 90 flights of stairs
and got to the top.
Nothing about the building really specifically
made me want to climb it.
It was just tall and it was there.
It was kind of our Everest.
You never know which doors going to be open.
You can just check a door and a door just might open.
You might get lucky.
Getting the shot and knowing that you're
one of the few people that have been here
is a pretty awesome feeling.
It's an addiction.
You get not only just wanting to check out new stuff.
It's curiosity, but also there's like an adrenaline rush
associated with it.
The thrill of going places where I'm not supposed to go
is the best part about it.
The reason why I explore is because each place
is relatively easy to get to, and it just
amazes me that so many people don't
get to see these places just because they're
hiding from the public.
I can do it, so I will do it.
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