I recently had an opportunity to take photographs at the Claremont showgrounds while it was deserted.

For the benefit of non-local readers, these huge grounds host the Perth Royal Show every year and occassional other events throughout the year. But there’s nothing on at the moment.

I love the deserted carnival atmosphere. It provides a combination of childhood nostalgia with all those creepy nightmares and fears of getting lost, locked in, or anything else your imagination can think up.

These images were all shot with a Canon 5D Mark II camera and Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L lens.  I also used a Cokin GND (Graduated Neutral Density) filter mounted to the lens to give the deep sky vignetting effect.

I stayed there for about an hour, and I didn’t speak to a single person in that time. I saw a couple of maintenance staff off in the distance in vehicles, but they left me alone.

Click on each image to view a larger version.