30 years later: Exploring Pripyat in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone
During our one day tour exploring the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, we visited some abandoned villages and even stood close to the destroyed reactor. But the highlight was yet to come.
Around noon, we headed for Pripyat, which is the highlight of the tour.
From a distance, Pripyat looked quite reasonable. Just as if all the people there would be sleeping. But once we approached the city center, I felt like in an episode of the Walking Dead.
All the buildings are still standing, and not a single one was collapsed. Even the windows of the buildings were still intact. But as you drive along the main road, you begin to realize that something terrible must have happened here and that the inhabitants had to leave in a mad rush.
Polyssia Hotel in Pripyat
Our bus stopped in the Centre near the Polyssia hotel, which became the emergency center right after the disaster happened.
Polyssia Hotel in Pripyat
I like straight lines in Photos. So, as always, I fixed the perspective distortions in this photo with Lightroom Mobile. I used the small building in the foreground as a leading line to the main subject of the photo, the Polyssia Hotel.
The Palace of Culture in Pripyat
Right next to the Hotel is the former palace of culture. A vast building that once contained a theatre, a sports hall, and the iconic indoor swimming pool. The next photo shows the former theatre in the Palace of Culture in Pripyat.
Theatre in the Palace of Culture in Pripyat
And of course, here's a photo of the iconic swimming hall. Luckily, all the people from our tour stood on the right side of the pool so I could crop them out by cropping the photo to my favorite format, the square photo format.
Swimming Hall in the Palace of Culture in Pripyat
From the back of the palace of culture, you'll get another iconic view: The Pripyat Ferris Wheel.
The Ferris wheel at the Pripyat Fairground
While many others rushed down to get a closeup of the Ferris Wheel, I chose to take a photo from a different perspective. By placing a part of the balcony in the foreground, I could add depth and a bit context to the photo. Otherwise, it would have looked just like a miniature version.
Ferris wheel at the fairground in Pripyat
After exploring the abandoned supermarket in Pripyat, we finally arrived the old school. And though we all got used to it, our Geiger Counters started to beep wildly again. The school is a zone with increased radioactivity, so there was a strict time limit for us.
The old School in Pripyat
 All the classrooms in the school pretty much look the same, except for the tables having different colors. The books on the floor are another indication of how fast people had to leave Pripyat.
Classroom in a school in Pripyat
In another area of the old school, you'll find hundreds of gas masks lying on the floor. I've read many articles about Chernobyl that use these gas masks as illustration. But there's one thing about these masks. They weren't used after the accident in the power plant.
But, allegedly putting on gas masks was part of the eduction in the former Soviet Union to be prepared for a sudden attack by western countries.
Gas Masks found in the School in Pripyat
Residential Building
On the way back to the tour bus, I found this former residential building with a yellow phone booth in front. It's an excellent example of how to use leading lines in a photo to draw the attention of the viewer to a specific part of a photo.
Former residential building in Prypiat
I've photographed several lost places, but Chernobyl was the eeriest so far. What makes this one so spooky is the silence on the one hand, and on the other side that many of the buildings still look quite okay from the outside. So it feels like the inhabitants just left.
Apps and Gear used for photographing in Pripyat
Getting good shots was challenging in Pripyat. We didn't have much time (and you don't want to spend much time in the same place; at least in those places where the Geiger Counter beeps wildly), so I had to take photos quickly.
I used the Moment Wide Lens almost for each photo and primarily to photograph inside the buildings. Inside the buildings I photographed with [Pro Camera App] using Low Light & HDR mode (worth the in app purchase!) that magically combines a long exposure with an HDR reducing the noise of the final image under low light conditions.
Of course, I also used a tripod to photograph with iPhone - knowing that I may have to leave it at one of the checkpoints if it was found to be contaminated - which wasn't the case.
Oh yes, and one final word: Don't go there on your own. Book a tour; it's much safer. It's not only about the radioactivity but also about wild animals that you may encounter (We almost had such an encounter).
I booked mine with chernobyl-tours.com. Also, be prepared for some strange reactions from your friends. Mine said things from "you're nuts" to "how cool".
But at first, they didn't take my announcement seriously that I'm going to visit Chernobyl.
Maybe because I posted it on Facebook on April 1st, 2016?
