Teufelsberg, Berlin by Julio Cardador
I’ve never been to Teufelsberg in Berlin before, so last November I decided it was about time to go there. This place is a former NATO interception station, which is now open to the public, being also a spot for street art and culture. I’ve never been a fan of shooting street art that much because I don’t like the idea of copying someone else’s art. So instead I photographed the marvelous pieces of street art/graffiti with my eyes, storing them in my memory and leaving them for you to discover on your own.
I preferred to concentrate on the architecture and abstraction. This led to a small series which combines architecture, decay, abstractness and even portraits.
There have been a lot of people running around that day, taking selfies and photo bombing, but I kept calm and focused on the largest tower of the facility that bears an intact dome on top of it (the other ones, the smaller ones, have been covered in light fabric that’s been destroyed over the years). Those domes used to house antennas for interception.
Made out of some kind of plastic, the dome on top is covered in graffiti and also provides different sound effects. You can loudly hear everyone’s voice wherever you are in the dome.
For the last two pictures, I put my Mamiya on a tripod in the middle of the dome, attached a cable release – and what truly surprised me was the way the dome enhanced even the faint sound of the release and threw it back from every angle possible.
All photographs are shot with a Mamiya RB67ProS 6x7cm on Rollei Superpan 200, using the Mamiya Sekor 127mm.
I first started shooting when I was around 6 years old and got my first cheap point and shoot camera. Over the years I developed a passion for cameras and so I started collecting, repairing and reselling photographica. I never stopped shooting film and my passion grew more and more over the years. In 2007 I switched to medium format, when a friend of mine gave me his old Reflecta II, a camera from the former GDR. My path led me then to a Kiev88 (a hate-love relationship, but one that got me some of my best shots) and to my now favourite, the Mamiya RB67.
Right now I’m shooting a lot of portraits and architecture, selling fine art prints or entirely handmade darkroom prints.