Faces, Places, and Something that rhymes with ‘ces.
Since Sunday, things here have been a whirlwind of new ideas sprouting into new projects. That isn’t the only thing happening around here, however. Updates on Essays and Gallery, the past week, have been a retro week for me- going back to life in the US, and the people, places, and events I photographed there before coming to China in 2007. Here’s a list of the stories and photographs that published since the first of May. (more…)
Macro Gallery Update: May flowers spring up from the showers of April
As foreseen and foretold- those horrid showers of April do indeed yield May flowers. In this case, the flowers were actually photographed in November, but hey, you wanted flowers- you get flowers. (more…)
Children of the Chinese Countryside.
Not long after I settled into Jiujiang, I took my first trip into the Chinese countryside, guided by an art major from the university. She introduced me to Ruichang, a town on the outskirts of Jiujiang. Ruichang suffered a major earthquake in 2005. Her family home was one of the few that remained standing. Unfortunately, the home was structurally weakened and her family was forced to abandon it.
I only saw the house pointed out from a distance across a farmers field. (more…)
Chinese Lions and Chinese Dragons and Chinese Kung Fu Children, Oh my!
It’s actually not as bad as it seems. In the first couple of months after arriving in China, Jiujiang hosted their second annual International Lion and Dragon Dance competition. During the opening ceremony there was a performance by children showing off their Kung Fu dance skills. The event lasted a few days and being the veteran outdoor athletic event photographer that I am…er, was- Teva Games, I didn’t miss a moment.
Hop pass the break for a link to the photos. (more…)
29,990 Photographs taken in 3.5 years in China
Remember the hit Broadway musical from the 1990′s- Rent? 525,600 minutes. That’s how they measured a year. That or they measured it in love. How do you measure life in love if love, according to home journals and advice columnists, is supposed to be timeless and we all know the life of every living organism is finite (for now)? Sorry, got off topic there.
Five hundred, twenty-five thousand, six hundred minutes or -what happened to the other 348.766 minutes, by the way? or, one photograph every seventeen point five hundred twenty-five thousandths minutes. I swear that .525 was just a coincidence. In any case, it doesn’t have the same rhythm when you put it to the soundtrack.
But it’s even crazier still to wrap my mind around the fact that since coming to China in September, 2007, I have captured 29,990 photographs. (more…)
More landscape photos added to Landscapes
While going back through the 2007 catalog, I came across a few more photographs worth including in the Landscapes section on Gallery. Head over to the gallery for a look. (more…)
Another Week of April Showers and We’ll Have Some May Flowers
Is there any truth to that old adage? I mean, really, in some parts of the world April is a pretty dry month and still they have pretty flowers! Ok, maybe not in May perhaps, but then were just arguing semantics, aren’t we?
In any case, we have some beautiful photographs of flowers (some with showers showing), plants, and even a Luna moth, to look at in deep close stunning detail, while we wait for the rains of April to satiate our own little claims of terra and bring forth May’s gift. (If you read that last bit with a hint of Earl Jones, it sounds better.) (more…)
Jiujiang University Class of 2009 Graduated.
A deadpan headline, to be sure. In its defense, it is befitting of a ceremony that appeared so matter-of-factly. The graduation ceremony in Jiujiang was quick. It was moved up by an hour to help stave off the heat- the ceremony took place at the end of June. There were no chairs for the graduating students to sit during the speeches. Only a peppering of parents were in the stands to watch the event. About an hour after the students assembled and the faculty were seated, mortar boards were whizzing through the air and where a moment before, college students fidgeted and swayed from left foot to right foot, the newest college graduates of Jiujaing University stood proud with smiles and exhilaration. (more…)
Running really fast and jumping really high. Pursued criminal or Track and Field competition?
The answer is- Track and Field competition. OK, spoiler right there in the first line. Sorry, but really? You were going to go with ‘criminal’? For shame.
Jiujiang University’s annual track and field competition coincided nicely with the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China in 2009. To celebrate, they jazzed up their opening ceremony. The competition lasted for three days and included all of the expected events- sprint, relay, long-distance running, high jump, long jump, javelin, … – you get the idea. (more…)
Pretty Flowers blooming in Spring
I thought about adding “Shocker” to the headline of this post, then thought better of it. I don’t know- “Shocker” just seems so bitter a term. And it’s hard to be bitter when we’re talking about flowers and the beauty of nature. That is, unless the flowers in reference are roses and it’s February 14th and the stupid florist with the stupid flowers who hikes the price of roses to a stupid amount at that time of year was stupidly sold out when I went to buy some at the last minute because I relied on my stupid task manager to remind me to buy them and it failed to remind me so I was left to buy the last stupid rose from a stupid convenient mart for a stupid exorbitant amount of money. Then, and only then, I agree- yes it is alright to add “shocker” in a headline such as; “Shocker: Florists Sell Out of Expensive Roses on Valentine’s Day.”
However, I digress. It is not February and we are not talking about roses. (more…)
Early Buddhists may have run out of paint- 50,000+ Buddha statues carved into cave walls.
Sixteen kilometers outside of Datong, a northern border town between China and Inner-Mongolia on the Chinese side, there sits, carved into the cave walls of the Yungang Grottoes, over 51,000 statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva. The Yungang Grottoes, or Yungang caves, are one of the three most famous ancient sculptural sites of China, aside from the Longmen and Mogao caves.
During my ’round China’ vagabond in the summer of 2009, Datong and the Yungang caves were my second stop. The first stop was Xi’an.
I didn’t count the number of statues I photographed. (more…)
Really Pretty Flowers Prefer Fresh Water in China.
It’s true! It must be true because the largest field of the most beautiful flower of Asia, the Lotus, is in China’s largest fresh water lake, Baiyangdian. Every summer in August, the lotus reaches it peak blossom. The lake is vast and the fields are only accessible by boat. In August, 2009, I visited the lake and it’s precious flowers. Head over to the gallery to have a look for yourself. Or wait until August and make the trek to see them in person. (more…)
Change is Coming to Gallery – Macro Photography
A new album is being added to the main gallery media player on Gallery to display highlights from my collection of macro photography. Macro photography is one of my favorite retreats from my everyday photography. I love the details at that spectacularly close range- to see the intricate patterns on the petal of a leaf, or the dizzying multitude of facets on the eye of a cicada. Whatever you thrill to move in close to inspect, I’d probably share your interest and excitement. (more…)
Goin’ Back to Thailand. To Thailand. To Thailand. Goin’ to Thailand. To Thailand. To Pattaya.
Yep, that’s right. Vay-cay time again. It’s Sunday. The weather is perfect. The chores are all done. Work can wait until tomorrow. Now let’s take a quick hop across the water to sunny Pattaya, Thailand for a little beach time, a little nightlife, a little boogie. Did I just say ‘boogie’? Are those crickets I hear from beyond the audience? Hmmm
Oh well, I’m off to boogie! (more…)
Lifestyle gallery update: Travel and Transportation
Who among us does not like choice? Choice is good. Choice breeds quality, improved services, better selection, and competition. Well, in China you have lots of choices when it comes to transportation- trolley, bus, subway, car, motorcycle, scooter, bicycle, tricycle, motorized tricycle, boat, cart, rickshaw, or by foot. What you don’t have a choice over is how many of those forms of transportation will share the road, or the sidewalk, at any given time. Ok, the boat and the subway have their own limitations on where they operate, but the rest all share the same space. It can be a harrying experience at times. It also makes for great pictures and video, if you’re not from this culture. (more…)
Lifestyle gallery update: Chinese Weddings.
Wedding season is about to hit the peak season in the US. Here’s another glimpse into the Chinese wedding. It may be a good way to get a few ideas for your nuptial, if you’re about to take the plunge. At the very least, it could spark a new round of changes to really get your coordinators hair into knots.
When the newly weds, Michelle and her husband, exited the bride’s family home together for the first time, extended family and friends was there with fireworks, noise makers, and confetti tubes to greet the happy couple. (more…)
Lifestyle gallery update: Celebrating Christmas in China
This photograph of a Chinese university student celebrating Christmas eve with her classmates is part of my larger documentary thesis on contemporary life in China. Just across the street from the main entrance to Jiujiang University, there is a large complex filled with retail stores, restaurants, extended-stay hotels, tea shops, and even a couple of pubs. This area mostly caters to the students.
The Chinese academic year breaks for winter holiday during the Chinese New Year so on Christmas eve students are still holding fall semester classes. Since many of the students are from other parts of the country, and because celebrating Christmas in China is predominately the younger generation’s holiday, many students (more…)
It’s another pretty landscape
Here to wrap up a three-day post-by-post addition to Landscapes in Gallery is this cover shot of Gantang lake in Jiujiang, Jiangxi, China. I call it a cover shot because this photograph of a temple on Gantang lake became the cover for my thesis on contemporary life in China- Jiujiang: 9 Rivers. (more…)
Sunset pictures are relaxing
There’s always something about a good sunset photo to ease your tensions away. Hopefully having a look at this photograph will help ease some of the week’s tension from your mind. Or try yoga. I hear that is still a pretty popular way to inner-peace. But still, have a look at the photos. Oh! I know, look at the photos while doing yoga. (more…)
Snow on the hill.
Before the snows of winter release their final holds on those last remaining grips, I figured I had better get these couple of cold winter-scapes uploaded and added into the mix.
These photographs helped me to portray a more complete life in China while I was writing my thesis. It’s difficult to place them into any one album such as the ones in earlier posts- they were taken in Jiujiang while I was living there, I wasn’t on a trip, it wasn’t a special occasion, it just snowed. But as part of a larger body of work, identifying elements of contemporary China, I believe it is necessary to include them. (more…)
A Few Snags
Well that was an eventful couple of weeks. Since March 18th, albums of photographs have been populating Gallery daily. Mostly, the albums reintroduced collections of photographs that were published on toutoude.com, a domain which was left to expire back in February. Of course, the whole purpose of the new skin and underlying structure of Gallery was to make more images easier to view; so in addition to the re-release, a few new albums were introduced to the fray.
Hopefully, everything worked correctly each time you clicked to see new images. Unfortunately, here on the back-end of all of this, it wasn’t always quite so smooth. Here are a few of the issues that popped up during the roll-out. (more…)
Take a Brief Tour of Beijing.
Without even moving from where you are now, you can take a small journey through some fine points of Beijing. Well, you may want to shuffle a bit and settle into a comfortable position because these photos are going to whisk you away to the capital city of China. I hope you’re not hungry because a part of this journey documents the exotic snack food on Wangfujing, the famous snack street. (more…)
The all new photo gallery goes live.
Alright there photo fans, you glorious fans of photos, the time has come. Today the Gallery goes live. I looked for an audio track of fans cheering and clapping to add to this post so that you could fully immerse yourself in the moment. Didn’t find anything good…or for public use. OK, truth be known, I didn’t find any clip. It’s just as well since you may never have heard the track over your own outburst of celebration.
Too much vanity? Possibly.
I’ll try to tone it down. It’s difficult since I am just so excited to be sharing this with you. The publication is growing by one today. It’s a great thing! (more…)
