Dubai Street Photography

I spent a few days in Dubai, it was my first time not just transiting through the airport. Unfortunately we didn't get to do the desert safari this time. I would have loved to shoot a few portraits of the tribesmen and I am dying to try the roasted goat that is slow cooked in a hole in the ground and coved with sand.

For me the most interesting shots I got were at the souk. It is a pity that it is so geared towards tourists though, I would have liked to see more local people and even where the migrant workers to the country shop for their daily things. On the plus side, food all over was amazing and the weather was great. I have heard that summer is definitely a no go as temperatures go into the 50's and we are talking Celsius!

Have to say that I am loving the Fuji Systems more and more each day for travel photography. Besides the fantastic quality of the photos, the size and weight are great for saving your back and shoulders when you are out the whole day. So Well done FUJI and keep it up!

Be wary of strangers.

Hand held. I really need to get a travel tripod.

Huang Shan- Yellow Mountain Pt 1

Spent a night in Huang Shan city before heading up the actual mountain. The city wasn't really anything special to be honest, well not that we could find but the people are amazing friendly compared to Shanghai. I will split this post into 2 parts, the second post will be about the actual mountain.

Like a tsunami, the newer, bigger apartment blocks and offices engulf the older more traditional buildings.

South African Street Portrait

Aaaarrrghh, Ok so take two of my blog post because the little internet decided to delete my last post as I was finishing it.

Ok so lets start again. It's been a while since my last post. Life has been crazy busy with shooting and general life stuff. I also spent 3 weeks in South Africa on holiday and managed to organise a couple of shoots while I was there. I think most of my holiday snaps I will post on Instagram so look out for them. 

I was cruising around Johannesburg looking for old 35mm cameras in old junk shops when I noticed this guy just hanging around outside one of them. I was immediately interested by his face and knew that I had to shoot his portrait. After talking for a while he agreed and we just carried on talking about life in general while I snapped away. Turns out he regularly goes to the local gym to lift weights with his daughter and on the day I saw him, he was just killing time waiting for her. Really nice guy and I was happy to have met him.

The black and white shots were down when I found myself on a construction site. I would have loved to spend a bit more time there shooting close up portraits of the workers but I wasn't able to that day, maybe next time.

Anyway, everyone meet Vic.

Shanghai Street Life In Color

Somewhere in Shanghai. Wandering the back alleys of the less flashy parts of Shanghai where the shiny store fronts that house the worlds top designer brands seem a million miles away but can in fact be found just a few streets away. here the old folk regard you with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion and the younger generation stare and giggle.

Shanghai Streets In Color

Shooting street in Shanghai sometimes feels like cheating because there is so much of interest you barely have to walk 20 meters to find a subject but this too comes with it's own problems. I find it challenging to push myself to think of new themes, to look beyond the obvious street vendor shot right in front of me. At the end of the day we all add our own touch to each photo and view the scene slightly differently to everyone else no matter how many times it has been done before, this is how we differentiate ourselves. I am sure that is the goal of many photographers, when you take a shot of something that has been seen before but whoever is looking at it can recognise it's your work by the style of the photo. 

The lesson to be learnt is keep pushing yourself, the harder you push the more you surprise yourself. Appreciate the failures, those are the building blocks from which you make success.

The rate at which Shanghai is expanding and modernising is impressive. It also makes for a great contrast, out with the old and in with the new. In a way though, it is sad to see all of these old buildings crushed to rubble.