Photoblog

In September we had another interesting photographic trip, that went a bit in the shadow of the long planned trip to China. We spent a week on the coast in Northern Ireland: the Giant’s path.Was it enough? Not really. Northern Ireland is that kind of place that you can visit many times and get totally different feeling and images due to highly volatile weather conditions. Did we follow the Game of Thrones route? Not at all. We are not fans of the famous TV show. Therefore, we were not aware that many of the locations are on the bucket list of die hard GOT fans. Northern Ireland is special due to its glorious history. But we haven’t focused on the history, but more on the landscape in Antrim coast. Antrim is one of the most photogenic area in Northern Ireland and there is a lot for every taste. Rugged coastline, old castle ruins, charming harbors and above all, Giant Causeway, the UNESCO World Heritage site that is making the Irish people so proud. And a weather that ...

What is Bund? The Bund or Waitan is a waterfront in central Shanghai and the one of the most famous touristic area of the city. Bund runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River in the eastern part of Huangpu District, from Yan’an Road (formerly Edward VII Avenue) in the south to Waibaidu Bridge (formerly Garden Bridge). Facts: The area along the river faces the modern architecture of Lujiazui in the Pudong District; making it one the most photographed vistas in China. The word “Bund” means an embankment or an embanked quay. The word originated from Persian word band, through Hindustani, having the meaning of embankment, levee or dam. There are various “bunds” in east Asia, probably named after the bunds/levees in Baghdad along the Tigris; the Baghdadi Jews, like the famous Sassoon family, might have given the name. This family immigrated and settled their businesses in Shanghai  and other port cities in east Asia in the 19th century. Lujiazu...

  The Great Wall of China is one of the most impressive defensive architecture in the world. A bit of History: The Great Wall of China is one of the modern wonders of the world. It consists of a series of fortifications made of stone, brick, tamped earth, wood, and other materials. It is built along the east-to-west line across the northern borders of China, from Dandong in the east, to Lop Lake in the west, roughly along the southern border of Inner Mongolia region. The main purpose was to protect the empire against the raids and invasions of the mongols and other nomadic groups that inhabited the Eurasian Steppe. The construction started as early as the 7th century BC with few walls. Later, the isolated pieces are linked together, making it stronger into what now we know and call the Great Wall. Important enhancement of the wall happened during the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, but little of his construction work is still visible. The wall ha...

Our first interaction with rural Gunagxi was an afternoon in a small village were we photographed a buffalo farmer. The village was just in the middle of rice harvesting and the roads were covered by freshly collected rice, drying out in the sun. We were surprised to see people, animals and cars walking and riding over the rice. Everybody was happy, collecting the food that will help them to survive during winter. A collective effort that will end up with many bags of rice in the village granary. It was a hot afternoon, with clear sky over the surrounding karst mountains. Our models were waiting for us, by the road. The female buffalo was still covered with a thick layer of mud; she was a bit annoyed that her afternoon siesta in the swamp was interrupted. The owner, a stocky man was dragging her by a rope. The rope, passed through the nose of the buffalo, gives the mean of control to the farmer over the strong animal. For the next hour, the farm...

  Some of the best photographic opportunities come unexpectedly. After a brilliant sunrise at XiangGong Hill, the guide asked us if we mind an hour break in a small village close by. Him and the driver were willing to have a breakfast and he offered us to either joined them or have a walk in the local farmers market. Being Sunday people were gathered from surroundings to sell all kind of merchandise, fruits, vegetables, meat, live animals and various snacks. We decided right away to use this opportunity to explore something that we could not have a chance otherwise; normally a farmers market in a touristic brochure is a place crowded with tourists, selling overpriced merchandise, together with souvenirs. So seing a genuine local farmers market seemed like a great opportunity. The guide told us that people might get annoyed by us taking their pictures; and that we should take good care of our belongings. We experiences the local ‘dangers’ few minutes later: a totally ...

How this all started: Few years ago I saw an image with a cormorant fisherman in Guilin and I got hooked. It looked amazing, with the traditional outfit, the fragile bamboo raft and the birds with the wings wide open. All this in a stunning environment with crazy beautiful karst mountains. I swore that I will get there and try to get a chance to photograph them. This year Carmen and I decided to travel to China. An amazing country, so vast and beautiful that is really overwhelming to choose an itinerary. But Guilin had to be on the list and we tried our best to accommodate it on our journey. We spent 4 days in Guilin, arriving from Shanghai by plane, in the really cool Liangjiang airport inspired by the landscape of the region. 3 of those days we had a private photo tour, with a generous portion of cormorants fishermen shooting. Three sessions to be more precise. Some facts: These days, the fisherman are not exercising their craft, but rather modelling...