WH Yeo Photography

Portfolios: Southern China

A 2 week trip to Southern China with a tightly-knitted group of photographers from NPSS was an eye-opener. From high altitude autumn colours to the local kids with mucus flowing from their noses, it was surely one of those trips where we had it all.

Yading National Park, the gentle climb at a height of 4000m above sea level was made all the more arduous with the load on the back. A 10 stop nd filter slowed the shutter speed to level things out.
   
That was what I felt when the girl from a rural area in Szechuan turned. Despite the less than average living conditions, there was cheer and laughter amongst the kids and adults.
   
In some areas, the fall colour was not as strong as I would have liked. In such situations, using a telephoto and thinking closeups, closeups and more closeups will hopefully churn out some goodies.
     
  
Slow shutter speeds are useful to get the water silky but in some cases, using a faster shutter of about 1/5 second can record some movement in the water flow and yet still be slow enough to give it an abstract look.
   
After getting the catch out from the nets, it was time to clear the debris and shells from the mazy mess.
  
An old dog laid on the holy grounds. He was limping badly and seemed to be too tired to carry on further. Laying down on the ground, he paid no attention to the worshippers as they went about their daily ritual.
     
  
The fields were empty and at times, some ploughing will take place. Winter is approaching and before long, the back-breaking work of planting crops will be part of their lives once again.
  
The little truck was loaded with fallen trees and it seemed to be a miracle it can be steered around the bends of the mountainous roads.
  
It took some time to get the tripod in position for this shot. The waters were quite fast flowing around the rocks where 5 legs were propped on. A ND filter and a polarizer slow the shutter speed and toned down the reflection.
     
  
As the wind sped up, blowing the clouds above and the mist below, I used a strong ND filter to slow the shutter speed down to a few minutes. The winds also meant tougher shooting conditions and more layers of clothing but that is part of the game of landscape photography.
  
Landscapes usually go hand-in-hand with a small aperture setting, resulting in a wide range of depth of field. In this situation, I decided to shoot near wide open with the 24-105 IS to really bring out the plants in the foreground and retained the mountains in the background as part of the environment.
   
The backlighting caught my eye and knowing that laying on the moist ground was the only way to make the most of it, I did so without hesitation. Oh, my pants were waterproof though.
     
  
The curved mountainous road had a rocky path down to the edge of a farm. Scampering down, I rushed to get a view of the peaks while the clouds made their disappearance for a moment.
  
As the devotees stepped foward in advance to making another round, I had to be careful not to get too close and intrude their lives. A step back is essential often and in this case, I had to make that step.
   
I was lucky to have great autumn colour while walking down the long stretch of road. After some typical shots of wide landscapes, it was time to get the telephoto out and do some element extraction from the landscape.
     
  
Tiger Leaping Gorge, unconquered by whitewater rafters was really a sight and sound to behold. The crashing of the waters just left me in awe while the long exposures went on.
   
That was what I felt I was doing when I searched high and low for a gap through the leaves to act as both a foreground and at the same time, allowing a view of the solo tree in the background.
   
Photo for November 2011: Clouds from Heaven and EarthThe morning was chilly and the wait for the sun to hit the peaks was futile. Nevertheless, a ND filter allowed a slow shutter speed while multiple exposures blended together managed the wide exposure range.
     
  
It was a freezing night and one look at my watch read the temp @ -2 deg C. What got me up and out was the blackout the small little village was having and that meant a perfect time for night photography. This was the last single hour exposure out of five. The first four had noise and focusing issues. I could have gone on with a 6th exposure but it was already one in the morning and the rising moon had dimmed out the star trails so it was bedtime.
   
The 2 elderly gentlemen saw me lugging the cameras and with a nod, they approved my shooting. A wider aperture kept the younger man in the background less in focus.
  
The parasatic ferns were hanging on the host trees like wool. Amazing that something as delicate looking as this can push an ailing tree to certain death.
     
  
At Leaping Tiger Gorge, this rock had at least to me, a resemblance to a tiger and the composition was pretty straightforward. The difficult thing was keeping the consistent spray off the ND filter.
   
The farmland was a distance away and it would be tempting to try to include all of it within the frame. Switching to a telephoto, I peered through the viewfinder and starting looking for compressed perspectives.
  
In my humble opinion, I have always felt that timing plays perhaps the most important in the capture of an image. True, technique is important and so is the gear. But if you have both and you are at home soaking up the latest gossip on some bizarre website then where will the image be coming from? In this case, I was quite a distance from the group as I saw the prayer flags and noted how they could be backlit with the setting sun in the west. With the tripod and a 3 stop ND filter, I slowed things down to indicate a little motion in the flags.
     
  
After getting in the wider views, I will if time permits, get the telephoto out and start extracting parts of the stream or waterfalls. Much of the time, these shots are abstract and less obvious to the viewer but they also push my ability to visualize to a different level.
   
It was tough getting into this position. The thick branches behind me were a pain even with the thick jacket on. The only way it could be done was to compose quckly, squat down below the branches and fire a series of frames via a remote.
   
A 4 stop ND filter was used to allow a slower shutter speed. That blurred the flags fluttering in the wind and gave a sense of motion.
     
  
Walking along a street, I noticed the dogs jumping all over each other and from a distance way, I grabbed the camera with the telephoto and went in close. Dropping the ISO down allowed a slower shutter speed to show the fight in a more realistic manner. The dog on the right helped the image by remaining still for that split second and note the small bunch of fur it had gotten from the dog in the center.
   
As the school children approached us, I could not help but stare at the opened bags. The zips were all battered and in a country like Singapore, the bags would have long ago made it to the trash bin. Thus I will be ready with the free backpacks and laptop bags that I have in abundance on the next trip. They sure need a new bag to secure their belongings.
   
The shrine was weirdly near the river and there were no locals whom I could ask for any info as to how the locations of the shrines were determined.
     
  
The scene was actually quite a mess with branches void of leaves all over the place and with not so appealing light, one would really have a good reason not to get any shots. It is however times like this when one can really push their thinking to the limit.
   
When shooting with a group, it is always important to note where others are shooting and not to get in the way. In this case, I assumed they were shooting to the left and I ran down the right where there was an old bridge with prayer flags and went about my business. A few minutes later, I turned and saw them shooting my direction! Seconds later, I dragged my unpacked backpack off the bridge in hope I had not appeared in their shots. Unfortunately, I did and everyone had a good laugh though I was apologetic for my intrusion in their images.
   
Religion plays a huge part in this local towns and prayer flags were seen everywhere. Using the flags, I framed the houses in the hills and was fortunate to have some clouds in an otherwise bland sky.
     
  
The worker had just lugged his bags across the bridge and took a rest with his hands around his crossed knee. I was attracted by the contrast between the lighter tone of his limbs and the dark coloured pants.
   
The cow was ignoring my presence and bashed through the bushes to get a good taste of the flower buds. I timed each exposure to capture its tongue coming out but this was the only one that came close.
   
I personally never get bored of visiting the same location time and again. Somehow new compositions and conditions will usually happen and in this case, this was the second time to this location. Looking up, I saw the branches and blue sky and backlit leaves....
     
  
The locals are very devoted Buddhists and prayer beads are frequently seen in their hands.
  
It pays to take note of the view out the window when travelling. For this photo, our bus was coming to a stop and I saw the flags on a wall near us and the houses in the background. Getting off, I headed backwards and got the shot I saw a minute ago.
   
It was a cool and clear morning. The mist was there behind the trees and the backlighting from the rising sun was getting the excitement to a whole new level.
     
  
Photo for December 2011: Morning Greetings.This image illustrates the importance of having 2 working cameras, one mounted with a wide angle and the other with a telephoto. In this case, the 2 cameras were 5D Mark IIs and the lenses were a Canon 24-105 IS and the Canon 70-300 IS L.The mist was making the light interesting and walking down the road, the 4 horses came together. It was a split second moment as one of them turned away almost immediately. If I had only a wide angle, this image would definitely not come to fruition. Changing lenses while the scene unfolds seems as difficult as writing with the other hand and frustration will no doubt set in.Shot with the 70-300 IS L and processed in Aperture and Photoshop.
   
The hunched old lady was there before we arrived. The half we spent there never saw her taking a break as she circled the shrine at a constant pace.
   
It was weird the locals chose to bulld the road in line with the curves of the river. Wouldn't it be easier to just do it straight?
     
  
It's great to just have some fun while shooting. Zooming out during the exposure was one way to have the cake and eat it too.
   
Once again, the point of having a telephoto is illustrated here. I have had enough wide shots of the prayer flags and it was time to pay more attention to the details and how the light was coming into play.
   
In a perfect world, I would have loved for this gentleman to step back a little to show of himself to the camera. But my thoughts about photography is to minimize any intrusion into the scene or the subjects lives. In this case, I had to make but the colour contrast of his top and the surroundings was superbly striking.
     
  
Much of the time, I would love to have a recognizable subject to provide a sense of scale and in this case, the houses below the mountains proved sufficient.
   
The wind was really strong on the top of this hill. I had to hang the camera bag from the centre column to ease the vibrations. What was a little more irritating was a local photographer who just did not budge despite squeezing my shooting space to a minimum!
   
When I saw the reflection, I let out an audible wow and with last light left in the sky, I propped the camera on the stone bridge and fired off a few frames on 2 seconds self-timer. A while later, a crowd gathered behind me, some pointing their camera in the same direction I was in while others tried to look at what in the world was so captivating...
     
  
As I approached the group of elderly in Sichuan, this man stood out not because of the fact that he could be the youngest in the group but perhaps the slightest of smiles seemed to have me pointing the camera in his direction. As usual, after getting the shot, I take it as good manners to show him the shot and have a laugh.
   
Maybe he was not from the Great Plains in Mongolia but the costumes and horses he was on definitely gave that impression. Unfortunately, they were just being paid as crowd pullers in the ancient town of Lijiang and not a passerby that would have made them more fascinating subjects.
   
It's a bad habit to some to lug the camera into the restaurants for meals but on my side, other than for the obvious security issues of leaving unattended gear in the vehicle, it's also to capture moments that would otherwise be missed. This was taken out the restaurant window with a 4 stop ND filter held in front of the lens to slow down the waters. 10 minutes later, I saw the first plate of French Fries going past our table, towards a group of Taiwanese tourists. I nearly switched tour groups for that.
     
  
The waterfowl entered the waters and disrupted the reflection of the mountains in the background. Walking along the lake, I waited for it to move into the frame before I fired off.
   
Yulong Snow Mountain's peaks get the first light from the rising sun and the ducks were starting their day. The town was still quiet though. Quiet...a word rarely used to describe the outdoor urban environment in China.
   
A mixed breed of the outrageously expensive Tibetian Mastiff guards the cows from the camera-welding photographer. Unlike normal dogs that would have gone howling and barking like mad, all he did was growl. Apparently effective as I soon headed down the path, away from them.
     
  
Working with such granduer will surely be a distraction for me. The farmers were however amused with the fascination for what is a view they have taken for granted.
   
It actually took me some time to notice the cow in the small forest. Only when he turned his head did I see the movement in the wider frame. Switching to the telephoto, I placed him near one of the intersection points of the Rule of Thirds.
   
Not really a sign that says Welcome but one that was a welcoming sight. In short, it reminds the town's people to be responsbile towards the environment and the natural resources that they have access to.
     
  
The lady in the background is lugging close to 20 odd kg worth of shrimps and small fishes. The man who seems to be one of the supervisors oversees the weighing process to ensure no errors are made.
   
Autumn colours and a blue sky are superb partners. As such, one can be easily overwhelmed and given another chance, I would have tried to ensure that the reflection of the tree is not in contact with the rock.
   
The fisherman had parked his boat a few minutes before and headed back in to clean up. The meticulous way of working was admirable.
     
  
While there were plenty of fishermen around lugging in their catch, there were also a few boats with tourists in them. The boatmen will then be pointing out the various sights around the humongous lake.
   
The little dog was barking and at the same time retreating as far as its chain will allow. Not wanting to stress it further, I squatted down and stopped moving. The fear was soon released as was the strain on the chain.
   
The rising moon provided some sidelighting for the clouds. A long exposure gave the star trails and the clouds slowed down to a nice blur.
     
  
Just as I was heading back to the spot for a outdoor lunch (just cup noodles and local sausages but anything works for me then), I turned back and saw this dead fallen trunk above the rushing waters. Lunch took a back seat once again.
   
Net-mending seemed to be a daily task for the local fishermen but one that definitely was an eye-opener for us as we went around frantically trying to shoot as the light was at its best.
   
The capibility of RAW files is evident here as the highlights on the right side of the sky was recovered without much difficulty. With a JPEG file, it's nearly impossible.
     
  
With blood clogged fingers, the eighty odd year old man continued getting the kernels off the corn cob. He was not that apt at it as his wife who was maybe five times faster. Perhaps the freshly lit cigarette was too soothing for him and that affected his working pace.
   
There are occasions when the potential compositions are easy to spot and the real problem is the setting up of the gear. In this case, I was balancing myself on a small rock while the tripod was in the water. In cases like this, I will fire more frames than I normally would to increase the possibility of getting a sharp image.
   
From clearing and mending the nets to emptying the boats of water, it was all in a morning's work for the fishermen. Everything went smoothly and steadily like clockwork.
     
  
As far as my eye could make out, this boat was the last one still hauling in the catch. The sun was fortunately behind some clouds and that prevented the sky from burning out.
   
The Buddhists were so deep into their prayers that they ignored the cameras. The lady here however peered as this frame was taken. Perhaps, she was amused by the photographer with his sky-pointing bum.
   
A smile, nod and a wave from an elderly man brought me to the small closed door. Not knowing what was inside, I was curious and accepted his invitation to step forward. When the opened doors presented the prayer wheel, I was left in awe and the devotees stepped in for their daily ritual. I remained outside and laid down on the ground with a wide angle lens to get the entire scene in.
     
  
Pacing up and down the ground, I was looking out for a row of trees that would have the sun at the right angle and a clean foreground. A small aperture of f/13 gave the diffraction spikes from the sun. Any aperture that is smaller will soften the image and is a no-no for me.
   
Telelphotos compresses the scene and isolates the subjects from the background. I use all sorts of focal lengths for landscape photography as there will be a time for one or the other. There is never a perfect lens for any scene.
   
I had the ND grad filter handheld right in front of the lens to hold back the sky's brightness a little and stood still. In a moment, the lady bent over and emptied her basin. Job done.
     
  
Some may say that this image could be done using some weird filters in Photoshop so why go through all the effort to look for the reflection on location? There is no right or wrong answer to that and I myself do not have a answer to that. All I know is more often than not, I prefer my images to be as good as they can be out from the camera. This way of working also pushes my creativity closer to the edge.
   
The man was not really pushing the cart that fast but a slow shutter speed combined with panning along with him gave the impression. Other than giving him that extra speed boost, panning with a slow shutter speed can also blur out what would have been a distracting background.
   
The kids were packing the small little gifts we brought along for them. A simple ballpoint pen was much appreciated as was a candy bar.
     
  
The wall of our accommodation in Daocheng, it was quite a sight up close when I saw the tiny pebbles that slotted in the gaps between their bigger siblings.
  
The stars were out in full glory and thanks to the lack of light pollution, a 30 second exposure revealed enough stars to make the effort worthwhile. Ambient light from the ground level was just enough to light up the building but was a little too faint so out came the LED torch for a little light painting.
   
Not as straightforward a shot as I would have liked. The hole within the leaves needed some searching and walking slowing along the treeline found this vantage point.
     
  
Laying on the moist ground, I spreaded the tripod flat out and got my camera as low to the ground as possible. That maximized the reflection. A polarizer was not used as that would have removed the reflection and revealed the messy streambed.
   
There are times when the the natural placement of the rocks/boulders or anything within the frame is not that ideal. That will be when a long lens to extract elements from within the scene will at the very least give you some images to bring back home.
   
This photo was pretty straightforward to have in the card. Scouted the location for the 10 minutes and came to this spot where there was a nice water flow with the trees opposite the bank as one of the main subjects. A Lee 10-stop ND filter was used to slow the shutter speed down.
     
  
The rooster was ferociously pecking through the feed as though he knew it was most probably going to be his last meal. Behind me, his 2 female companions were having their necks slit. Scenes like this do convert me to a vegetarian, temporarily at least.
   
Hunger pangs set the villagers off en route to their favourite eateries which are basically just tiny houses where the locals set up shop.