As Seen by TV

A stroll through the streets of Old Shanghai…

I got the chance to borrow an absolutely wicked lens from a friend for the past week (Roy Frankland; check out his work), these are shots from days 1-2.  It is a Sigma 12-24mm… mix that with a Canon 5D MkII and this is what you get.

My first proper exploration of Xujiahui… from north to east (here is a photo of XJH from 1995!).

So I recently moved to right around Xujiahui, actually right by it.  Simple put: a great area… it’s like a city center just outside the city center.  Actually, it is a city center. 

I’m 2 blocks away from the massive intersection that is XJH and less than a block away from Xujiahui Park (map), a modern park I only explored for the first time this past weekend.
It got a little chilly while shooting, so I had to cut it short, but for a 5 minute walk, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back soon.

Chinese New Year – Shanghai Warfare:

Boom.

I was almost part of the image above… standing where that guy is standing (just to the right) about 40 seconds prior to this shot.  There was also a group of roughly a dozen people behind that parked car (to the left), luckily no one was seriously injured.
Well anyway, I will keep this short, as you’re eyes have probably already wondered to the thumbnails below.
The Chinese know how to celebrate New Years… one week of intensely beautiful and brutal warfare.  Also probably explains why I haven’t seen a pigeon in months.

Video I took around the time I captured images #20-21 above

And here is a video of Shanghai at midnight on Day 1 (not by me, as I left my point-n-shoot in the back of a taxi that night, RIP) that shows the scope of the mayhem that is Chinese New Year, (check it out!).

Oh, and by the way, all these photos (+ my video) were taken a block away from each other and on night 5!

Check out these smurf-tastic elevated highways!!

[click to enlarge]

The left image I captured back in September, whereas the right was taken this past weekend.  You can now witness the effect the blue lighting has on the surroundings of the elevated highways.   Standing under these monstrocities is surreal, and because most street lights are tungsten (red-tinted), the mix is quite remarkable.  You won’t hear this from me often, but thank goodness for digital, as color-correting these in a traditional darkroom would be hell.

Thought I’d compile my most “interesting” (favorite, influential, etc.) shots from the past year.
Enjoy.

Notable events: Welcoming 2009 in Belgium/Holland; Best Man at the TOMMEL wedding in Miami; Dystopia ¦ Utopia solo photo exhibition; Goodbye NY / Hello SH; 60th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China; Taoist Monastery outside Chongqing; Shanghai/Shanghai/Shanghai; and of course all the people that made it happen.

I updated my Chongqing 101 post (October 31, 2009) with 13 new images… check ‘em out!