the smog is gone

the smog city

just when I was thinking that the thick smog covering the city for months would stay forever, it's suddenly gone one morning this summer. Worrying that this unexpected good weather could just be a short-lived one, I grasped any opportunity I had in the that couple of days to photograph the city...

Posted on the FTF 070602:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=23465566

the fig tree

this is a personal thing that I have a special affection for this fig tree. But this tree is not only a symbol of an old school in HK, it's also a shelter under which I spent 7 whole years of my youth - probably the most joyous and worriless period in my life... Just as I was contemplating and admiring this old tree, a passerby who obviously knew nothing about a fig tree awakened me, "What the hell are these ugly things? Is the tree sick?"

a few more trees I found in the "concrete jungle".:-)

Posted on the FTF 070518:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=23275760

5 may 2007

... it was the saturday afternoon of an extraordinary long working week and I had to travel from Island East to the west end of the HK Island. The trip was long and the weather was bad, but it wasn't difficult to get through at all. With the capable F30 and S5 by my side, not many chances would be missed to get some pics...:-)

1. victoria park after rain

2. new praya, kennedy town

my trip ended here, one of the oldest developed areas of the colony... As I could recall, this was the first time I visited this waterfront again since I was a school boy decades ago...

Posted on the FTF 070511:

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"miniature" landscapes

(click the image to view the Larger)

... neither miniatures nor genuine tilt shift lens shots but my "immediate reactions" after viewing some strange yet wonderful pics - "Small Planet" by Naoki - thanks to Ian Smith...

Posted on the FTF 070504:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=23100460

an unexpected encounter

PROLOGUE – the hustle & bustle of Wanchai... a Friday evening, just as usual, people on the street were in a hurry, and I finally had had the time to do some shooting after working intensively for the entire week. I was not aware and these people didn't seem to care, but something was going on not far away elsewhere...

STUMBLING upon a mass rally for an HK Chief Executive Election candidate and a protest against him. I was trapped in the mid between the protesters and the police. For the first time, I got so close to these familiar faces of protesters whom I had only seen on TV before. For the first time, I was as free as a newspaper reporter to photograph policemen and policewomen. For the first time, I took some street pics with ISO 3200...

RETREAT – after squeezing through the crowds, I returned to the office building where I work, taking some overview pics of the mass rally through a dirty window in the corridor...

EPILOGUE – while I was still feeling excited about the unforgettable experience, the police and protesters might be feeling complacent that once again they had got their job done. As for this old fellow, he might have seen too many of these...

Posted on the Fuji SLR Forum 070328:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1020&message=22635762

street scenes...

"this is a tram track... "

"street cat"

"poor buddies"

"masks and guns"

"city bewilderedness"

I guess I'd be very frustrated if I did not have a camera with me when I came upon these scenes...

Posted on the FTF 070427:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=23010902

city sunsets

the weather hadn't been too good and the sky was dull, gray, hazy... So, it was really a pleasant surprise when I saw a nice sunset in my client's office. Glad I had my little F30 with me:

encouraged by this encounter, I kept rushing to the Wanchai Waterfront the following days whenever my work would permit, trying to capture some more beautiful city sunsets. The sky was still dull and hazy yet the atmosphere was just lovely...

Posted on the FTF 070420:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=22926140

the good, the bad and the ugly...

... the old, the modern and the dilapidating... a little collection of some random shots of the streets, buildings and the city...

Posted on the Fuji Fora 070406:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=22755291

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1020&message=22754380

some random street photos

des voeux road central - tram station

tsim sha tsui star ferry

wellington street - yung kee & tsui wah restaurant

whampoa garden

stauton street

I might not be able to come up with something extraordinary and dramatic everytime, but if I can utilize my limited spare time to record the streets of my place my time in such a way that they leave an image on the mind of myself and other viewers, it's a tremendous joy and some accomplishment...

Posted on the Fuji SLR Forum 070324:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1020&message=22583011