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Photo of the Week | Salamander – Inside China’s Zoos

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

salamander2 Photo of the Week | Salamander   Inside Chinas Zoos

A Giant Salamander in Wuhan Zoo. 2008

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way that it treats its animals” – Mohandas Gandhi

In March of 2008, I was travelling down China’s greatest river, the Yangtze. Passing through the city of Wuhan, I happened upon the city’s zoo one day and was shocked by the conditions in which the animals were being kept. As a result, I returned to the city a few weeks later in order to photograph the various animals in an attempt to convey the appalling conditions in which they were living.

China has a mixed record in the way in which it treats its animals. From the use of animal parts for Chinese medicine to the new conservation efforts to protect tigers (as a result of  this year being the year of the tiger), it seems confusing whether animals are valued or not. Maybe attitudes are changing. A quick trip to the  zoo in Wuhan will certainly dispel you optimism for change however.

In this week’s ‘Photo of the Week’, a Giant Salamander is kept in the zoo’s aquatic house in a cramped and shallow pool. As visitors pass the pool, they throw coins in an attempt to make them land on top of the Salamander. This is done supposedly to bring the visitors luck and fortune.

To view more images from this series of animals such as crocodiles, lions and bears and the awful conditions in which they live in, please visit my portfolio site and follow Index>China>Lockdown-Inside China’s Zoos

Photos from Hutong Photography Workshop IV w/ Jim, Pip, Ross, Andrea, Daphne, Eva, Rita, Alexia and Fredrik

Thursday, March 4th, 2010
From left to Right; Jessica, Sean, Pip, Ross, Rita, Fredrik, Eva, Andrea, Alexia

From Left to Right: Jessica, Sean, Pip, Ross, Rita, Fredrik, Eva, Andrea, Alexia

Last Sunday saw the 4th in our series of Hutong Photography Workshops. We had nearly a full class with nine students attending; Jim, Pip, Ross, Andrea, Daphne, Eva, Rita, Alexia and Fredrik.

IMG 9081 Photos from Hutong Photography Workshop IV w/ Jim, Pip, Ross, Andrea, Daphne, Eva, Rita, Alexia and Fredrik

Andrea, Eva and Rita

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Photo(s) of the Week | Chinese New Year

Monday, February 15th, 2010
White Cloud Temple | Baiyun Guan

White Cloud Temple | Baiyun Guan

On Saturday night, the skies lit up with fireworks above most Chinese cities, signifying the start of China’s most special holiday of the year: Chinese New Year.

For the next week Chinese families will spent most of the time eating, drinking, visiting family members, catching up with old friends and heading to many of the temple fairs that are taking place. This week’s ‘Photo(s) of the Week’ come from the White Cloud Temple in Beijing. This Taoist temple is over a thousand years old and is one of the locations for Beijing’s most interesting celebrations during this special week.

The photo at the top is of people rubbing chinese characters, in order to gain luck, fortune, prosperity etc. from the character of corresponding meaning.

White Cloud Temple | Baiyun Guan

White Cloud Temple | Baiyun Guan

The second image is taken within the grounds of the temple and is of two young girls, dressed up in their finest new year clothes.

We’re very excited to be returning to this temple tomorrow for our special Chinese New Year Photography Workshop where students will have the chance to capture the unique celebrations at this special temple. I wish all readers of my blog a happy and prosperous new year of the Tiger! 虎年快乐!

Former student of Hutong Photography workshop featured in City Weekend

Friday, February 5th, 2010

City Weekend

City Weekend

We were delighted to find out last week that Chelin Miller, who is a former student from one of out hutong workshops, was featured in Beijing City Weekend and interviewed about her experiences taking on of our classes. You can read a snippet of the interview here online and read it reproduced below. Well done Chelin! To see images from the workshop Chelin attended, please go here.

Snap Happy: Hutong Photography

*Amateur photographer Chelin Miller tells us why she hones her skills in Sean Gallagher’s photo workshops
What is it about photography that draws you?
Photos tell a story, preserve memories and can be a fantastic creative outlet. Have you ever studied photography before? I have never studied photography seriously, but I’ve had a passion for it since I was a teenager.
How did you find the hands-on photography workshop?
There was a feeling of camaraderie from the beginning. We were eight in our group. Armed with our cameras, we went out around the hutong and although we were all together, we all perceived different aspects of the area, the people and the architecture. It was fascinating to come back to the hostel and review everybody’s photos; I think we all learned a lot from each other.
Is the workshop accessible to the camera challenged?
Yes, the workshop was very clear and concise. It covered enough basic technical and composition steps to be able to take good photos even if you were a total beginner, without slowing down the pace for those with a little bit more experience.
Will you be taking the workshop again?
Yes, definitely. I can’t wait to go to Harbin for the ice festival with Sean and Jessica’s group. Being with others who share my passion, making jokes, feeding ideas off each other and learning from each other is what makes the workshops so enjoyable.

*Amateur photographer Chelin Miller tells us why she hones her skills in Sean Gallagher’s photo workshops

What is it about photography that draws you?

Photos tell a story, preserve memories and can be a fantastic creative outlet.

Have you ever studied photography before?

I have never studied photography seriously, but I’ve had a passion for it since I was a teenager.

(c) City Weekend

(c) City Weekend

How did you find the hands-on photography workshop?

There was a feeling of camaraderie from the beginning. We were eight in our group. Armed with our cameras, we went out around the hutong and although we were all together, we all perceived different aspects of the area, the people and the architecture. It was fascinating to come back to the hostel and review everybody’s photos; I think we all learned a lot from each other.

Is the workshop accessible to the camera challenged?

Yes, the workshop was very clear and concise. It covered enough basic technical and composition steps to be able to take good photos even if you were a total beginner, without slowing down the pace for those with a little bit more experience.

Will you be taking the workshop again?

Yes, definitely. I can’t wait to go to Harbin for the ice festival with Sean and Jessica’s group. Being with others who share my passion, making jokes, feeding ideas off each other and learning from each other is what makes the workshops so enjoyable.

February Workshops Announced: Chinese New Year Special Workshop & Hutong Photography

Sunday, January 31st, 2010
Chinese New Year Special Workshop: White Cloud Temple

Chinese New Year Special Workshop: White Cloud Temple Fair

February welcomes a very unique time of the Chinese calendar; Chinese New Year! To mark the most important holiday of the year, we are running a special workshop to coincide with the celebrations here in the nation’s capital. We continue in the vein of trying to introduce our workshop participants to less-visited and authentic locations, therefore will be holding this workshop at the White Cloud Temple, in XiCheng District on Tuesday 16th February from 11:00 a.m. to 16:00 p.m. This spectacular Taoist temple is over 1000 years old and is one of the city’s hidden cultural gems. It will be the perfect place for photographing the true, authentic and traditional new year celebrations. To find out more details about how to join us on this special workshop, please head to our workshop page here.

For those of you leaving Beijing for the holidays and won’t have a chance to attend the Chinese New Year workshop, do not worry! The increasingly popular Hutong Photography Workshop is back again on Sunday 28th February from 10:00 a.m. to 18:00 p.m. and will again offer participating students the chance to explore the maze-like hutongs whilst improving their photography. We were delighted to learn that this month a former student from this workshop was featured in Beijing City Weekend Magazine talking about her experiences taking this class. Read a snippet of her interview here and then find out how to book your place here through our workshop page.

We look forward to seeing you!

Photos from the 3rd Hutong Photography Workshop w/ Bonnie, Scott, Tina and Kirsten

Monday, January 18th, 2010

Hutong Photography Workshop | Beijing | China

Hutong Photography Workshop | Beijing | China

The temperature plummeted in Beijing this month but that didn’t stop us from heading out into the chilly hutongs for another “Hutong Photography” Workshop this weekend. Luckily for myself, guide Jessica Zheng and our students Bonnie, Scott, Tina and Kirsten the thermometer crept up over the weekend, hovering around 1-2C making it a perfect winter day to explore the hutongs.

Along with our class in the morning introducing everybody to the key, fundamental technical aspects of photography we had two shooting sessions in the morning and afternoon. The hutongs are a constant inspiration and you never know what may be round the next corner. For this month’s workshops students encounters included photographing a 98-year old hutong resident, bicycles buried in snow, conversations with pipe-smoking locals, coal deliverers and many more unique characters.

Thanks again to our students Kirsten, Bonnie, Scott and Tina who braved the threatening cold to make it another memorable workshop!

January Weekend Workshops Announced!

Monday, December 21st, 2009
Dear Friends of Weekend Workshops,
I hope this message finds you well in your preparations for Christmas.
I am delighted to announce two new workshops in January, to welcome in the New Year.
The first is the next in line of our increasingly popular “Hutong Photography Workshops” which will be held on Sunday 17th January at the Far East Youth Hostel in Beijing.
As ever, this will be a great opportunity to explore the mysterious and maze-like hutongs.
The second workshop, will be in Harbin and will coincide with the famous Ice Festival. Our workshop will run all day on both Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st January. Sign up for either one or two days (get a discount for two days) and come and explore this amazing winter wonderland with us and your camera.
Also, as it is the New Year, we would like to extend a *Happy New Year Special Offer* to all former students, giving a 10% discount  on any workshops (both group and one-on-one) on any workshops taken in January.
For details on all of the above workshops, please go HERE to our workshop page. Please feel free to forward this email to your friends and family who may be
interested too.
We look forward to seeing you on one of our workshops soon!

Weekend Workshops

Weekend Workshops

I am delighted to announce two new workshops in January, to welcome in the New Year.

The first, is the next in line of our increasingly popular “Hutong Photography Workshops” which will be held on Sunday 17th January at the Far East Youth Hostel in Beijing. As ever, this will be a great opportunity to explore the maze-like hutongs in central Beijing.

The second workshop, will be in Harbin and will coincide with the famous Ice Festival. Our workshop will run all day on both Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st January. Sign up for either one or two days (get a discount for two days) and come and explore this amazing winter wonderland with us and your camera.

Also, as it is the New Year, we would like to extend a *Happy New Year Special Offer* to all former students, giving a 10% discount  on any workshops (both group and one-on-one) taken in January.

For details on all of the above workshops, please go HERE to our workshop page.

We look forward to seeing you on one of our workshops soon!

Find our WEEKEND WORKSHOPS on Facebook

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Our Facebook Page

Our Facebook Page

As of this weekend, our WEEKEND WORKSHOPS programme now has a page on Facebook. To get updates on news, upcoming workshops, student photos etc. please become a ‘fan’ and get those updates sent straight to your news feed so that you know exactly what is happening and when. Click on the ‘Find us on Facebook’ link below to take you straight to our page.

Click Me :)

Click Me :)

We’re really excited about the quick success of the workshops and also the enthusiasm of the students who have attended so far. We’re currently working on the plan for the next couple of workshops, so please stay tuned!

Weekend Workshops | Student Feedback

Friday, November 20th, 2009

It is ALWAYS great to receive feedback from our students about how they think our workshops have gone. Over the past couple of weeks, we have gathered a few of their responses, which you can find below.

Chelin

Chelin

Frank

Frank

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Photos from November’s “Hutong Photography” Workshop w/ Anne, Charlotte, Frank, Chelin, Jenny and Josh

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009
Weekend Workshop Beijing

Weekend Workshops Beijing

This weekend saw our WEEKEND WORKSHOPS continue with the second of our “Hutong Photography” classes. Braving the bitter cold in Beijing were Anne, Charlotte, Frank, Chelin, Jenny and Josh. The weather was against us, but a great day was had by all in the end, as we were determined to explore the hutongs against the dropping temperature! Below is a selection of images from the day.

As in our first “Hutong Photography” workshop in October, our schedule began with a class introducing the basics of photography, making sure everyone was comfortable with how their cameras worked and providing everyone with advice about how to approach people to take pictures in the hutongs. We then had a ‘Photography Chinese’ class taught by Jessica Zheng before heading out into the cold to begin our first shooting session.

We had two shooting sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Both were followed by group editing sessions where we sat down and looked at everybody’s photos, sharing ideas and thoughts about how we could improve. In between the morning and afternoon sessions, the usual hearty spread of food was layed on by the Far East International Youth Hostel, to keep us fuelled for the day’s work.

Even though it was a bitterly cold day in Beijing, it was great to see everyone’s passion for photography keeping us going (although the heater in the hostel did help…see gallery photo of everyone franticly trying to warm hands!). A big thanks from me and Jessica to Anne, Charlotte, Frank, Chelin, Jenny and Josh for making this another enjoyable and successful “Hutong Photography” Workshop!