[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BHVnG3m7BU[/youtube]

As some of you may already know, last week I was on assignment in North Korea. Forgive me for not giving a hint of this exciting assignment beforehand, however myself and Mark MacKinnon from Canada’s Globe & Mail, for whom I was working, wanted to try and keep this as quiet as possible until (a) we made it out safely and (b) the work was first published on the G&M website.

Well, we are now back in Beijing and are happy to show the first of three videos shot from the trip. This is the first video I have ever shot, all done on a very touristy camcorder as not to raise suspicions, but I’m very happy with the results, especially considering the conditions we were working under i.e. being watched at all times by our government minders.

Needless to say, this was the most eye-opening photo-assignment and traveling experience I have ever had and possibly the most nerve-wracking. Fresh off the back of the story of Euna Lee and Laura Lin, American journalists who were caught crossing the China-North Korea border, being sentenced to over 10 years in a labour camp and then subsequently being ‘rescued’ by Bill Clinton, Mark and I were obviously a little nervous about heading into the country. Would Bill come and rescue us too if something went wrong?!

I will be posting plenty more about our trip into North Korea, however please sit and enjoy the first installment of videos from the ‘Hermit Kingdom’. To read Mark’s excellent articles and diary entries from the trip please go here and to see more of my images from the trip, please go here. Scroll through day-by-day to see the images from each day in chronological order.

*Update* 09/09/09 To view video #2 “The Arirang Mass Games”, please go here and the view video #3, “On the North Korea/China border”, please go here.

Weekend Workshops Beijing Logo

I’m delighted to announce here on my blog the launch of my new photography workshops here in China. The first will be held from Friday 18th September to Sunday 20th September here in Beijing, offering students a chance to change the way they approach their photography through a tailored 3-day programme introducing them to photographing China’s capital under my guidance and that of other China experts.

More information can be found here:

WEEKEND WORKSHOPS

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WELCOME to the home of WEEKEND WORKSHOPS, a 3-day intensive photography course that centers on introducing the participants to the fundamentals of photography through the eyes of established professionals, in diverse locations throughout China.

Student Level: Beginner / Intermediate / Passionate Amateur

The concept of WEEKEND WORKSHOPS was created by award-winning photographer Sean Gallagher and professional guide and interpreter Jessica Zheng, in response to the demand by photographers for a more affordable andpersonalised approach to workshops with professionals possessing a unique knowledge of the workshop location.

Over the course of 3 days, photographer Sean Gallagher will help participants cover essential topics such as ‘portfolio reviewing’, ‘photographer shadowing’, ‘night photography’, ‘productive editing’ and ‘visual presentation’. All the components will combine to give each participant an intensive photography experience from which they can develop their own style and voice and approach to their work in the future. The workshops location and the places visited during the 3 days will be fully guided and introduced by Jessica Zheng, contributing to the participants’ deeper understanding and knowledge of the workshop’s location.

REGISTRATION: To register for any of the workshops below, please send an email to sean@gallagher-photo.com after which a registration form will be sent to you along with payment details. A 30% deposit is required to secure a place, payable online through Paypal. The remaining fee is due 1-week before the workshop commences.

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Just a very quick post to let you know that I have introduced a new ‘Archive’ page to the blog, which will allow you see all my previous posts in one place, allowing you to browse directly to each. Just look to the top-right of the screen and the archives are just to the right of the ‘About’ tab. Happy browsing!

Photo Blog Awards 2009 Logo

If the answer is yes, then please take a moment to visit the PhotoBlog Awards 2009 website here, where you can vote for this blog. Once through to the PhotoBlog Awards site just go to the ‘vote’ icon in the top-left corner next to the name of the blog, click and then register on the website. Your vote will then be registered. I’ve also included a link on the right of the blog, which will take you straight there.

Thanks as always for the support!

Image from my series on China's Growing Sands also selected for the foto8 Summer Show, selected for the Telgraph.co.uk's Photo of the Day

You may recognise the image to the left as my selected ‘Photo of the Week’, which I posted on Monday. As regular visitors here will know, it was recently chosen for inclusion in the foto8 Summer show exhibition at HOST gallery in London.

Well, in addition to the above, it was also chosen by Daily Telegraph photo department’s Lucy Davies, as her ‘Photo of the Day’ for July 29th. I only just noticed today as the past couple of days have been very busy!

It’s great to see this image getting a little more exposure as I think it’s a very important image in my work on China’s Growing Sands. If you missed Monday’s post, please do check it out my just scrolling down on the blog homepage.

Image from the 'ecological refugee' town of Hongsibao in Ningxia Province, China. Selected as part of Foto8's Summer Show 2009.

I’m pleased to announce that the above image has been selected for the foto8 Summer Show which is currently on show at HOST Gallery in London this week and will be there until the 5th of September.

“The Foto8 Summer Show saw over 2,300 individual image entries submitted by photographers from over 44 countries. The final selection of more than 120 framed prints is hung at HOST gallery in London. It was a tough choice with many spectacular images to view, but the Foto8 editorial team has made a final selection for the exhibitors of the second Annual Foto8 Awards & Summer Show 2009.” -Foto8

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Exhibition Review of China's Growing Sands on Beijing City Weekend Website

Just wanted to let you know about a nice little review that has been written about my China’s Growing Sands exhibition which is still on show at Cafe Zarah in Central Beijing at the moment. It appears City Weekend’s Art Critic “Art Attack” caught the show and had some nice things to say about it. See the article here or read the reproduced text below.

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Model replica of the American moon landing in the Hong Kong Space Museum. 2008

Forty years ago today, the world watched a truly unique event as Apollo 11 blasted off on its journey to the Moon, putting human beings on another world for the first time. Now, don’t let the above photo fool you. I must admit, I was not there, although it would of been possibly the best photo-assignment ever! This photo was taken inside the Hong Kong Space Museum which is dedicated to promoting the space exploration programs of  China and other nations.

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*Update* – P.M. Wed 8th July 2009 – A friend has recommended a proxy-server which means I can temporarily circumvent the great firewall of China. Let’s hope this last until things return to normal. Spread the word on this site, which keeps the information flowing. See you on Twiiter and FB, for now!

*Update* – A.M. Wed 8th July 2009 – Twitter continues to be blocked and now FACEBOOK is also inaccessible. To those who follow my updates through Facebook, please do not think I have disappeared. It’s just my outlets for contact are decreasing by the day! Can’t help but feel all of this just makes the ‘powers that be’ look more and more silly. A little like this.

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So, another day, another website is blocked in China.

Anyone who has spent any length of time here will know of the restrictions that are levied against the internet on a fairly regular basis. For years the BBC was well and truly blocked, rumoured to be because a BBC article made insinuations about the nocturnal private life of  a very famous former Chinese leader. Blogs are a frequent target of blocking, as they provide a venue for their users to express opinions on anything they want. Not something which is exactly encouraged here.

Twitter seems to be the new enemy here in China and one which has been noticed quickly and has become a favourite for the ‘blockers’. The ability for the instant spreading of information is quite remarkable and the evidence for which appeared on Sunday night when the events in Xinjiang took place.

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Screenshot of Beijinger Website 3rd July 2009

As a reminder for those who are interested in viewing the first exhibited images from my ‘China’s Growing Sands‘ project, here are a couple of promo-pieces that have come out for the event tomorrow. Two of Beijing’s leading magazines, the Beijinger and Beijing City Weekend, approached me in the past couple of weeks to conduct a couple of short interviews to promote the event and give a little background to myself and the work. Please take a moment to read the pieces here and here.

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