My last few trips have been busts, photographically: Santa Fe + Melbourne yielded zero pictures. Zero! A true embarrassment. So when I was asked to present at a conference in Beijing, I planned ahead, determined to make the most of the opportunity.
Apart from the constant harassment of street vendors, for being a major metropolis Beijing is a surprisingly pleasant city. I visited the standard sites: Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Temple of Heaven. But I generally felt those locations lacked… warmth. There was a sterility, especially, and perhaps not surprisingly, in Tiananmen Square. But even the Temple of Heaven had a bit of an amusement park feel to it. The hutongs were far more inviting, but I struggled to avoid taking pictures that were simply snapshots of dirty streets. I needed a focus.
I quickly realized that the people, not buildings or architecture, should be my focus. Specifically, how people interacted with these surroundings. Sadly, I never made it to places like Lama Temple, where perhaps I would have experienced more of the spiritualness I was seeking. Still, a wonderful trip, and although the conference interfered with my ambitious photography goals, I still managed to sneak a few shots in.
I’ve split the photos into three groups. Photos in and around Beijing City, The Forbidden City, and the Great wall (coming next….). My favorites are clustered near the front.
