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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Eight: Light and shadow shape meaning > Wangfujing Street, Beijing, China, 2006
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13-MAR-2006

Wangfujing Street, Beijing, China, 2006

I love lighting challenges. I learn from them, and perhaps others can as well.
While walking through this busy Beijing shopping district just after dawn, I noticed an intense reflection of sunlight on the glossy paving stones that lined the curb. Within that reflection was the shadow of a man and his pushcart. I wanted to abstract the man and cart, hold as much detail in the reflection as I could, and still give some context for the busy street around him. I exposed with a spot meter on the reflected sun. The reflection was so intense I knew that I would sacrifice some detail in the street texture. I made this image at 1/400th of second at ISO 80 with the lens closed down as far as it would go. I could have darkened it more with a faster shutter speed, but I would have risked losing background context. Exposure control is a balancing act – there are no right or wrongs here, only an objective to reach. I wanted to hold background detail in the street and I did. The image works for me because it is full of life and vitality, yet also quite abstract and hauntingly beautiful. A bit of burned out street is a small price to pay. I am not after technical perfection in my pictures. I am only concerned with expression.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30
1/400s f/8.0 at 24.7mm iso80 full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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Phil Douglis14-Jun-2006 17:21
That's what I was trying to do here, Jack. Put you on the street with him. It is the vantage point that makes this happen. From this position, I create a layered image that pulls you into the picture and makes you become the subject, rather than a passive observer. The foreground shadow layer draws you to the man, while the man's abstracted form is repeated by the shadowy figures and buildings in the background layer.
Guest 08-Jun-2006 22:21
And another. I feel as though I am there!!
Phil Douglis18-Apr-2006 17:29
Thanks, Jeremy, for this perceptive comment. I am glad you mentioned the "olden feel and atmosphere," because that is what drew me to the man with the pushcart. Although in many respects, Beijing is among the most modern cities on earth, there are constant reminders of the Old China. And that is what gives this image its ultimate message, very similar to the central point that my friends and students Kal Khogali (http://www.pbase.com/shangheye ) and Jen Zhou (http://www.pbase.com/angeleyes_zyl ) have repeatedly made in their own imagery. China is a colossus in change, providing endless opportunities for incongruous juxtapositions that take the measure of that change.
Jeremy18-Apr-2006 14:23
You have pulled it off marvelously here. Wangfujing is (as I remember it) a modern, shopping street in Beijing, But you have turned the difficult lighting conditions to your advantage, and cleverly composed the picture with the man with the pushcart in near silhouette casting a 'bright' shadow on the burned-out spot of the street, and the background in soft focus and grainy texture, giving the whole picture an olden feel and atmosphere. Which is all the more remarkable when I see it against the image of modern Wangfujing as I can recollect it from memory.
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