4s, f/13.0, ISO 400, 14 mm
In Hong Kong, I live in the neighborhood of Soho, short for south of Hollywood Street. The neighborhood is on a dramatic hillside and is home to some truly great streets. It's also an area frequented by expats. There are lots of western restaurants and bars around and a number of fancy condo buildings and serviced apartments. But unlike other parts of Hong Kong, it's also an incredibly diverse neighborhood. Just down from Hollywood Road, there is a vibrant meats and vegetable market. Locals live, work, and shop here and walking these colorful streets is a nice contrast to the sterile, mega malls in Central (Hong Kong Island's downtown, of sorts). I like the that fact that the neighborhood gives me a chance to interact with some people I would rarely encounter if I lived in a true expat enclave--even if that interaction is pretty limited (I'm embarrassed to say that I'm still struggling with the handful of Cantonese phrases I've try to teach myself).
Having such a colorful neighborhood at my doorstep is, of course, a treat for a photographer. And there is no shortage of great street scenes to photograph. Many of the vendors are not keen to be photographed, and I generally respect that or ask before I shoot if someone seems uncomfortable. On the other hand, street photography is about capturing the life on the street as it happens rather than a staged version of it. So unless someone affirmatively makes clear they don't want to get photographed, I simply take my presence and raised camera as sufficient notice.
Included in this post are some recent shots from around Hollywood Road. They are taken with a number of different lenses, including the Canon 14mm f/2.8 L lens. I few weeks ago, I rented this super wide angle lens, which provides more than 110 degree field of view. The extreme wide-angle made for a bit of a learning curve but once I got the hang of it, it was a very useful lens for pulling in a lot of street life.
Continue below the fold for more shots.
Showing posts with label expats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label expats. Show all posts
Around Hollywood Road (荷李活道)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
