Expression of Shanghai, China, 2004 by Jennifer Zhou

Jennifer Zhou | all galleries >> Galleries >> Cityscape > Expression of Shanghai, China, 2004


26-DEC-2003

Expression of Shanghai, China, 2004

I made this during my first visit to Shanghai. It was my first expression of this city. The golden color represents Shanghai's future. The cars sweeping on to one of its freeways symbolize the rapid growth of one of the most dynamic cities in the world.

Canon EOS 10D ,Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
1/125s f/8.0 at 50.0mm iso100 full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto

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Chris Lusher		06-Oct-2006 06:15
Wonderfully evocative. This one just leapt out of the gallery at me. It's like looking out of a window and i can literally smell Shanghai when i look at it.

CharlieFox		28-Jul-2005 23:52
This great image of yours has come to me like a metaphor of a bad dream, where the dark cars represent the last stages of that dream running fast to a brighter place, a place where you want to stay and remain as suggested by the increasing light at the top part of the image and the pointy end of the building in the background that can barely be seen. There is where all theese cars (thoughts) are going. All this idea is emphasized by the int'l airport entrance's sign that is telling us how to get there...

Wendy O		20-May-2005 19:57
Wonderful gallery, but I like this one best. The color, light and composition are perfect.

Guest		13-Jan-2005 18:44
Yes, I understand your comment and I have to agree with the fact of showing the perspective of were the road leed too and trying to show the impression that dusk gave you but I still feel that my eye goes to fast up too the bursting light, don't know, difficult solution I supose. :)

Jennifer Zhou		13-Jan-2005 03:14
Thank you so much for your comment Mikel. I am still not sure about the yellow tone here, a bit too rich for me but that is my first impression of this city. And for the croping you suggested, I understand why the top part draws too much of your attention and you think the road and vehicles should be the main subjects here. For me, I consider all things together make a scene of Shanghai dusk, and the top part also leads our eyes and gives a sense of where they are going. How do you think of my reasoning Mikel? :) Jen

Guest		12-Jan-2005 09:32
I like this intensive yellow light in the photo and the reflexion of the light on the wet streets with it's veicles braking a bit what wold have been otherwise a monotonous photo that only wold have had the light and geometry. Though I think that I wold have prefered more the croping of the top part of the buildings, the exesive light in the top of the image draws a bit too much my attention and files in detail.

Guest		13-Oct-2004 23:56
Good example of photography as a light painting. This shot just oozes mood.

Phil Douglis		02-Oct-2004 05:27
***

Tasty Orange		12-Sep-2004 05:45
blah blah blah blah blah... did you play with the white balance? I will never see entrance ramps the same way again.

Phil Douglis		17-Aug-2004 20:26
Jen, Marek's lengthy analysis of this picture will require careful study on your part - it is virtual treatise on the use of light and color to suggest meanings and tell stories. He is looking at it from an aesthetic viewpoint as well. When I look at this image, I react to the feeling and meaning of the otherworldly light that he refers to. I am sure this why you chose to make this image which, without this liquid, glowing light, would just be another traffic shot in Shanghai. What strikes me most about the story you are telling us here, is how you have turned ugliness into beauty. Concrete slabs marred with lines and arrows and flanked by signs and advertisements, are not pleasant things to look at. By using this light and the color it creates to transform ugliness into beauty, you cause your viewers to see and think in new ways, and perhaps even create symbolic meaning as well -- a golden road, after all, is something right out of the Wizard of OZ -- a path that could lead these cars (and by extension, the viewer) to a perhaps a better place?

Guest		16-Aug-2004 10:57
I love the 'bikes', the 'posters' and the 'tea' images in this gallery, but alongside the 'lightscape' this is my favourite photo. What I like about it is that it has your distinct stamp, which for me is about how you handle light and colour. I have to say, so far I'm very impressed by your confidence especially with the latter. In some cases, some (purists) might argue that some of your soft focus, dreamy effects are too whimsical and detract from the 'reality' of the scene, but I'd say it's about what you're trying to achieve. For example, if the effect is trying to hide some basic flaws of a scene, the picture will never look good, so there's no point throwing good Photoshop time after bad camera time. However when used to enhance something worthwhile already there, the 'man-made' effect is a different matter -- then you are simply excercising your vision, as all reality is ultimately subjective. I suppose the only thing to remember is that you are telling a story, so the question is what you want the viewer to take out of it. Personally, I am a bit of a purist, but only in the sense that if I alter the original colour composition or contrast, it is only to bring the resulting image closer to my impression of that moment and the story it contains -- as opposed to creating a completely different version of reality, one that I may have wished for, but wasn't actually there. (What would be the point? I wasn't there when that 'other' reality took place!) Finally, there is a point, when the (audience) disbelief can no longer be suspended and the photograph becomes an illustration, thus losing all its power. Getting back to this image, what I love about it is the liquid quality of light and how it makes the road look solid and the background buildings ethreal, simply by removing the black element and bleaching out of the yellow. This again creates the draw towards the light. I suppose I see the scene as 'moths going to a flame'. The red traffic markers and signs enhance the 'danger/forbidden' element. The only thing that spoils the image for me is the white van coming in the opposite direction, and I'd like to see one more vehicle going up in the right hand lane... but you can't always be perfect when playing the hand that's being dealt ;-)

Guest		21-Apr-2004 04:49
such sweet colors... perfect.

Guest		25-Feb-2004 06:20
No objects overlap one another obscuringly, the arterial flow is almost laminar. : ) Caressing the dragon.

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Guest		25-Feb-2004 01:19
As always, great composition and beautiful lighting! Reminds so much of the city I grew up in, which I no longer recognize. Great job, Jennifer.

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