January’s street photography was done in the Yuexiu District of Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province in southern China, and where I currently spend most of my time. Quite the change from 2023 where I spent time in East Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and most recently Vietnam.
Yuexiu – Historical Guangzhou
I spent most of the month of February walking around an area of Guangzhou called Yuexiu, the historic center of Guangzhou. Yuexiu was also the historic center of the capital of the Nanyue or Nam Viet Kingdom, before it was conquered by the Qin. This part of Guangzhou has been inhabited for at least three or even four thousand years.
I spent the month walking around the western parts of Yuexiu with a bunch of old vintage Seagull prime lenses. Attached to a speed booster and a micro four-thirds camera these three primes give a full-frame-equivalent field-of-view of 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm. I haven’t been out with these lenses for quite a while and was pleasantly surprised with the results. I especially liked the washed out colors of some of the shots; this is not due to heavy Lightroom edits. The lenses are just junk. To my understanding they are licensed copies of old Nikkor lenses that were produced in China in the 1960s and 1970s. So they are old and decrepit just like the photographer using them.
Weekly Street Photography Walk I
I was walking towards a market that I marked on my map. The area I walked through was mostly non-descript. Just a small endless street full of small workshops, hardware stores, and the like. I noticed this chap in a warehouse that, I believe, sells and buys bits and bobs for recycling. So, I popped my head in, and took this photo while the proprietor was focused on watching the odd video on his mobile device.
I continued towards Sweet Water Lane, an alley full of market stalls, but couldn’t get anything of note so headed back home to return the following week.
Weekly Street Photography Walk II
The following week I headed towards Sweet Water Lane but somewhere along the way I turned right instead of left, zigged where I should have zagged, and ended up somewhere completely different. I did end, however, with my favorite shots of the month by far. Even though I shoot mostly in black and white, the colors on these few shots came out so intriguing I decided to keep them in the images.
And another from the opposite angle
And my favorite image of the month:
Weekly Street Photography Walk III
I didn’t manage to get to Sweet Water lane the following week, either. A few local folk “ambushed” me and forced me to play ping pong with them for a few hours. I got to practice my Cantonese and table tennis skills — and failed miserably at both. It was great fun but photography-wise a complete waste of time. I did get this image of a cart full of beautiful orchids, however.
Weekly Street Photography Walk IV
On my fourth attempt to reach Sweet Water Lane, I noticed a few interesting alleys on the way and lost all track of time. I did manage to get a few bangers, I believe.
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Gear Used
Panasonic Lumix GX9
Panasonic Lumix GH5
Zhongyi Lens Turbo II MD-M43
Seagull Haiou 24/F2.8
Seagull Haiou 28/F2.8