Shenzhen is fascinating, if you know how to navigate and where to go.
My wife and I decided to head over the Hong Kong border for a day trip, partly to buy some phone cases for a few friends.
So naturally, I brought along my stealthy Olympus XA2 loaded with Fuji Venus 800.
This is Luohu Commercial City, a warren of shops you could get lost in. We normally go to the restaurant at the top floor.
Once in a while, there is a bit of mild harassment.
On a previous trip, someone followed us for a bit and kept saying “cheap DVDs, cheap DVDs, just follow me” and she got hauled off by 2 policemen.
Some images are rather blurry because of the limitations (indoors, ISO 800 capability of the XA2, need for stealth in narrow places).
Yet it does drive home the furtive, unpredictable and artless aspect of street photography.
We took the subway – 2 stops to Laojie, a shopping district, where, if you know where you are going, you would find yet another warren of shops with even lower prices.
We got our phone covers there for about RMB20 each.
This guy took out a knife and started stabbing at his plastic phone screen cover.
He was trying to tell me it’s a scratch (and stab) proof cover that will really protect my phone’s screen.
I was convinced. That’s my phone he’s working on.
It really is a labyrinth.
Quick, quick, before I’m spotted.
My wife did tell me to choose my photographic subjects wisely.
“Our kids still need a father,” she said.
And, yay, food street!
Street food!
Yummy pig trotters!
Yummy Taiwan-style sausages!
Green chilli with rolled bacon!
Grilled spicy cuttlefish!
He dances as he cooks.
There’s a warning sign next to him saying he sells cuttlefish only and please do not be taken in by his charm …
He winked at my wife!
How dare he.
For collectors: some images from this post are available here as open edition prints.
Hong Kong Lucida 