Photography in China Inside Guide

In considering the requirements of this photographer, difficulties come into play that don’t impact the general traveler. If the overall traveler seeks good weather, then the photographer requires good light. Here we cover things such as seasons and safety special to the photographer’s requirements.
Beihai BoatSee something brand new in China
China is all-but uncharted land for the photographer. Ready entry to the country for overseas travelers began only recently, and the tendency for many who do see is to hit the main tourist locations. As a result, the majority of the country rarely, if ever, sees people from overseas, which means there are opportunities all over the nation to get those first images of something new.
Something new could likewise be something very breathtaking. China’s scenery can be, in the genuine sense of the world, fantastic. To examine the mountain-high pillars of rock at Zhangjiajie wreathed in tendrils of mist, or the karst peaks of Guilin and Yangshuo, (under ), or the vibrant patchwork of areas in Dongchuan, or even the equall-colorful vegetation and water of Jiuzhaigou can make it seem, occasionally, as if you’ve stepped out of reality and to the mind of a surrealist artist. Words like’unbelievable’ are used all too easily, but in China it is often not hyperbole.
China Highlights can take you to these places and more, offering one of the very best advice on when to proceed, arranging everything for you so all you need to focus on is your scenery before you.
No definitive guide of China’s opportunities for the photographer could exist at under many volumes, so that which we present here is intended to do no more than whet your appetite. Look around our pages, particularly China’s Top Photography Destinations, and get a better idea of the wide variety and opportunities this exceptional nation has to offer.
Frontiers offer chances, but they also present hazards.
Hazards
Guangxi Water BuffaloAvoid areas which are too remote.
The price that you pay for venturing into uncharted territory is the dangers associated with almost any’frontier’ scenario but, together with wisdom and attention, difficulties that may confront the photographer may be almost always avoided and, if struck, handled without too much problem.
Thieves
If your camera equipment is bulky and professional, you can’t help but draw attention to your self. Your equipment tells local ne’er-do-wells not just that you’re wealthy, (all foreigners are in the minds of many), but also that you are singularly so. Somehow this does not seem to apply to the same extent to really rich locals touting around their own equipment in larger measure. The former provides too many chances for pick pockets along with others who frequent such areas having a watch out specifically for unwary travelers, which means foreigners.
Shield your gear
If you have to be in this kind of area, make sure that your camera bag is closed in any way times. Do not haul out your camera for a fast chance and leave the bag open and ignored at your side filled with expensive accessories. In sparsely-populated regions you may be accosted and have no one to turn to for assistance. If travelling in such locations, it’s advisable to not go alone and perhaps, even, to hire a respectable guide. China Highlights can help you here by providing a guide-chaperone to keep you company and an eye open on your behalf.
If you leave your hotel for any reason, (to go to get a dinner, by way of instance ), and not take your gear with you, make sure you leave it in the hotel safe in your absence, yet short.
Beware pirated, ill-made accessories
A more unconventional form of thievery is piracy and this, also, can affect the photographer badly. Those usually expensive camera batteries you locate going cheap specifically may be poorly-made, and also have been known to malfunction so badly as to break the camera itself. If you must buy batteries in China, visit some large and clearly trustworthy outlet. You will pay more, perhaps more, even, than you’d pay back home, but it is going to still work out far, far less costly than having to obtain a new camera.

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The Army
Guangxi street and cow herdA military area could be a stretch of road…
No country likes foreigners wandering around taking photographs of the military installations, and China is no exception. Indeed, China proves more difficult than most countries in this regard, and it’s necessary to be especially alert.
If you find a military installation, don’t point your camera . Rush past and out of sight; you will attract attention just by being there.
If you are stuck in a military place…
There are many military regions in China, not only buildings with guards standing in front of them at a check point: open areas, mountains, stretches of street, nondescript concrete structures by railways, etc..
Many are poorly fated, not signposted in English, or not signposted at all.
Should you get hauled in for questioning as a possible spy, the first thing to consider is to keep your cool.
While they’re finding somebody who speaks English, you may have a long wait.
The Chance of Confiscation
The most peculiar thing is that although you might not be at risk, your camera equipment is. Attempt to show them that there’s nothing on your camera that’s subversive. If they still want to take it, then provide them your memory card. If you have to lose it, lose it. If that occurs, do not bother going to the authorities about it later. They may not need to get involved. Your very best bet is the embassy, however they, too, may not want to get involved.
The risk is real, however slim…
If you’re now quaking in your boots at the thought of coming to China at all, do not. The chances of this above mentioned scenario taking place are minimal. Even if you are arrested, the above is that the’worst case’. You might, on the flip side, make a friend in the military and have a pleasant experience with China’s armed forces.
To make sure you take a trip together, and we’ll steer you clear of army places.
Additional Places Not to Take Pictures.
Guizhou Old ManAsk before photographing people.
One clear problem area is that the police and government officials, both employees and buildings. Regard these, then, as a lesser version of the army. But, they are not alone as a potential additional issue. It is best to learn if that’s the situation before you begin snapping away in certain buildings in particular.
Be very wary in temples. Check that you are allowed prior to taking any photographs at all. Only point to the camera and shrug at a monk or other person connected with the site. They will understand and shake or nod their head. It has happened that tourists occasionally find themselves in an undignified tussle with a monk as he attempts to wrest their camera after they’ve taken photos that are contrary to the rules. This produces a great story to tell friends afterwards, but is disconcerting in the extreme at the time, and risks damage to a camera.
Photographing People
Use common sense when photographing people, particularly minorities, a few of which could have very specific cultural reservations about being photographed. It is preferable to first ask permission. Some individuals who are particularly photogenic know themselves to be so, and earn more money by charging anyone who chooses their portrait. He knows he’s likely to be photographed. It is best to ask if they bill first. But, it isn’t always so obvious. There have even been cases of people demanding money when someone has photographed their water buffalo. Go carefully. This brings attention to you, and may be regarded as a particular infringement, especially when the air of the construction is at stake, (eg., at a temple).
For some reason the idea you may be a foreign spy extends past the army and into these public places as shopping malls or on the road running past a building website. Be prepared to have somebody in a uniform hop out of nowhere and start shouting at you on your camera as if you have just done something tremendously inimical by photographing a cat on a wall when that wall happens to be in his’jurisdiction’.

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Again… keep your cool. In this instance you are not in any danger of being arrested or getting your camera shot. The uniform the protector is wearing was probably picked up in a local store and all that’s happened here is his boss, in a very long list of things he’s supposed to do, may have contained’No photography!’ Your aggressor is probably no longer than fearful of losing his job and will make no more awareness of the principle he’s trying to enforce than you can.
Just nod, grin, sign your incomprehension, (even if your Chinese is perfect), and move on. Once you’re off his spot he will just be relieved you have gone.
Seasonal Considerations
Spring
A good season at the north of China with fairly clear skies and small inclement weather, it could be more variable from the southwest. If rainswept landscapes are exactly what you’re after this may prove perfect, however, the monsoon is such that it may provide little respite for variation in light and air, and landscapes may be effectively blotted out by the weather.
Summer
A reasonable season both north and south with a mix of weathers, but the additional south you go, the more ideal photographic conditions are restricted from the sun’s angle. At midday, around shadows might be severely foreshortened, and glare may be extreme both north and south. This may lead to light too stark to be ideal for many photographers.
Autumn
In autumn, the differentiation is made between inland and coastal regions. Inland the weather is clement across the country, the mild good, shadowing pronounced. The coastal regions, however, may be affected by the occasional typhoon. On the one hand, these aren’t so reliable to make it worth the photographer’s time visiting in the hope of intense weather photography. On the other, coastal squalls are more probable at this time of year.
Winter
Because of smog, overcastness, and normally cold and disagreeable weather in some key destinations such as Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai, and Guilin (to a lesser extent), winter would usually not be our recommendation. See Best Times to Go to China.
That said, winter is very suited to extensive travel across the nation, due to low season prices and absence of crowding. Pack warm clothing, you will need them. The cold weather keeps away other travelers, affording you scenic shots unspoiled by wandering tourists.
Predominantly northerly winds leave the air clean and crisp for ideal lighting conditions when there are clear skies, while shadows are somewhat more pronounced through the day and more elongated than in the summer.
However, one strong precautionary note. Beware the Spring Festival Holiday. This is the significant vacation in China, lasting some two weeks, varying year annually in accordance with the lunar calendar. The government sets the dates for the whole nation, and also for the duration travel is busy, (if not impossible), resort lodging scarce, hot scenic areas crowded as at no other time in the year, and thieves especially virulent. Usually beginning in the second half of January, it is ideal to check in advance that your plans and holiday in no way match.