Thursday, December 31, 2009

A short visit to Shanghai...

A sprawling city working very hard to push into 2010 as an important part of modern China, Shanghai certainly is a worthy stop on a trip to China and an exciting way for me to finish off 2009 both work related and as a tourist. I was working for a private client but had plenty of time to myself. It was my first time to China and was a good introduction to China.

With Shanghai being as modern as any other city, it's left me wanting to go out there again to see Beijing, Xian, the other Provinces, the Wall etc... what I would've classed as "real China", the China I learned about growing up. The China that captivated my generation through the movies it produced, that motivated my dad when he was young to learn Chinese, martial arts and become a Kung Fu master (a title he doesn't personally use though. His students call him Sifu Leung)... anyway, that's the china I still have to see more of but for now.. Shanghai was a good experience. Plus while they have WuShu Master on regular tv... what do we get here in the UK? Total Wipeout.

Yes it was busy, cold (but not as cold as home!), and I fell and fractured my hand but it was a place full of sights, interesting people, very cheap and very wholesome food and tea, tea, tea... love it. 12 hours on a plane and 8 hour time differences I could do without though!

Here are a few cool shots, taken with a point and shoot (canon g10):

Entering Shanghai the fastest way possible (on land).. The Maglev at 430km/h (hence it's a bit shaky)Photobucket

Ok so I go to grab a coffee and what do I find?
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There are a whole lot more on my facebook page so feel free to check that out at http://www.facebook.com/db247

I had planned to do a 2009 wrap up post while I was out there but hadn't figured on blogspot being a banned website over there so I haven't been able to access my own blog, facebook, twitter etc while I was there! So I'll do that very soon! It's been a year of extremes... And I think it'd be good to put it into words, and images where possible... So, see you next year!

4 comments:

Neil van Niekerk said...

Cool images. I love the crispness they have. Any special post-processing done to them?

Sounds like it was a wild trip. Hope your hand heals well.

best

Neil vN

Damian Brown Photography said...

Thanks Neil! Mainly just basic levels, curve adjustments in acr and a bit of vignetting. The tower shot with the full moon was a play on a process you documented on your website on December 7th (soft window light post.. I wanted to try out the vintage look settings you posted so I saved them, and had a play on this shot)

The hand is getting there slowly, changing to 5th gear was a problem on the way home from the airport, we'll see how I fare today!

Again, thanks for your comment.

Damian

Unknown said...

Very envious! Great photos! I'm going next year on a trip round Europe and Asia, staying there probably 4 nights, is that a sufficient amount of time?

Again, great pictures, I wish I was there... although blogspot, banned?!

Damian Brown Photography said...

It appeared to be Tom, and I think I read that somewhere too. I couldn't access it. I think 4 days is ok for Shanghai really, if you're ready to roll when you arrive.