Thanks Vogue Hong Kong for featuring me as one of the HK street photographers 🙏🏼
https://www.voguehk.com/en/article/art-lifestyle/best-hong-kong-photographers-instagram/
Below is the previously unreleased complete interview in which I shared about my inspirations, creative flow and philosophy, as well as some techniques. Feel free to take a look & CLS (comment, like & share) 😀
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(V: Vogue J: Jeremy)
V:
What/who inspired your photography style?
J:
When I started photography, Hong Kong’s legendary photographer Ho Fan’s work has inspired me a lot, mostly about the use of light and composition as well as the way to authentically capture the secular life of Hong Kong people. Around 6-7 years ago, I met some friends from Instagram whose double exposure film works are fascinating. They have inspired me to explore deeper in this special way of photo story-telling, which I tried to incorporate daily ordinary elements to make new interpretations of what I feel and perceive about the city. After years of experimentation, I am still enjoying the possibility double exposure brings to my creative journey.
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V:
How would you describe the Hong Kong that you present in your photos?
J:
Hong Kong is a city of varying landscapes (hills, harbours, hyper-dense urban hubs etc). My photos always try to illustrate snippets of things happening around the city, mixing the common experience with a bit of poetic imagination if possible (including openness or even ambiguity for the readers to interpret). At the same time, I always put in mind not to create something too cliche or off-the-ground. Words also play a role in my photos too, as they could add another layer (or twist) of background info or feel to the photos themselves.
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V:
In what way do you present it?
J:
Analogy with an implicit storyline is what I always aim at when I take photos. Although double exposure comprises of only a fraction of my photography work, I believe it suits my visual philosophy well in (1) recording things happening or surrounding around myself/the city in terms of both factual archives and personal-based memory, (2) freeing up the mind by letting imagination flow in (as to temporarily overlap the concrete realities into some forms of surrealism, creating as a remedy for the chaotic world). So I would say it is an aesthetically refreshing way of visual representation.
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V:
Why did you choose this photo?
J:
One of my mostly used double exposure approaches is the experimental blending of observed urban moments with on-the-spot patterns/materials (I have been using the instagram hashtag #rambler_hkdouble to collect my double exposure photos posted on IG). For this picture of Mongkok, I first captured a V-shaped pattern of bluish/greenish tiles from a nearby pedestrian underpass, then I captured the second layer on the Argyle Street footbridge which oversees the V-shape urban canyon of Mongkok. This was taken by an old Nikon film camera with a discontinued film stock called Rollei CN200. I like how the grains and tints worked together to offer a mood of ruggedness.
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V:
Is there a message that you’d like to share through your photos?
J:
I always try to capture the subtlety of a place (incl. urban fabrics and artefacts) through compositions and lighting. I hope my photos would bring a sense of resonance, reminiscence and reflection to my audience (whether HKer or not), connecting them with a place’s own history, her present reality and an extrapolation of the future.
My main channel of photo sharing is on Instagram, but I really treasure the interactions with my audience both online and offline, local and overseas, mostly through web comments, my own photo exhibitions or occasional organised photowalks. I love the moments when I try to inspire people, I got reversely inspired by them too. I hope these modes of sharing could continue in the future.
2020 Aug
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Vogue Hong Kong
Vogue
