Old Man

X Play, f2.0, 1/287, ISO 50, JPG

People Reading in HK

Most people in Hong Kong might be using their phones a lot but there are still enough people who read newspapers and books.

Since I had my flight back to Da Nang in the afternoon, there was enough time for another walk around today.

It was great being in Hong Kong again and I’ll need to do more trips here to do some street photography in the future.

Some Red in HK

Another day and another walk around Kowloon and the markets in Mongkok but since it was Sunday, I also decided to ho to Hong Kong Island and climb all the way to the peak.

This time I focused on red as the colour for today’s photos.

Hong Kong island around Central is always packed with all the foreign workers on Sundays so it’s quite interesting to see.

In the evening I went to the harbor to see the light show again, it’s always nice and there are many people so it also makes for some good photography opportunities.

Despite taking a few landscape photos, I decided to stick with only street photos for this post.

People and Phones in HK

People everywhere are obsessed with their phones but this is especially true in big cities and Hong Kong being a very big city has people everywhere looking down at their phones.

I did a series on people and phones before but today, I didn’t even try to focus on this but it just happened that the majority of my photos had people and phones in them.

There are many things to do and see in Hong Kong but the best thing for me is still wandering around the streets and taking photos.

The weather was very nice so there were plenty of people out and the streets were pretty crowded, which made it ideal for street photography.

I also managed to meet up with my friend Nevin for a nice chat and dinner.

The last photo is my favorite photo from the day.

A Touch of Yellow in HK

Back in Hong Kong for a few days so more opportunity for street photography.

This time, I only took the Ricoh GR along to travel light and have a different perspective from last time with the Epson R-D1.

Like last time, the first day was spent walking around Kowloon.

It’s always great being in Hong Kong, it’s very good for street photography and not having a motorbike means I walk a lot more, too.

Using the GR was definitely easier than the R-D1 but both cameras work great here for street photography.

Last Stroll in Hong Kong

After the last days, today was a quiet day in terms of photography but I had to catch an early afternoon flight back to Da Nang.

I ended up just taking it easy in the morning and going for a walk around Kowloon to take the train back to the airport.

It’s been great being back in Hong Kong and especially for my photography it provided plenty of opportunities.

The Epson RD-1 performed well, or as well as a rangefinder performs, but mostly it was fun using it and shooting with it.

The Markets of Mongkok

Go down the right alley in Mongkok and you can find a market selling everything you want. All other alleys and streets have more markets to sell you even more stuff.

Taking photos at the different markets in Mongkok is one of my favorite things to do in Hong Kong, it is great just strolling around but by taking photos it makes me focus more on the individual interactions.

Some of my favorite markets are the bird and the fish and aquarium markets. The bird market especially is a nice mix between a park, temple and market all in one.

Of course, a highlight are also the fish markets although some places might not be ideal for people who don’t like to see blood.

The markets also change a bit throughout the day so you get a different atmosphere depending when you there.

This was one of the busiest days in terms of photography and I ended up with lots of photos but also with all Epson RD-1 batteries being dead by the evening so I switched to the Ricoh GR.

I could have taken way more photos and keep wandering the streets till late at night but I decided to go and see the Victoria Harbor light show in the evening so started to head there after it got dark.

The last photo is one taken with the Ricoh GR and the one that doesn’t fit in the series but I figured I had to post at least one photo of the skyline at night.

Around Kowloon and Hong Kong Island

I don’t usually post on my birthday but since I took so many photos and won’t go back to Hong Kong island during this trip, I figured it makes sense to post the photos.

Sunday is the Philippine and Indonesian workers day off so you will see them all flocking to the streets, finding a nice spot and having a picnic, dancing, singing or just sleeping in the shade.

It’s pretty cool as Hong Kong island is otherwise pretty dead on a weekend given most offices are closed and there is not that much else around there.

It’s fun to walk around though and with most places being closed there’s also less traffic and so easier to walk around.

There are also always some festivals and other events going on so it is interesting.

Taking the Star Ferry over is also a highlight and must-do for any visit to Hong Kong and it also provides some great views over the Victoria Harbor.

The evening I spent eating, drinking and talking with some students I’ve met so it meant less photography but was still fun.

A Rainy Day in Hong Kong

The day started and ended with rain but it was reasonably dry in between to go for a walk around Kowloon.

For this trip, I decided to take the Epson RD-1 and 28mm GR lens with me and only use tis combination, although I had the Ricoh GR as a backup camera along.

It took me a bit to get back into the flow of using the RD-1 and taking photos without being able to focus or frame accurately but soon I just preset everything and didn’t think too much about the camera.

I really missed just walking around and taking photos, my recent ‘street photography’ has been done mostly from the back of a motorbike.

Hong Kong is one of the best places for street photography, next to maybe New York, Tokyo and London. There is always something going on and there are lots of people around.

I just kept walking and taking photos and almost forgot about eating or stopping to take a break.

In the evening I planned to go take photos around the night markets but the rain meant I decided to stick closer to the buildings and take photos around the hotel I stayed at.

The rain, neon signs and people with umbrellas combined with the unique image quality from the D-1 give the photos a great character and I ended up with more photos than I could post here.

It’s been a great and very productive day in terms of photography and I certainly missed that despite loving being on a motorbike and enjoying the open road.

Atapeu to Da Nang to Hong Kong

I knew this was going to be a long day. Waking up at 6am in Attapeu, I had to drive back the 360km to Da Nang, repack my bag and catch my 6pm flight to Hong Kong.

Since I couldn’t take any chances or delays with the borders or roads, I went back the same way I came, via Bo Y.

I am not usually one to get up too early but whenever I do, it’s always worth it. The sunrise and morning fog make for some great photos, especially when driving around the mountains.

Despite being in a rush, I did stop to take quite a few photos on my way to the border. I figured that should I miss my flight at least I’d have some nice photos to show for it.

Crossing the border was again no problem at all and very fast, not many people that early in the morning and the border guards were all friendly. Well, aside from the guy at the exit of the border area who was a bit grumpy so it seems they always find the grumpy guys to put there on the Vietnamese side.

I made good time, despite taking photos but to avoid any delays, I didn’t take that many photos once I crossed the border and focused more on driving.

I made it back to rainy Da Nang just after lunch, a bit later than I would have ideally liked but it gave mea time to freshen up, get some rest and lunch before heading to the airport.

The flight was pleasant enough and arrived early in Hong Kong so that was nice as it gave me some extra time to take some photos on my walk to my hotel.

I left my hotel booking for the last minute so I ended up staying in a nice enough hostel but it must be the smallest room and most expensive room (given the size) I stayed at in Asia. Still, it was located right in Mong Kok so ideal for what I had in mind for my Hong Kong trip.

It will certainly be a nice change again to walk everywhere and take photos instead of taking my motorbike everywhere.