film

Beijing Underground City

One of the most incredible things I saw while exploring Beijing was the Underground City, also known as Dixia Cheng.  It is a series of tunnels compromising a bomb shelter that was constructed in the 1970s in anticipation of a nuclear war with the Soviet Union.  Thank goodness it never needed to be used for that purpose.  I spent an afternoon doing some urban spelunking and wandering the tunnels with my Hasselblad.  The tunnels were dark and damp and filled with some odd artifacts, like a series of folding chairs with framed portraits of communist leaders, including Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Chiang Kai-Shek.  There is even a portrait of Karl Marx that from a distance looks like Frederick Douglass.





Looking Around the Streets of Beijing

Several years ago I went go Beijing.  Like any other traveler I wanted to explore the streets, meet the people and experience the culture which is vastly different from my own.  But as a photographer I also wanted to capture my personal experiences there.  Everywhere I went my head swiveled from back and forth from side to side trying to take it all in.  So I began wandering the streets with my Noblex 35mm panoramic camera.  With this camera I was able to capture what I was seeing all around me.  It's a trip I won't soon forget and I can't wait for the opportunity to go back.