Writings

On Looking, Sequencing, and Home

Notes on attention, familiarity, and the spaces photographs make between a room, a page, and a viewer.

20 Aug 2026, 20:58

Stars Fall on a Midsummer Night

On a midsummer night, falling stars burn themselves away trying to light the darkness and the eyes raised toward them. When the excitement fades, everyone goes home to sleep, leaving the stars to charge in vain.

13 Aug 2026, 15:42

The Reservoir in the Bathhouse

A pool of water held between my arms in the shower carried me back to the public bathhouses of childhood—to a boy who built reservoirs, played at being a hero and conducted experiments beneath the spray.

09 July 2026, 18:24

Why Do We Still Tilt at Windmills?

Don Quixote charges at windmills again and again, rising after every defeat. Returning to this knight whom his age called mad, I found myself reconsidering ideals, reality, and why we still choose to face our own windmills.

02 July 2026, 00:27

It Begins with Zijingang Bus Terminal

Passing Zijingang Bus Terminal again, I found the familiar building hidden behind construction barriers. It brought back a Hangzhou of vanishing bus stops, fields, roads and old routines—and made me think about how I had changed as well.

22 June 2026, 22:56

Heilongjiang

Heilongjiang, your arms are broad.

22 Apr 2026, 03:50

The Dying Sun and the Ranger

He is a ranger, staggering through the sunset glow.

07 July 2025, 02:03

Through Mountains and ForestsPhoto essay

In a season of endless rain, driving through quiet mountains and forests offers a rare way to unwind. The weariness of days on the road quietly fades into the stillness.

22 May 2025, 23:51

Tenth Anniversary - A Retrospective of My First Decade in Photography

Sometimes the experience itself matters more than the photography. — Alec Soth

28 Feb 2025, 22:55

From Home to a Foreign Land: A Hasty Transition

My first passport and first journey abroad were not for a holiday, but the beginning of a life overseas that has now lasted two years and is still unfolding.

19 Feb 2025, 10:19

A Review of the Jiachen Year: Photography, Literature, and Music

At the end of the Jiachen year, I looked back on how photography, literature, and music entered my life: from paying attention to equipment to understanding content, from discovering the power of words to finally learning to play the bamboo flute and xiao.

23 Jan 2025, 23:18

Blackout

I was writing about the day’s phone photos when the sky outside flashed and every light in the house went out—the power had failed.

15 Jan 2025, 22:32

Pictures of my 2024

Most of these 19 photographs were taken during a trip through China between September and October 2024. The journey crossed much of the country, beginning in Qinghai Province in the west, passing through Zhejiang Province in the east, and finally returning to Qinghai.

31 Dec 2024, 23:39

Notes on Yangmei

Grown across southeastern China and ripening in midsummer, yangmei are dark red, sweet, tart and full of juice—the black pearls of the fruit world.

17 Aug 2024, 15:24

Pictures of 2023

The year 2023 stands like a milestone dividing one life from another—behind me, plateaus and snow-covered mountains; ahead, grasslands and the sea.

01 Jan 2024, 12:36

Seven Years of Piecing Together Hangzhou

Exploring every corner of a city is like working on a jigsaw puzzle—it takes time, but the pleasure lies in the process. After seven years, I finally placed the last piece of Hangzhou.

02 Nov 2022, 00:14

Take Sunrises and Sunsets Seriously

If your time in a city were running out, how would you spend it? Everyone would have their own answer—eating all their favorite foods one more time, seeing every friend once more, or standing the final watch and laying the final brick with care.

26 Oct 2022, 00:11

Nomadic Westward

Whenever I stand in the evening light, I look west—to the road running into the distance, the gesang flowers by the river, and the hope that one day I might roam the West freely.

21 Oct 2022, 23:51

Winter in Yangzhou (Part II)

Among the cities of the Yangtze River Delta, Yangzhou seems somewhat understated. In many people's minds, it is still the tourist city of “going down to Yangzhou in the misty flowers of March.” Yet beyond its famous sights and landmarks, what keeps drawing me back is still the old city.

09 June 2021, 17:29

Winter in Yangzhou (Part I)

Near the meeting point of the Beijing–Hangzhou Grand Canal and the Yangtze River lies Yangzhou, a city that has left a deep mark on Chinese history. Compared with the familiar image of “journeying to Yangzhou in March, when blossoms are veiled in mist,” Yangzhou in winter feels a little quieter and more subdued, but has a character of its own.

09 June 2021, 17:29

Yushu Photo CollectionPhoto essay

Journeys are always brief. They leave us tired, excited, surprised, yet fascinated. Sorting through the photographs after a journey is a special ritual. As it begins, the smells, temperatures, scenes, and feelings all come rushing back.

04 June 2021, 16:20

Back to Where It Began

The Qilian Mountains are made up of seven roughly parallel ranges, separating Qinghai from Gansu from east to west. Within their broad expanse lie not only the remote Hala Lake and the beautiful Qinghai Lake, but also Xining, the city where I grew up.

03 June 2021, 16:45

The Long Way to Amne Machin

Amne Machin, standing in the center of Golog Prefecture in Qinghai, is one of the four sacred mountains of Tibetan tradition. Its summit remains snow-covered throughout the year, giving it an imposing presence. The Yellow River, flowing out of Ngoring Lake, bends around Amne Machin, sustaining the animals and plants here and creating a rich ecosystem.

02 June 2021, 15:49

Leaving Yushu, Following the Yellow River Downstream

Yueguzongliequ, originating at the foot of the Bayan Har Mountains, flows eastward out of Yushu and into Golog before eventually reaching Gyaring Lake and Ngoring Lake in the upper reaches of the Yellow River.

01 June 2021, 21:50

Sacred Mount Gado Jowo

Mountains are hardly rare on the Tibetan Plateau, the world's third pole. But some mountains take on a different meaning because of geography, culture, religion and tradition. Gado Jowo, a mountain of relatively modest height in central Yushu Prefecture, stands apart because of its status as a sacred mountain.

15 Dec 2020, 00:50

Duolunduo, a Hidden Paradise

Hundreds of millions of years of geological change have given Nangqên rich mineral resources and created the ancient salt fields of Duolunduo. The traditional salt-making techniques preserved to this day are the best tribute to this gift from nature.

25 Nov 2020, 18:19

The Legend of Duolunduo

If the Tanggula Mountains and Hengduan Mountains form the body of Nangqên, then the stories of King Gesar, widely told across this land, are its soul. Duolunduo Village, a hidden paradise with a rather modern-sounding name, is where a thousand-year-old story unfolds.

13 Nov 2020, 21:33

Hello, Nangqên

Nangqên County lies in southeastern Yushu Prefecture, surrounded by the Hengduan Mountains and the Tanggula Mountains. Here, high elevation does not mean barrenness. Abundant summer rainfall covers the mountains in green and fills the landscape with life.

04 Nov 2020, 03:22

The Jiangjiaduode We Never Saw

Sacred Mount Jiangjiaduode holds the blue waters of Suo'e Lake in its embrace, quietly looking toward Yushu City 100 kilometers away. Wrapped in cloud and mist, it hid itself from us, unwilling to be disturbed.

27 Oct 2020, 18:09

First Impressions of Western Sichuan

If not for the provincial border sign, I would hardly have realized that I had already entered Sichuan. Sêrxü, tucked between Yushu and Golog in Qinghai, is the highest county town in Sichuan Province.

23 Oct 2020, 14:00

Toward Yushu, Crossing the Yellow River Three Times

The Yellow River flows eastward from its source at Yueguzongliequ, but not long after entering Sichuan Province, it turns back toward the northwest and re-enters Qinghai. In doing so, it brings abundant water to eastern Qinghai and irrigates the fertile land along both banks.

20 Oct 2020, 04:55