Shooting a Photo project in China.

[Viktor Sebastian]

I am seeking advice and experiences from people that have travelled in China and undertaken documentary photographic work.

Especially in regard to:

– Having cameras, laptops, sd cards, film confiscated, destroyed or examined.

– Being shadowed, arrested, interrogated or advised to leave.

I am under the understanding that internet is very regulated and therefore difficult/impossible to upload images/audio/video to external servers from within the country.

I am considering starting a project that is documenting aspects of culture that are not typically han chinese.

I value any thoughts and ideas that you have to offer.

🙂

 

[semordnilap]

One word:
VPN

Other than that, plan & act like a tourist. I don't have a lot of experience and I'm sure there are others who can speak better about doing that kind of work. But I would start by obtaining access to a secure VPN.

 

[mervynyan]

where to start, it is a big subject. having done movie production for a Malaysia crew, i think it is as easy as everywhere else. if you are doing commercial work on set, you will need permission prior; if freelance/solo, you can go anywhere you wish without excessive concerns. you might run into policemen in sensitive areas asking your work, simply tell the fact. If they don't like it, they will tell you to leave, so be it.

keep your embassy phone number at hand, they are the first call you make when in trouble.

 

[newsgrunt]

Having a reliable fixer is indispensable but not sure how feasible this would be if you plan to fly under the radar and enter as a tourist. I don't have contacts for the ones I used so I can't help you there unfortunately. Keep in mind the attitude towards cameras currently regardless of being accredited as a journalist or not.

Agree strongly re:vpn. I had no issues ftping when I was there 2004 or so but today is today.

If I read you properly, there are pockets of non Han chinese in Beijing and most likely elsewhere.

Good luck with your project.

 

[ZeissFan]

If you're white and you don't act in a suspicious manner, you'll be fine. Don't photograph near embassies or army installations. Be careful of photographing any protests.

The communist Chinese regime is very sensitive to being embarrassed -- they like to paint a picture that there is no dissent in China. And they'll squish you like a bug to prove that point.

Other than that, you'll have a great time. For the most part, I was able to photography anywhere, except for the periodic showing of Mao's corpse. Or whatever is left of him that they put on display.

 

[Archlich]

I spend 2-3 months in China each year. Like ZeissFan said, don't photograph protests, government buildings and anything army-related. You can always shoot minorities freely (which is a popular practice among Chinese photography communities), just don't ask for trouble by expressing your opinions toward the policies and the government- whatever they are - while you are still in the country. There are too many people for the government to filter their talks one-by-one, but a white openly talking against Beijing is quite an easy target.

One of my friends had experience of being stalked by agents in Tibet. It was in the early 90s, and although things are very different now, specific parts of Tibet and Xinjiang (the northwest part where Muslims reside) that saw the recent unrests are very sensitive to "foreign spying efforts". You'll still be fine, just mind the army personnels you'll see frequently in the area.

Regarding the Internet censorship, popular sites like Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, Youtube (along with many other Google-related sites and applications like Blogspot) and foreign news agencies like CNN and BBC are blocked. But not all of them. It is hard figured out when or why a site may get itself blacklisted by the Great Firewall: you can upload photos to sharing sites like Photobucket - but not Imageshack, which was blocked last year and no one could tell the reason. While a VPN will surely be handy, do notice that many large hotels in major cities have unblocked internet for foreign customers as well.

 

[dfoo]

I lived in China for 5 years, and traveled over lots of mainland China (but not Tibet or Xinjiang) and done loads of photography there as a tourist. I probably wouldn't advise advertising doing documentary work. I've never had a problem. I've photographed all over the place, and was only told off once when I was taking images around the central police station in Shanghai. A security guard told me to stop, and I did.

I am seeking advice and experiences from people that have travelled in China and undertaken documentary photographic work.

Especially in regard to:

– Having cameras, laptops, sd cards, film confiscated, destroyed or examined.

Never

– Being shadowed, arrested, interrogated or advised to leave.

Never.

I am under the understanding that internet is very regulated and therefore difficult/impossible to upload images/audio/video to external servers from within the country.

Not true. Some sites are blocked, but its very simple to get around with a VPN such as unblockvpn.com

I am considering starting a project that is documenting aspects of culture that are not typically han chinese.

I value any thoughts and ideas that you have to offer.

🙂

Sounds like a fun project!

 

[ryan26]

I did documentary work in Tibet around the time of the Olympics in Beijing.

Don't give anybody a reason to be suspicious. There is nothing out of the ordinary about an outsider with a camera in these places. I found that I could do what I pleased using a bit of common sense, photographing the military (from the hip) and sensitive (destroyed) cultural sites (at and after sun down), speaking with locals about the situation at the time (in their private quarters), even getting a solo travel permit under the table (asked around), which wasn't kosher around then. I covered myself though - wiped out any affiliation between my name and Tibet from the net (hard nowadays with google cache), carried colourful travel photos from years ago to give as a sample of what I do, kept half my film stashed away from the other half, and SMILED ALOT. Some would sill say that doing this sort of work is stupid. Just this week 4 NYTimes reported went missing in Libya. But if you believe in something strongly, you need to weigh in.

The most negative part of the experience is that it gets exhausting, your mind is always racing full speed, thinking of the worst case scenario, worrying about yourself, about those you're conversing with. It takes a certain type. I can do it, but I find it hard, and I would never be one to jump from warzone to warzone. A little bit of the tension for something I believe in sure, but a little bit for me, may be alot for you, or nothing at all.

Hey, and maybe Tibet has loosened up on the last 2.5 years!?

 

[arpinum]

Tip:Avoiding hassle from Chinese police is best done with showing political status. If you are accompanied by someone who appears to have party connections, no problems. Who you might know deters police officers quite effectively.

Tip #2: An Audi A6L for transport can work wonders in pursuit of tip #1.

On the vpn issue, China this week began blocking popular vpn servers. I'd have a backup plan, either a friend out of the country, a personal proxy server, or other means.
Xinjiang province was almost completely cut off the net for a period (can't remember how long) on more than one occasion. The hardest area to work in might be around the Uyghur population.
OTAH I recall Yunnan province to be particularly hassle free, and has some of the most beautiful minority costumes and architecture. They are very accustomed to tourists there and it has been relatively peaceful.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Separate your shooting from your talking, i.e. if you want to interview someone, arrange to do so later, discreetly, in a bar you happen to wander into, rather than taking a pic and asking 'difficult questions' (Chinese euphemism for 'expecting the truth') in front of your Party-member minder).

It's almost certainly easier than you might think. I'm a lickspittle lackey of the running-dog reactionary Dalai Lama clique and had no problems with a visa or with shooting (though I didn't go to what the Chinese call Tibet, just to the border with Amdo, which the Chinese count as part of China).

Mind you, that was 5 years ago. With the current fashion for overthrowing dictatorships, the Party is understandably nervous. Google 'Jasmine Revolution' and you'll find they're even beating up BBC reporters.

Tashi delek,

R.

 

[Colin Corneau]

Not sure where you're headed, exactly, but Tibet has only tightened up lately - tourists/non-Chinese were barred completely from Tibet (or, precisely, the Tibet Autonomous Region) for all of March 2011. And foreigners need a special visa to go there normally anyway, which I'm sure you're aware of.

There are lots of regions you can go to which are historically Tibet but which have been carved into separate provinces that foreigners don't need special visas to go to -- Gansu and Qinghai provinces.

As has been mentioned, minorities are found throughout China anyway. Not sure what you're shooting (film, digital, video) so the issue of outside 'net access is another story.

If you're working for a news agency of some sort (magazine, newspaper, website) you can take your chances with a tourist (L) visa but if you get caught working there, you're out and will have a rough time returning afterwards. Of course, a journalist visa is difficult to get and will guarantee you get tailed and monitored.

 

[RollingBall]

Xinjiang province was almost completely cut off the net for a period (can't remember how long) on more than one occasion. The hardest area to work in might be around the Uyghur population.

I went to a seminar a few months ago of a British Scholar who specialises on Uighur culture. When he was last in Xinjiang (which was a few months after the riots) he explained that the Uighurs were completely free to practice their beliefs outside of the cities where there was absolutely no government intervention. Although all of this is irrelevant to you if you aren't going to Xinjiang.

China being a country the size of a continent there is obviously a lot of variation depending on where you will be travelling and what you will be shooting. In general, what you seem to be worrying about i.e. being followed, tracked and taken away aren't likely to happen nowadays. China is opening up to the world, unless you are clearly and openly engaged in activities that are against what the Chinese government is saying you will be fine.

Btw. If you use a free vpn you will find that it gets closed down after weeks of being starting up. It's best to get a paid one just before you go as searching for one once you are in China can be a little difficult as the search for the term is either blocked, or you get a list of out-of-date vpns that you can't access. Flickr had no problems when I was there 6 months ago.