Sunday Morning From China: In the White Shadows of Forbidden City

World of wonders, am I proud of this photo. Principal credit goes to director Boyi, for setting up the shoot in which he appears, and fate for pushing my finger against a camera trigger perfectly in sync with the jump. We did four or five takes; I'm not sure which one clicked, but click it did!


This one needed more takes. That said, Boyi missed his calling. He might have been one of those crack Chinese acrobats. I guess the talent scouts never made it out to his farming village in Taishan. They might have seen him ride the family cow.




We are on the grounds of the Temple of Imperial Ancestors (now called Working People's Cultural Palace), right next to The Forbidden City, whose architecture it fairly matches.


What struck me were the cool dreamy white textures all around.






This little boy was so cutely, silently compliant. Perhaps proud of his little red flag. I think his parents retreated to the sidelines while I reached down to grasp his shoulders for a photo. He stood there so patiently.


He deserves this closeup, he was so serene.


Back to our one-person acrobatic show, definitely still in rehearsal. Among so many photos and videos I wish I had snapped, there would surely be one of Boyi in a hotel room doing his Boyi flop-bounce-rollover across a bed rather than bothering to go around it.


Cold gray day. Brooding imperial monument carved of magnificent red and silver still holding its own against eternity's fickle dust.