Recently, the "China on the Canal" photography exhibition was held at the Beijing Caoyun Calligraphy and Painting Academy, showing the essence of the photographer who was born by the canal and grew up by the canal for nearly 20 years traveling to 36 cities along the Grand Canal.

Photographer program Gannan photographs

a a a , a flowing Chinese history. Recently, the "China on the Canal" photography exhibition was held at the Beijing Caoyun Calligraphy and Painting Academy, showing the essence of the photographer who was born by the canal and grew up by the canal for nearly 20 years traveling to 36 cities along the Grand Canal. The exhibition is not large in scale, but the time and space span and cultural span of the works are very large, showing the canal sentiment of this "Son of the Canal" in a small space, as well as the magnificent and long history of the Grand Canal.

More than 100,000 photos taken in the past 20 years

photos at the photography exhibition were carefully selected by the program. Among them, a panoramic aerial view placed in the center of the city, "Urban Sub-Center", was shot in May this year and is one of his proud works. In the middle of the picture, the North Canal winds through, and the colorful clouds in the sky are reflected in the river. The administrative office area, the city green heart, the three major buildings, the canal forest park, etc. are arranged on both sides. The sunset is at the end of the junction of water and sky, reflecting the sub-center of the interweaving blue and green, and the integration of water and city, which is grand and magnificent. The father of the

program was awarded national level for his outstanding achievements in the management of the canal.

"This is the picture I have been waiting for for a long time. In order to capture such pictures with excellent weather, angles and colors, I waited for half a year." The program introduced, "This work contains a lot of content. The drone took 21 photos to synthesize the panoramic view."

Since 2003, every holiday, the program will set off from the north starting point of the Grand Canal Tongzhou to shoot the canal. In the past 20 years, the program has traveled to 36 prefecture-level cities in eight provinces and cities including Beijing, Hebei, Tianjin, Shandong, Henan, etc., and photographed the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal , the Sui and Tang Grand Canal and the Zhejiang East Canal , leaving behind more than 100,000 photos and precious videos of more than 100 hours. In the exhibition, aerial photography of Xianghe Central Wharf, Tianjin Sancha River Estuary, Cangzhou "Ω" Bay Canal Park, Yangzhou Canal Sanwan Park and other masterpieces are among the best works. Many of the works were selected for the 13th China Art Festival and exhibited in in China Art Museum. During the shooting and field trip of

, the program also pays great attention to using the lens to capture the joys, sorrows, sorrows, and joys of the characters living along the Grand Canal. The figures of people exercising on the river bank, children laughing and playing, etc., the photos form a picture of the life of the people in the Grand Canal and become a beautiful cultural landscape.

In Jiangjiadu Village, Yuyao, Zhejiang, the program has come here three times to shoot and turn a sharp canal. When he passed by here for the third time in December last year, he accidentally saw Jiang Wei who was helping the villagers ferry tricycle. "Our ancestors have been ferrying here for generations. When we arrived at me, it was hard to support our family, but I still didn't want to give up. The skills and ancient traditions of rowing cannot be broken by me." His words moved the program, so he pointed the camera at the ferry and the people on the boat, leaving behind the work "The Last Ferry Guard".

broke 3 cars and more than 20 tires

20 years, the program has been spared no effort to shoot the Grand Canal. He replaced 6 cameras and 3 cars and ran more than 20 tires slack. When he encounters a tire blowout, he will take out the jack and to replace the spare tire. As long as he can take beautiful pictures, no difficulties will be difficult in his opinion.

In October 2021, when the program was filming near the Linqing Relic Tower in Shandong, it was happening that it was windy, rainy and floods passed through. His drone fell out of control when strong winds fell and fell on a small soil slope in the distance. The drone and the program are separated by a hundred-meter river embankment that has been flooded. "Drones can be bought again, but the image data saved in them cannot be copied." At that time, the program had only one thing in his mind: saving the drone.

So he went to the city to find an swimming ring . When he judged that the flood flow was not fast and confirmed that it was safe, he put the swimming trap around his neck, found a branch to support the bottom of the river and went into the water. The more I walked, the deeper the water became, and my feet slowly couldn't reach the bottom. Later, the swimming ring and the branches were washed away. The desperate process swam to the other side based on his water nature. When he got the drone, he cried out. From 7 a.m. to 12 noon, he saved thousands of valuable photos in the memory card.

With this experience, the program cherishes all kinds of information collected during the shooting process. During the photography exhibition, the program also specially placed some old beds, screens, family trees, column foundations, and other old objects collected along the way that reflected the lives of canals, as well as canal water in different sections of the canals in bottles of large and small. The bottle also indicated the date and location of the collection. The program said: "These old objects are witnesses of the canal. They record the changes in the lives of the people around the canal. They are priceless in my heart."

Born on the canal, growing on the canal,

Born in 1972, the program is exactly 50 years old this year. He is not tall and thin, but he is full of energy. When it comes to the canal, his eyes are radiating and he talks endlessly. He was born in Huaian, Jiangsu, known as the "Capital Capital", and lives in Tongzhou, on the banks of the Grand Canal of Beijing and Hangzhou. His father was awarded national commendation for his outstanding achievements in the management of the canal. There was always the shadow of the canal in the first half of the program, and the idea of ​​"doing something for the canal" was always lingering in his heart. So he decided to use photography to record the canal in 2003 to express his awe and affection for the canal.

At first, the photography career of the program did not receive support from the family, because he had been traveling abroad all year round, and he was distant from the family after being together for too long. His son even asked, "Can you change a father?" Until one time, the child changed his previous complaints after returning home and asked his lover Li Bo excitedly, "Dad is he very good?" Li Bo asked him the reason, and the child said, "Dad told me a lot of stories about the Grand Canal and taught me how to take pictures. I also want to be a photographer in the future, record history like my father, so that many people know." Seeing that the persistence of the program affects others and society, especially his own children, Li Bo finally let go and switched to supporting the program's career.

, a recognition from the family, gave the program more confidence. Now, he is planning the "China on the Canal" photography exhibition touring 36 cities along the route. "In my eyes, the Grand Canal is emotional, vivid, and direct. In the past 20 years, I have recorded the lives of people along the canal with my camera. This is the story of the Chinese and a great river. The wonderful thing is that the story continues and I will always be on the road," the program said.

(Original title: Replace 6 cameras and 3 cars, take more than 100,000 photos, recording the canal's feelings for the "Son of the Canal" for nearly 20 years)

Source: Beijing Daily Reporter Sun Yunke

Process Editor: u099