Dafo Temple Guangzhou Photo Project
Photo project tips for beginners
Dedicate time to the project.
For this project, I dedicated six days over the course of three months. It took a long time to shoot because I had other work commitments and wanted to capture the temple under specific lighting conditions. However, this is not an unusually long period for a photo project; many people spend months or even years to achieve the results they desire. The key is to allow enough time for quality shots to emerge and to prioritize quality over speed and quantity.
2. Decide on the mood and feel of your photos.
Throughout your photo project, you will make several decisions that contribute to the mood and feel of the final shots. These decisions include, but are not limited to, color or black and white, focal length, lighting and weather conditions, and time of day. Some choices may be made early on, while others may evolve as the project progresses. For example, I decided early to shoot this project in the early morning because of the light and activity at the temple. However, I was initially unsure whether to shoot in black and white or color. At first, I planned to shoot in color, but the more I reviewed the shots in Lightroom, the more black and white emerged as the better choice for these images. The key is to create consistency throughout your images by making deliberate editorial choices about the mood and feel of your shots.
3. Focus on telling a story.
There is much to discuss on this topic, and I won’t be able to cover everything here, so I’ll keep it concise and to the point. The main focus is ensuring that points of interest and intrigue are included in your shots. Often, this can be a person or people, but anything that captures the viewer’s attention counts. A good way to practice this is to find a compositionally pleasing shot and then patiently wait for a subject to enter the frame. The key word here is patience, as it can be frustrating to wait, and many give up; however, the best photographers do not. A well-composed street image, background, or landscape is visually appealing on its own, but points of intrigue elevate it to another level for the viewer.
4. Get to know your subject.
This approach pays off, as it often leads to greater access as a photographer. If you spend time getting to know your subject on a personal level and show genuine interest in their lives, it can be a real game changer in terms of the photos you produce. People are more likely to relax in front of someone they trust, which results in images with a more natural feel. For this project, I spent time familiarizing myself with the temple grounds and the surrounding area, and I also read several articles on Buddhism. However, I was unable to build personal relationships with the monks at the temple due to my lack of Mandarin, and the project somewhat suffered as a result. If I had been able to do portraits of some of the monks and spend time with them in their natural environment, the final outcome would have been stronger.
5. Add variety to your shots.
For this project, my primary focus was on Buddhists worshipping at the temple, as well as the tourists present there. With this in mind, I captured a variety of low, mid-level, and high-angle shots to add visual interest. After ensuring a diverse range of subjects in my photos, I shifted my attention to the architecture and overall layout of the temple to further enhance variety. The key is to cover all elements of the story to provide the viewer with a more comprehensive understanding of your subject.
Gear
I chose to shoot this project using a combination of my Fujifilm X100Vi with its fixed 23mm f/2 lens, and a Fujifilm X-T3 equipped with a Fujifilm 10-24mm wide-angle lens. Initially, I intended to use only the X100V, but I soon realized I wanted some wide-angle shots of the architecture.
About Dafo Temple, Guangzhou
Spanning an entire city block, this upscale Buddhist temple complex is impossible to miss, anchored by a towering Chinese building on Wenming Lu. The temple’s origins trace back to the 10th century, though that history feels almost overlooked in the present surge of activity. Despite debates about authenticity, you’ll still spot monks gracefully moving about, and the centerpiece—a trio of 10-ton bronze Buddhas representing past, present, and future—draws eye-catching applause. Its prime location near bustling shopping streets guarantees a steady stream of visitors, making it a vibrant crossroads of spirituality and commerce.
Dafo Temple Guangzhou Photo Project
Locations
