Zheng Yunfeng, recording
the Three Gorges for nine years
Born in a village in East China's Anhui Province , Zheng Yunfeng is now
the vice chairman of the Photographers Association in East China's Jiangsu
Province.
Since the 1970s when he started to learn the art of photography, Zheng
Yunfeng has devoted himself to recording changes around the first two longest
rivers in China--the Yangtze River and the Yellow River -- through his
camera.
It has been nine years since he went to the Three Gorges area in 1997
when the Yangtze Three Gorges Project began. He had hoped to record through his
camera the natural scenery and life there that would become history after the
area was submerged, and the reservoir began operation. He even made a boat to
make his photographic journey in the Three Gorges area more convenient. The more
than 50,000 pictures he took in the Three Gorges area are testament to his hard
work.
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The tow path in the Three Gorges area along the Yangtze River was his main
priority. Every towed rock along the path is, in Zheng's eyes, a rock bearing
the hardships of boat trackers. Because of their historical value, the towed
rocks have become highly sought-after items of illegal mongers selling cultural
relics. Apart from taking pictures of these rocks, Zheng also tried to protect
them from thieves. He once happened to see a group of people trying to take down
a huge tow rock. Knowing that the authorities would not be able to arrive in
time, Zheng stayed over night besides the huge tow rock in order to protect it.
