It's 6:30 in the evening, and the Summer Palace is swarming with photographers. Photo enthusiasts from across Beijing come here every day to capture the beautiful sunset at the Seventeen Arch Bridge.
The bridge, built during the rule of Emperor Qianlong in the 1700s, extends out to Nanhu Island in Kunming Lake. Its location makes it the perfect spot to take photos of the setting sun; the bridge is free of trees and buildings, and on a clear day you can see all over the lake from the bridge.
Amateur photographer Li Yi (pictured above) comes to the bridge very often. "I like to come here when the weather is good, it's very clear today," he says. Li has been taking photos for over forty years, and the Seventeen Arch Bridge is one of his favorite spots. "The sunset over the bridge here is quite beautiful," he says.
Forty-five-year-old government worker Lu Haojian agrees. He doesn't come to the bridge very often, but has been taking pictures since he was 10 years old. "The sky is very blue today, so it's a good opportunity to take pictures. I come here for the scenery," he says.
Around 7 pm, the sun is going lower and lower, and photographers are scrambling for the best spot to capture the scene. Although their cameras look expensive, nearly all of them are hobbyists or amateurs. "People have been earning more in the last couple years; some of them travel, but others buy cameras and come here," says hobbyist Zhu Xiaozhong.
Zhu has only been taking pictures for a few years, but has seen the hobby change a lot in that short time. "There are forums now where we post our pictures, and comment on each others' techniques," he says. Zhu comes to the bridge to take pictures of the clouds, which he says are more beautiful here than in the city.
Although the modern digital cameras are most common, there are some photographers that choose a more old-fashioned approach. A man surnamed Tong has been to the bridge "hundreds of times", and brings an old-school film camera. He says he will develop the pictures later and scan them to put them on his phone and share them with others. "There are many good places in the Summer Palace to take photos, but this spot is one of the better ones," he says. The sun hasn't quite yet set over the water, and he says there will be even more photographers here later to capture the final moment of sunset.
He's right. Around 7:30, the sun has nearly reached the end of its journey, and there are nearly 40 photographers clustered around the bridge. The fishermen and parents with their children are milling around the bridge, taking in the sunset, all the while being captured by the hobbyists. One man flies a kite over the bridge, and some of the photographers take a moment to snap shots of his kite as it soars in front of the sun. At last, the sun sets, photographers gather their equipment and leave the bridge.
The Summer Palace is the biggest and best-preserved royal garden in China. Located about about 15 km from downtown Beijing, it covers an area of 294 hectars, three-quarters of which is water. It has two entrances - the North Gate and East Gate.
(China Daily July 25, 2009)
