While researching locations for my Hong Kong photo trip, something interesting happened that reminded me to look around more.
How I Locate Photo Spots
My search starts by bookmarking good photos from social media and trying to find where they were taken on Google Maps. Sometimes it’s easy, because something in the photo identifies the location, like a street sign. Sometimes it’s impossible. If a photo is old, the searchable details may be gone, such as shops that have since closed.
The Corner Buildings I Couldn’t Find
As usual, I keep returning to a few photos I haven’t been able to locate because they’re too interesting to give up on. One shows a type of building known in Hong Kong as a corner house. These buildings were usually built before the 1970s, and like the famous Flatiron Building in New York, they aren’t rectangular. They were shaped to fit the block they sit on, which makes them a striking example of architecture adapting to its surroundings.
A few look especially interesting because they’re shaped like half an oval: one side is flat and the other is round. I’m not sure yet how to photograph them, but the potential is clearly there.
They are also extremely hard to find. The photos I can find online are old and low resolution. I don’t even know whether some of these buildings still exist, and even if they do, the shops in the photos are long gone. So they live in the back of my mind, and I try to track them down once in a while.
A Street View Stroll Pays Off
Normally, once I find a building, I bookmark it on Google Maps and move on. Street View is great, but it’s not easy to navigate a whole neighborhood that way.
A few days ago, though, when I located one building, I realized the neighborhood was home to another building I had spent a long time searching for. Since it was an old neighborhood, I decided to explore a little in Street View. Long story short, I “walked” a few blocks and found one of the half-oval buildings I had been hunting for days. I was extremely happy.
The Lesson: Turn Around
The experience reminded me of what happens in real life. When I’m out photographing, I focus almost entirely on the scene in front of me. Worse, I usually go to a spot, take a few photos, and leave. Occasionally I turn around and discover a great scene right behind me. I wonder how many good photographs I’ve missed by not turning around to look.
On this trip, I’m going to turn around more often.
Have you ever found a great shot by looking the other way? Share it in the comments.