neon signs and saturday night fever...

Posted by hugo poon (hong kong, Hong Kong) on 5 August 2008 in Cityscape & Urban and Portfolio.

11:00 p.m., D'Aguilar Street, Hong Kong

The upper section of D'Aguilar Street together with Lan Kwai Fong is one popular (expatriate) haunt for drinking, entertainments and night life. Though I'm not a fan of night life of this sort, I have always been drawn by its atmosphere.:-)

I do not regard myself as a photographer... I'm just a guy who enjoys capturing all the memorable scenes that I encounter in my life, my everyday life, with whatever photo machine I've got. Perhaps, it's like a traveller hoping to record his memorable journey, but in my case, it's the journey of my life ...

In terms of photography, I'm trying to preserve the moments as my eyes see "something" and my heart feels it too. As such, I seldom feel interested in planned, arranged or manipulated photographs...

http://www.pbase.com/hpicckcy

Comments (19)

Stephen Phillips from San Francisco, United States

This series just gets better and better. This is a terrific and engaging image. I was surprised recently when I read that 7-Eleven has the largest number of retail stores on earth - more than McDonald's. And here they are among all the kids and night spots in Hong Kong. Anyway, Hugo - really well done.

5 Aug 2008 12:21am

Monique from Netherlands

Fantatsic night shot, so bright and colorful, very nice detail are all the red cars in this image!

5 Aug 2008 1:24am

Ian Bramham from Manchester, United Kingdom

This is really great Hugo!....it reminds of that fantastic image you posted to DPR last year sometime of a spot in HK very like this with two guys greeting each other with a huge hug in the middle of the crowded street. (One had just got out of a taxi just like these if i remember correctly)

5 Aug 2008 2:33am

@Ian Bramham: Oh Ian, my dear friend, that's just incredibly wonderful that you remember my pics from such a while ago. I'm touched! Yes, you're exactly right - the same crowded street - http://www.pbase.com/hpicckcy/image/77137329, but note the change, KFC has been forced out and replaced by a cosmetics chain (Sasa)... The other less obvious difference is the improved image quality (edge to edge sharpness in particular) brought about by the Nikon 16-85VR. Still interested in the lens?:-)

Kylie Greenan from Richmond, Australia

Another great and dynamic image that captures the hustle and bustle of the nightlife, well done Hugo. PS, in the thumnails the red sign has your name centred in it, for a minute I wondered where on earth there could be such a sign with your name on it... Hugo Poon! Very cool!

5 Aug 2008 4:48am

Mirko Herzner from Mühlheim am Main, Germany

Wow. How did you process this image, Hugo? The colors are so stunning again and all these details around. I could dive into exploring this picture for minutes...

5 Aug 2008 4:52am

@Mirko Herzner: Thank you so much Mirko!!! How did I process this image? Must be frank, I'm no fan of "digital art". My PP can best be explained by comparing with the original image. Here's the original without any processing except resizing: http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y128/hpicckcy/new/S5Pro/DSCF1405copy.jpg
As you could notice, really not much pp I've applied: 1. correcting lens distortions using ptlens; 2. suppressing the highlights a little; 3. enhancing the clarity through boosting the contrast a tad through "local contrast enhancement"; 4. bringing out the details through increasing the sharpness a bit (USM)... The last and perhaps the most crucial step (I hope I have correctly taken) was adopting a tighter crop to achieve that sense of "engaging" as Stephen mentioned. I noticed that the original photo is too much an "average reportage" or a "snapshot of what I saw".:-)

António Pires from Lisbon, Portugal

You captured the atmosphere rather well. Amazing the effect of that multitude of adverts.

5 Aug 2008 8:21am

Ana Lúcia from Leiria, Portugal

Great capture, the lighting and composition are really great.

5 Aug 2008 9:04am

dj.tigersprout from San Bruno, CA, United States

just amazing Hugo -- i get the 'bright lights, big city' feel from this -- makes me want to visit Hong Kong to experience this feeling in the flesh! a marvelous depiction here, the colors and clarity is just stunning! bravo!

5 Aug 2008 1:07pm

Observing from West Cheshire, United Kingdom

Incredible night shot, it almost looks daylight. Lot's colorful details here too.

5 Aug 2008 2:18pm

Paco Díaz from Palma de Mallorca, Spain

It's a great capture: incredible crowded the night in the city.

5 Aug 2008 2:51pm

dj.tigersprout from San Bruno, CA, United States

hey Hugo! bravo on the spotlight! faaabulous!!! :)

6 Aug 2008 1:38pm

Daniel from Kenmare, United States

classic HK capture.

6 Aug 2008 8:41pm

Ian Bramham from Manchester, United Kingdom

Thanks for posting the link to your other photo Hugo....I'm pleased that my memory of this photo was accurate (it's such a wonderful image that it is imprinted in my brain... as are most of your photos!)

I've just got the 16-85VR and your earlier recommendation certainly helped me make up my mind. I haven't had much of a chance to use it yet but I'm going on holiday tomorrow to France for 2 weeks with my wife and two children so I'll get plenty of chance to use it then.

Fortunately we are taking our car so I'll have enough room for my tripod as I want to try some really long (1/2 hour max on a D40) exposure shots on the beach at dusk with the new 10 stop nd filter I bought recently.....speak to you when I get back Hugo. All the best, Ian

7 Aug 2008 1:58am

Ian Bramham from Manchester, United Kingdom

PS - I assume you've seen that your photo is on the AM3 front page: http://www.aminus3.com/

7 Aug 2008 2:00am

hugo poon from hong kong, Hong Kong

Wow, what an incredible encouragement to find this photo on the front page!!! I'm so gratified to see that what I strive to capture and convey - the atmosphere of my subject - can actually impact on the viewers! Thank you, thank you, thank you... my special thanks to Ian Bramham. Without him, I wouldn't have found this wonderful place for photo lovers!:-)

7 Aug 2008 8:10am