By Li Rui, “It’s coming!” Liu Fuhai shouted, lying prone on a rock, one of his eyes pressed against his camera. Beads of sweat could be seen on his forehead.
Roaring water in the Yellow River plunged from the cliff, making gigantic splashes that eventually turned into thick mists. Liu, holding his breath, clicked the shutter quickly to capture the grandeur of the Hukou Waterfall, the largest waterfall on the Yellow River.
Liu, in his seventies, lives in Jinan, capital of east China’s Shandong province. He is a member of the China Photographers Association.
The man has a deep affection with the Yellow River, known as the “mother river” of China. During the past 38 years, he has taken tens of thousands of photos of the river, from its source to its estuary in Dongying, Shandong province. To the Hukou Waterfall alone, he has made more than 40 visits, with each round trip covering nearly 2,000 kilometers.
His affection with the Yellow River originated when he was an adolescent. “Back then, everybody enjoyed playing on the dam,” Liu said, devastated by the rolling water in the Yellow River.
In the 1980s, Liu worked in a vehicle manufacturing plant in Jinan. In 1987, he and his colleagues traveled afar to the Hukou Waterfall to take photos of it as promotional materials for his company.
“It was midsummer. When we was approaching the waterfall along the bank, a steady thrum flew into our ears,” Liu recalled.
“The sound gradually became clear. As we stepped closer, a blurred vision of a waterfall appeared in front of us. The sound was like a train roaring past us. It was so exciting that we all jumped.”
Standing in front of the waterfall, Liu saw nothing but the tremendous momentum of the Yellow River, which brought back his boyhood memories.
“This is probably the might of the mother river,” he said, his eyes wet.
On his way back, Liu decided to become a Yellow River photographer, so that he could present the beauty of the river to more people.
Capturing the true essence of the Yellow River is no simple task. Determined to do justice to its beauty, Liu dedicated himself to honing his photography skills. He delved into numerous photo albums showcasing the river, and studied the techniques of composition, exposure, focus, and filters from seasoned professionals. With time and practice, he forged his own unique path towards capturing the river’s magnificence.
As a Yellow River photographer, he sometimes has to confront danger. Once, while searching for the perfect location to capture his shots, he walked onto the mud flat barefooted, and found himself stuck in the mire. Despite his efforts to free himself, he only sank deeper into the quagmire.
“Half of my body was swallowed by the mud, yet my instinct was to raise my camera high to protect the precious photos, ” Liu said.
Thankfully, his fellow photographers came to his rescue and pulled him from the mud, but his soles were infected due to cuts by sharp rock, leading to a lingering ailment.
Liu told People’s Daily that capturing novel images can be challenging in commonly accessible locations. He holds that a photographer must find unique perspectives in places that are not easy to reach in order to create exceptional photographs.
In 2019, Liu released a photo album featuring the Yellow River. Each photograph captured a distinct aspect of the river, narrating its own compelling story.
“I wanted to use powerful visual impacts to demonstrate the dynamism of the Yellow River and the development of the regions along its course,” Liu said.
With his camera, Liu not only presents how folk customs vary along the banks of the Yellow River, but also records the rapid social and economic development.
“Look, some places were once hindered by poor transportation,” Liu said, flipping through his photos. “Through tourism, local people got rich, and tourists gradually began to appear in my photos. Today, tourists are everywhere. This is a real and tangible change.”
In the summer of 2024, a photo exhibition themed “civilization dialogue between the Yellow River and the Nile” was hosted during the China-Africa People’s Forum. To attend the exhibition, Liu was busy shooting photos of the Yellow River at different locations.
“I want to keep recording the beauty and telling the stories of the Yellow River with my photos,” Liu said.
