I’ve tried using Lomo Metropolis before, but that was on full frame with a very cheap point and shoot. This time around I was making an effort to shoot in on 120 with an old Olympus Six I recently had CLA’d. I went off to China for the first time to visit a friend living in Shenzhen, the city of the future. At least that is what the advertisements for it constantly said.
As we walked around I saw plenty of signs of an incredibly modern city, with recently built infrastructure, modern metro systems, access to high speed rail, and so many shopping districts it left my head spinning. I was left in amazement when I saw the center of the city light up with a show set up by local artists. The buildings themselves became screens as figures danced and moved across the skyline.
However, it was at the end of the day, a massive city. One where you could remain anonymous, or left without any connection, where you could be forgotten just as easily as taking a metro. There were plenty of alleyways with the odd figure smoking here or there. In a city of 10 million, I can really only imagine it is plagued with the same issues any other city of a similar size faces. Once I got talking to locals at my hostel, which also housed some people visiting from neighboring cities, my suspicions were confirmed. They told me about people moving between cities, constantly changing social circles, the flow of people added to a flow in the depth of relationships.
I’m happy with my stay in the city, I got to make some nice friends, if only temporarily.
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Eric Rose on Solitude in Shenzhen – My favorite photo of 2025
Comment posted: 20/12/2025
Eric