Zhang Ximin shows the spirit of the salt lake

Zhang Ximin shows the spirit of the salt lake

"Salt Lake Spirit" Zhang Ximin's photographic collection is a collection of ideological, artistic, and ornamental monographs that praise the birds of Yuncheng Salt Lake.

Speaking of more than 200 species of birds in Yuncheng Salt Lake, some people may not know, if you read the "Salt Lake Elf" Zhang Ximin's photography collection, no one will say that you don't know. Appreciating the collection of works is surprising, one by one, in groups, plump, vivid, vivid, like a visitor inadvertently entering the world of birds, birds in different environments of the salt lake to form their own style, birds and landscapes between the formation of a distinctive picture, the reader into the scene of bird life. The beauty of the flamingo's wings soaring, the swan's momentum of breaking the waves and taking off, the leisurely shadow in the white-browed duck pond, the moment the kestrel flapping its wings and taking off, the whispering scene of the Richard's pipit, the spectacular dense flight of the spoonbill, the warm light and shadow in the reeds of the red-billed pochard...... every expression detail is clearly visible.

Photo by Flamingo --- Zhang Ximin

Yuncheng Salt Lake covers an area of 132 square kilometers, itself is a large and complex comprehensive system, Zhang Ximin is in the development and change of the salt lake, with the birds living on the salt lake as the starting point, no matter spring, summer, autumn and winter many times into the depths of the salt lake, observe the living habits of birds, field investigation of the number of birds. As long as he discovers a new activity location for birds, he cherishes every minute and second in front of him, carefully observes in perseverance, and accurately chooses the shooting angle. Photography requires not only self-cultivation, spirituality and solid artistic skills, but also physical and mental strength, as well as perseverance. Shooting birds is a slow effort, and it is necessary to capture the wonderful moments in the persistent waiting. Zhang Ximin's process of photographing birds in the salt lake is more "painful" and tireless. In order to find the whereabouts of the birds, he hiked again and again between the Qianmo in the salt lake, from east to west, from south to north, in a piece of pond ridges, by the pool, by the forbidden wall, and in the reeds. In order to photograph a bird or a flock of birds, I stay for hours at a time, and I am obsessed with photographing birds. Especially after retiring, there are no Sundays and holidays in my consciousness. During the Spring Festival, when others were reunited with their families to relax, he walked into the salt lake, took a shot for a day, and wandered in the world of birds.

Photo by Black-necked Grebe --- Zhang Ximin

Creation requires passion, inspiration, and rational thinking. Because the process of creation is not just a simple emotional indulgence, on the contrary, creation is a kind of control and grasp of emotional release. Looking at Zhang Ximin's bird works, the unique taste is contained in them. Through the language of images, he reacts to the infinite with the finite, naturally and easily uses light, shadow and color to compose the picture, embodies the unique discovery and independent thinking, and grasps the balance and unity of artistry, ornamentation and ideology, and allows the viewer to spread the wings of imagination to taste, understand and associate with the creative concept of "ruthless and unmoving". In the work "Richard's Pipit", two Richard's Pipits stand on the branches, face to face snuggled together, surrounded by a large area of warm color space blurred by a large aperture of light, a beautiful, quiet and tranquil environment, making people feel a kind of romantic feelings of "birds staying in the pondside trees".

Photo by Lee's Pipit --- Zhang Ximin

In his creation, Zhang Ximin pays special attention to the expression of the bird's emotional world through details, and works more in-depth and subtle observations, paying attention not only to the texture of the picture, but also to the subtle dynamics and emotional changes of the bird. In the work "The Hoopoe", the hoopoe mother spreads her wings with food in her mouth, and the head of the young bird sticks out of the tree hole and opens her mouth to receive food. Photographers are not only observers, they record, think, but also consciously engage in a way that actively intervenes, capturing many unique and powerful details of birds' daily lives with a unique eye. The affection conveyed by this work of nurturing young birds contains more philosophical thoughts on bird life, which is not only poetic, but also aesthetic and philosophical.

Photo by Hoopoe --- Zhang Ximin

When talking to Zhang Ximin about photographing birds, he said: "If the birds photographed should be vivid and vivid, the expression of emotions should be tense, and the unusual nodes in their lives should be discovered. It is based on this concept that he does not stick to the common form of picture composition in the past, but pays more attention to understanding the living conditions of birds in perseverance, discovering those plots with story connotations, and striving to show the spiritual space of birds with emotions. The composition of the picture of the work "Middle Egret" is fresh and elegant, natural and free, the figure of the Chinese and Japanese egrets running by the pool, the scene of leisurely face-to-face singing, and the beautiful posture of standing on the branches and flapping their wings, its vivid charm is praised. The flamingo on the cover and the flamingo on the inside page present a relaxed and leisurely, natural and harmonious, and distinctive charm, which makes people feel a fairy-tale or romantic imagery expression. This group of flamingo works and flamingo videos were swiped when they were displayed on Toutiao, Douyin and WeChat Moments, and became the most popular hot spots, with 230,000 on-demand views on Douyin alone.

Photo by Zhang Ximin--- Middle Egret

Leo Tolstoy once said, "Art originates when a person wants to convey to others the emotions he has experienced." When the style of the flamingo was presented on major online platforms, it was widely reprinted and disseminated by photographers and photography enthusiasts inside and outside the circle, attracting a group of photographers and bird lovers inside and outside the province to come to shoot. For the movie friends who came to Yuncheng Salt Lake to shoot birds, Zhang Ximin enthusiastically introduced the activity trajectory of flamingos in detail, as well as where in the lake and what birds inhabited, and recommended everyone to shoot. During the exchanges, he said many times that the protection and publicity of the salt lake has a long way to go, and my roots are in Yuncheng, in the salt lake, and in my heart, and I have the responsibility to participate in it. Not only did he say this, but he also did it, from watching and photographing birds in the Salt Lake to loving and protecting birds, showing his deep love for the salt lake and his deep interpretation of the birds of the salt lake. Now, he is a specially invited community public opinion informant of the Salt Lake District Political Consultative Conference, and in addition to filming, he also spends a lot of time on the spread of salt culture and bird protection. Focusing on the photography of birds in the salt lake, Zhang Ximin found his roots, that is, the salt culture that has been nurtured for thousands of years, and he understands very well that the salt culture should continue to extend, and the ecological salt lake is the soul. He photographed not only the birds themselves, but also the birds that showed the improvement of the landscape value brought about by the ecological changes of the salt lake.

Photo by red-bellied golden pheasant --- Zhang Ximin

Zhang Ximin is a cultural photographer. Talking about the salt lake to shoot birds, he talked eloquently, from the improvement of the ecological environment of the salt lake to the protection of the living environment of birds, it can be said that he is very insightful. In particular, he talked about the concept of how to express emotions and pursue artistic innovation in the process of photography creation, which made people deeply inspired. Among the many bird photographers in Yuncheng, Zhang Ximin is a photographer with a unique personality. I have seen his photographs of Salt Lake birds many times on online platforms such as China Photography News, Pingyao International Photography Exhibition, and Toutiao, and then I saw the article "Freeze the Moment and Be Smart, Record the Great Beauty of Yuncheng" written by Zhang Jianqun, director of the Supplement Center of the "Yuncheng Evening News", and reporter Wang Jie, who wrote the article "Freeze the Moment and Move Intelligently, Record the Great Beauty of Yuncheng", and published his photos with the theme of salt lake birds and committed to conveying the protection of the salt lake ecological environment and birds, so that readers and appreciators can get infinite pleasure and beauty in the poetic pictures.

Bush-bellied little owl --- photo by Zhang Ximin

The work is the external embodiment of the artist's spiritual life, and the beautiful mind creates the art of beauty. Appreciating the sample of "Creatures in the Salt Lake: Zhang Ximin's Photography Collection", whether in terms of content, arrangement, binding, folio and layout, etc., the context is clear, which can be called a good product. If we look at the value of this collection in the overall context of the entire Salt Lake literary and artistic creation, in a sense, it creates a new angle of lyricism in the photography of Salt Lake birds, which is its important feature and an enrichment and expansion of the theme of Salt Lake art creation.

Written by Du Dongming

Warped-nosed shelduck --- photo by Zhang Ximin

Photo by Little Egret --- Zhang Ximin

Photo by Heron --- Zhang Ximin

Spoonbill duck --- photo by Zhang Ximin

Pheasant --- photo by Zhang Ximin

Photo by Heron --- Zhang Ximin

Photo by White Spoonbill--- Zhang Ximin

White-rumped curlew--- photo by Zhang Ximin

Photo by Zhang Ximin--- Salt Lake

Photo by Heron --- Zhang Ximin

Photo by Red-headed Gull --- Zhang Ximin

Photo by Zhang Ximin --- the limelight

Photo by red-bellied golden pheasant --- Zhang Ximin

Pheasant --- photo by Zhang Ximin

Photo by Zhang Ximin