Check Out Shao-Feng Hsu’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shao-Feng Hsu.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I was born and raised in Taiwan. Upon finishing my engineering degree and compulsory military service, I decided to switch my path to pursue photography.

I knew I wanted to go to New York to learn photography but my English wasn’t good enough. At the time, both my siblings were living in Sydney, so I decided to relocate to Australia to learn English.

After I picked up some English, I choose to stay longer than my original plan. For the next 2.5 years, I worked as a lifeguard, a farmer, and a pizza delivery guy. Between jobs, I also traveled across Nullarbor, the coastline from Sydney to Cairns, and spent a few weeks backpacking through New Zealand. Along my journey, I made many international friends who I ended up visiting in their hometowns in Europe.

In 2018, I moved to the United States to study photography at the International Center of Photography. At ICP, I had the best education of my life.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Switching life paths and moving to a new country was not easy. There were a lot of cultural shocks, language barriers, discrimination, and isolation in the first few years. Now, I’m dealing with financial constraints and pending immigration status. Slowly, I have learned how to cope with all that. I have met new friends and made new communities that have supported me throughout my journey.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I make experiential photo-based work that focuses on water and the aquatic environment. Using both analog and digital methods of image-making, my work attempts to shift perspectives of how water is traditionally seen and thought about.

I’m most proud of my recent project Night Swimming: silver gelatin photograms that I made using my breath.

Traditionally, silver gelatin prints are utilized to print with B&W negatives in the darkroom. However, my process is different. I built an outdoor darkroom and printed during new moons, the darkest nights. I submerged into the water while holding my breath underwater, I exhaled rings of air. Sensing my breath channeling upward through the water, I used a flash to expose the bubbles onto light-sensitive paper floating right below the water’s surface.

I invented the first contact printed breath photograph in the history of photography.

How do you think about happiness?
Swimming.

Being in the water is my comfort zone. I love spending time swimming with my partner, family or alone.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.shaofenghsu.com
• Instagram: @shaofenghsu

Image Credits
Portrait by Lizzy Myers Additional Photos by Shao-Feng Hsu