Travel Photographer Highlights China’s Traditional Cormorant Fishing旅行摄影师聚焦中国传统的鸬鹚捕鱼

Travel photographer Peter Yan left behind a successful career at Apple to pursue his work as a respected visual storyteller. In a few short years， the Chinese-born Australian photographer has built an impressive following on Instagram， where over 150，000 people follow his inspiring imagery from around the globe. In particular， one image that was taken on a trip to Yangshuo， China has caused the internet to sit up and take notice. In the photograph， a cormorant fisherman stands on his simple wooden raft， ready to work while his two birds are perched next to him.

旅行摄影师彼得·严（音译）放弃了在苹果公司的成功事业，转而成为一名受人尊敬的视觉叙事工作者。短短几年，这位出生在中国的澳大利亚摄影师就在照片墙上获得了极大关注，拥有超过15万来自世界各地的粉丝，他们关注着他激动人心的影像作品。特别是他在中国阳朔旅行时所拍摄的一张照片，在网上引起了一时轰动。照片中，一位靠鸬鹚捕鱼的渔夫站在简易的木筏上准备捕鱼，两只鸬鹚停歇在他身旁。

Cormorant fishing is an ancient tradition with deep roots in China， Japan， and Korea. The technique is typically practiced in rivers， with fishermen training their birds to catch fish in their throat and bring them back to the boat. The method was first described in a 636 CE text about the history of the Sui dynasty in China and， at one time， was a lucrative industry. Now， cormorant fishing is typically practiced for tourism purposes， which makes Yan’s photograph all the more special. Through one viral photograph he’s been able to bring awareness back to an important cultural tradition that is slowly fading into obscurity. And at the same time， given Yangshuo’s incredible mountainous landscape， he’s exposed his followers to a new side of China that they may not otherwise have discovered.

鸬鹚捕鱼是一种历史悠久的传统捕鱼方法，在中国、日本和韩国都渊源深厚。这一方法通常用于河上捕鱼，渔夫训练鸬鹚捕鱼，让它们将鱼存在喉咙里带回船上。有关这种方法最早的文字记载可见于公元636年关于中国隋朝的史书。鸬鹚捕鱼旧时是一个收益颇丰的行业，现在主要是为了吸引游客，这使严的摄影更具特色。通过一张迅速走红的照片，他让人们重新关注到一种正逐渐消失的重要文化传统。同时，凭借阳朔美不胜收的山水风光，严向粉丝们展示了他们可能从未发现的、关于中国的崭新一面。

We had the chance to chat with Yan about his transition into full-time photography and the story behind his exceptional photograph of the cormorant fisherman.

我们有机会和严聊了聊他向全职摄影师转变的过程，以及他这张鸬鹚渔夫摄影佳作背后的故事。

What is it in particular about travel photography that you find so stimulating？

你觉得旅行摄影有什么特别吸引你的地方？

I get to travel around the world， and experience different cultures and eat a variety of food. Most importantly， I get to create beautiful visual content and document life moments through my lens and then to share with the world on social media.

我可以周游世界，体验不同文化，尝到各色美食。最重要的是，我可以创作精彩的视觉内容，用镜头记录生活瞬间，然后在社交媒体上与世界各地的人分享。

Can you share a bit about your time in Yangshuo？ What were your favorite parts of the trip？

你能分享一下在阳朔的经历吗？你最喜欢那趟旅行中的哪些方面？

Although I was born and raised in China， I never had the opportunity to travel in this massive country and take photos. I saw a lot of incredible images from Yangshuo on Instagram， and I never knew such paradise existed in China. So I decided to make a solo trip to Yangshuo before visiting my family for Chinese New Year. The weather wasn’t too great， but I had a fantastic time exploring the old streets， riding a bike in the countryside and learning about the rich history of this region.

虽然我在中国出生，在中国长大，但我从来没有机会在这个幅员辽阔的国家旅行和拍照。我在照片墙上看到了很多在阳朔拍摄的精彩的影像作品，我从来不知道中国有这样的人间仙境。所以我决定在春节回家之前独自去阳朔旅行。那时天气不是很好，但我度过了一段美妙的时光——探索古老的街道，在乡村骑行，了解这个地区丰富的历史。

I loved the famous local delicacy—beer fish. It might sound wrong， but it’s actually very delicious， I ordered this dish literally every night for dinner.

我喜欢当地著名的美食——啤酒鱼。这听起来可能有点奇怪，但实际上非常美味。毫不夸张，我每天晚上都点这道菜。

What makes China an exciting place for a travel photographer to work in？

中国是旅行摄影师工作的向往之地，你认为原因有哪些？

First of all， China is MASSIVE！ As far as natural wonders go， China has some of the most diverse and spectacular landscapes in the world. Many of which are still not being discovered by the rest of the world. With a history of thousands of years， China boasts the world’s richest breadth of culture. You can experience many different ethnic customs within just one country， which is very unique. Although China is massive in land size， traveling in China is easier than ever with its extensive grid of high-speed train networks. They cover pretty much the entire population.

首先，中国很大！就自然奇观而言，中国拥有世界上最多样、最壮观的风景，其中许多仍未被其他国家发现。中国有数千年的历史，是世界上文化最丰富多样的国家。你能在一个国家感受到许多不同的民族风俗，这太特别了。尽管中国幅员辽阔，但在中国旅行能体会到前所未有的便捷，因为中国有庞大的高速铁路网，而且几乎覆盖了所有人口。

What’s the story behind your photo of the fisherman Lao Huang and his cormorant？

你拍摄的那张照片——渔夫老黄和他的鸬鹚——背后有什么样的故事？

Cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing method in which fishermen use trained cormorants to fish in rivers， but sadly the thirteen-hundred-year-old method now only survives as a tourist attraction in modern days. Usually， in Yangshuo， you will find some of these fishermen along the Li River. Fortunately for me， the Li River is just across the road from my hotel， so I walked over one morning to check it out. Once I got there， I saw this fisherman was just setting up his “workstation.” I greeted him and asked him if I could take a few photos， and he said yes.

鸬鹚捕鱼是一种传统的捕鱼方法，渔民使用训练有素的鸬鹚在河里捕鱼。但遗憾的是，这种有1300年历史的捕鱼方法现在只作为吸引游客的手段而存在着。在阳朔，你通常会在漓江沿岸看到一些用鸬鹚捕鱼的渔民。我很幸运，漓江与我当时所住的酒店只隔一条路，所以一天早晨我走到江边去看个究竟。我一到那儿，就看到渔夫老黄正布置他的“工位”。我与他打了招呼，又问他我能不能拍几张照片，他说可以。

Through our conversation， I learned a little more about him. His last name is Huang， and he is 86 years old. The locals call him Lao Huang （meaning old Huang in Chinese）. He told me he’s been a fisherman ever since he was a kid， and both he and his brother learned to train cormorants from his father. Nowadays， this is just a hobby， and apparently， he makes a good living from donations， as well as breeding the birds.

通过谈话，我对他有了更多的了解。他姓黄，86岁。大家都叫他“老黄”（中文意思是姓黄的老人）。他告诉我，他从小就捕鱼，他和哥哥训练鸬鹚都是跟着父亲学的。如今，这只是一个爱好，老黄靠得到的捐助和饲养这些鸟儿为生，显然日子过得不错。

Why is it important for you， as a photographer， to document these traditions？

作为一名摄影师，为什么记录下这些传统文化对你来说如此重要？

It takes one viral photo on social media to create the most awareness， which is far more effective than any traditional media outlets because if people find something rare and mildly amusing， they will want to share with their friends too. The more photographers document these traditions and share them on the internet， the better！

一张在社交媒体上走红的照片才能引起最多的关注，这比任何传统传播媒介都要有效得多，因为如果人们发现一些不常见但比较有趣的事物，他们会想和朋友们分享。越多的摄影师记录下这些传统文化并发布到网络上，当然越好！

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）