Training a lens on China's railway

Tracking the changes

Trainspotters are united by their love of trains but they may have different aspects of interest. Some like to take photos, some are interested in timetables and some like to study the technical side.

Guan likes to take photos of trains passing through various landscapes, such as mountains, over and under bridges, and along the banks of reservoirs.

Guan has noticed the changes his camera has recorded. Not only are the trains themselves updated and upgraded, but also the cities that the trains pass through have changed.

"Take the high-speed railway from Shaoguan to Guangzhou as an example. Ten years ago when I first took a trip on the line, there was uncultivated land everywhere, which has now turned into cropland for sugarcane or rice," Guan says.

He also says that the area around the high-speed railway station has been under rapid development with real estate projects and industrial parks springing up in the space of just a few years.

The environment differs across the country, so trains in different regions have diverse styles.

Most of the trains Guan has taken photos of run in Guangdong province, so he says he hopes that someday he can capture images of trains all across the country.

As for the train models that are no longer in service, Guan can only see them in the museums, but when new trains are about to come into service, he is sometimes invited by the train companies, as a specialist photographer, to have a look beforehand.

He also started taking photos of the metros in Dongguan when he studied at the university there.

Guan chose the major of town and country planning, because he wants to take part in designing the metro network for his hometown after graduation.

"Taking photos of trains is still a niche hobby," Guan says. "People may think that nothing worthy comes from taking photos of trains, but I think otherwise. I think it's pretty cool to see the trains crossing mountains or speeding alongside rivers."