• Hong Kong, Sardine City.
    Hong Kong, Sardine City.
  • A game of light and shadow.
    A game of light and shadow.
  • Guilin, China, Lair of the dark knight.
    Guilin, China, Lair of the dark knight.
  • Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Grand Designs
    Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Grand Designs
  • Mt Fuji, Japan, The Snowy Village
    Mt Fuji, Japan, The Snowy Village
  • Hong Kong, Utopia, Stacked.
    Hong Kong, Utopia, Stacked.
  • Yangshuo, China, Shangrila
    Yangshuo, China, Shangrila
  • Singapore, Opposition.
    Singapore, Opposition.
  • Hoi An, Vietnam, Yellow morning.
    Hoi An, Vietnam, Yellow morning.
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Q&A: Travel photographer Peter Stewart

By Mike O'Connor | 13 March 2019
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Born and raised in Perth but now calling Hong Kong home, photographer Peter Stewart has forged a career that’s marked him out as one of South-East Asia’s most exciting and original travel photographers. He sat down for a Q&A with AP Editor Mike O'Connor.

Macau, SAR China. Extreme wide angle architecture images are what I live for. With this picture, I was again meticulous in my framing to ensure that all the elements were aligned perfectly. Nikon D810, 14mm f/1.4 lens. 1/4s @ f11, ISO 62. +2 EXP.
Macau, SAR China. Extreme wide angle architecture images are what I live for. With this picture, I was again meticulous in my framing to ensure that all the elements were aligned perfectly. Nikon D810, 14mm f/1.4 lens. 1/4s @ f11, ISO 62. +2 EXP.

How did you get started in photography?

The first proper camera I purchased was a Canon 1000D in 2008. And, like many others, photography started as just another hobby. Having never really pursued any creative arts before, I never gave much thought to the artistic possibilities this could provide beyond just taking simple snapshots.

I was living in the UK and had rarely travelled far beyond Europe, but in 2009, decided to move back to my hometown to Perth, taking a long solo trip via Asia on the way.

After moving back to Australia yet never really feeling settled, in 2012 I pretty much decided all I wanted to do for a living was photography. I sold most of my possessions, took my savings and just went for it. I moved to Hong Kong which became not only my base as a gateway to travel in Asia, but also the place where I would really start to find my niche as a photographer and elevate the quality of my work.

Hanoi, Vietnam. Using almost 100 still frames shot over a period of one hour on a locked down tripod with cable release, I was able to create a grand composite using elements from each frame to craft my own version of a fairly typical scene showcasing the interesting forms of traffic you encounter in Vietnam’s capital. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 1/1000s @ f7.1, ISO 400.
Hanoi, Vietnam. Using almost 100 still frames shot over a period of one hour on a locked down tripod with cable release, I was able to create a grand composite using elements from each frame to craft my own version of a fairly typical scene showcasing the interesting forms of traffic you encounter in Vietnam’s capital. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 1/1000s @ f7.1, ISO 400.

How did your first big break happen?

It was around 2013/2014. I was working on my architecture series in Hong Kong; documenting the public housing estates, when attention really started to grow online towards the series and my portfolio.

Not long after, I was fortunate to strike up a collaboration with a fine art gallery to represent me, and that was really the first major break in a way that assured me I was making the right choice by pursuing my passion, and more importantly would help with financially sustaining it.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. One of those rare occasions where the opportunity for a unique shot presented itself, but I just knew  I had to get to a higher vantage point in order to properly convey the scene. Armed with only my pocket sized Ricoh GR, I made my way onto a balcony overlooking the busy roads, held my breath and took a multitude of hand-held exposures using a slow shutter speed. Ricoh GR, 18.3mm f/2.8 fixed lens. 0.4s @ f11, ISO 100. -0.7 EXP.
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. One of those rare occasions where the opportunity for a unique shot presented itself, but I just knew  I had to get to a higher vantage point in order to properly convey the scene. Armed with only my pocket sized Ricoh GR, I made my way onto a balcony overlooking the busy roads, held my breath and took a multitude of hand-held exposures using a slow shutter speed. Ricoh GR, 18.3mm f/2.8 fixed lens. 0.4s @ f11, ISO 100. -0.7 EXP.

How would you describe your style?

I’m very much a slow paced, locked down on tripod kind of photographer. I tend to favour wide angle framing, typically with a two-dimensional approach to my compositions to draw attention to fine detail all throughout the image.

Many of my images are also centrally composed, meaning important areas of interest are usually right in the middle of the image.

Processing also plays a huge part in crafting the final look, as I’m not afraid to manipulate an image far beyond what was originally captured. This can be a controversial issue for some, but I enjoy toying with the perception of reality in my work.

Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong. A rare appearance of an energetic sunset in Hong Kong, with the rays piercing though the gaps in the skyscrapers. This is a single exposure, shot roughly two stops underexposed to protect for the highlights, and to provide that moody, almost silhouetted look. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 1/200s @ f8, ISO 64.
Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong. A rare appearance of an energetic sunset in Hong Kong, with the rays piercing though the gaps in the skyscrapers. This is a single exposure, shot roughly two stops underexposed to protect for the highlights, and to provide that moody, almost silhouetted look. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 1/200s @ f8, ISO 64.

How do you visualise and conceptualise your images?

I’ve always felt influenced more by the desire to create a scene as if I were painting it, rather than opting for a natural, true to life approach. I’ll often carry a small notebook with me whilst out scouting potential locations and find myself scrawling down any crazy ideas I have for a scene or idea for a composite creation. 

I really like the idea of taking a boring everyday scene and then turning it into something unexpected. Similar to how I envisioned images like “Fragments of Hanoi” which portrays the flow of motorcycle traffic as a sort of choreographed dance.

Tokyo, Japan With architecture photography, technical perfection is what I try and aim for. From the framing, to the horizontal and vertical alignment; everything must be exact and perfectly straight. With this image, I also shot bracketed exposures, in order to protect for any blown highlights in the multicolored walls. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 4s @ f8, ISO 64.
Tokyo, Japan. With architecture photography, technical perfection is what I try and aim for. From the framing, to the horizontal and vertical alignment; everything must be exact and perfectly straight. With this image, I also shot bracketed exposures, in order to protect for any blown highlights in the multicolored walls. Nikon D810, 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. 4s @ f8, ISO 64.

Can you explain some of the planning/shooting/editing in your work?

Generally when traveling, I’ll prepare a list of locations or even a specific shot list to work through. I still like to use Flickr for location scouting online beforehand due to the wealth of images uploaded and tagged throughout the years. This helps a lot if you’re trying to find alternative angles or spots to shoot from. Especially when visiting busy tourist heavy locations.

Researching other images also provides a good idea for the types of focal lengths needed, and insights to how the light falls on a scene at various times of day.

I don’t always have the luxury of revisiting locations again and again for ideal conditions, so usually will plan for a typical sunrise or sunset shoot. For general travel photography, this is often how things go.

With cityscape and/or architecture photography however, weather is thankfully less of an issue. I love to shoot at blue hour, or at night, where it is much easier to control the light and I can bracket my frames to capture all the highlight and shadow information in the scene. The only rule I have is never to photograph cityscapes at the weekend (especially Sundays). Skyscrapers and office towers simply won’t have as many lights on.

As I carry a lot of heavy camera gear with me everywhere I go, I tend to reserve the DSLR for specific shots where I’m aiming to create an image for print, and almost always the camera is locked down on a tripod. The majority of the time, I prefer to shoot with compact cameras such as the Fuji X100F, which I find a lot easier and faster to use for general photography whilst I’m out exploring.

For times where I’ve planned for a specific image however, I’ll often shoot bracketed frames in order to capture as much highlight and shadow information as possible to later work with. These don’t always end up being used, as I may change my mind later on whilst editing whether I want the image to take on a balanced “HDR” type look, or go for a high/low key feeling.

My secret to nighttime cityscape and/or night architecture shots is to use a remote timer to go beyond the 30 second limit most cameras will allow for automatically. Shooting either at f/8 or f/11, I’ll take three exposures. One at five seconds to protect for bright highlights), another at 20/30 seconds which typically is the overall correctly exposed frame, and then finally a longer 45 second to one minute exposure to really pull out the shadow detail and produce a bright night sky.

Finally I edit solely in Adobe Photoshop CC, using Camera RAW to perform all basic edits and color correction, before moving into PS for more complex work involving manual blending or luminosity masking if I’m working with multiple files for a composite. Occasionally I’ll make use of plug-ins like Nik Color Efex Pro or RNI Films for additional effects and color grading. 

Post-processing for me is where a photo truly comes alive, so I can spend anywhere from a few minutes all the way up-to four hours tweaking just a single image depending on the complexity of the edits involved. 

Kowloon, Hong Kong. The hiking trails in Hong Kong provide fantastic opportunities for sweeping views. I chose here to focus on the extreme density of one of Kowloon’s most compacted neighbourhoods, with nowhere in the frame for the eye to escape. When conditions are right, the city turns a magic shade of pastel blues and orange during blue hour. Nikon D810, 70-200mm f/4 lens. 6s @ f8, ISO 64.
Kowloon, Hong Kong. The hiking trails in Hong Kong provide fantastic opportunities for sweeping views. I chose here to focus on the extreme density of one of Kowloon’s most compacted neighbourhoods, with nowhere in the frame for the eye to escape. When conditions are right, the city turns a magic shade of pastel blues and orange during blue hour. Nikon D810, 70-200mm f/4 lens. 6s @ f8, ISO 64.

Your marketing across Instagram and Facebook is a bit part of your business. What’s your advice for photographers who want to better promote what they do?

Just like many creative industries, a higher percentage of your time is always going to be spent marketing your work, rather than working on your craft.

My advice would be to post your work to as many social media networks as you feel you can handle. See what sticks and after a while drop the dud ones. Services such as Hootsuite can be invaluable to photographers as they allow you to schedule all your posts in advance and then leave it to post on your behalf. It works with Instagram, 500px, Flickr, Facebook etc.

Have a story to tell, tutorial, or a photo series you want to share? Maybe try reaching out to some of the major photo blogs as they’re always looking for fresh content. If you also have a website, having them link back to you works wonders for SEO and boosts your visibility with Google Search.

Speaking of websites, if you don’t already have your own portfolio site, then now is the time to build one. There are lots of great services out there like Smugmug, Squarespace & Format where you can easily create your own site, advertise your services, show off your finest work, or even start selling prints.

Kyoto, Japan. Trying to photograph the Geisha in Kyoto can be a challenging experience. Not wanting to be yet another rude tourist thrusting a camera right into a poor girls face, I opted instead to hang back and try to incorporate the architecture of the old streets of Gion into any opportunities I had to photograph any chance Geisha sightings. Luckily I caught this a split second before my framing was filled with hordes of other tourists wielding selfie sticks! Yikes! Nikon D810, 50mm lens. 1/160s @ f2, ISO 1600.
Kyoto, Japan. Trying to photograph the Geisha in Kyoto can be a challenging experience. Not wanting to be yet another rude tourist thrusting a camera right into a poor girls face, I opted instead to hang back and try to incorporate the architecture of the old streets of Gion into any opportunities I had to photograph any chance Geisha sightings. Luckily I caught this a split second before my framing was filled with hordes of other tourists wielding selfie sticks! Yikes! Nikon D810, 50mm lens. 1/160s @ f2, ISO 1600.

What advice do you have for people who want to take images like you?

The hardest part of being a photographer today is finding a way to stand out among the crowd. In just the past few years Instagram has changed everything, and given rise to a sizable number of highly talented new photographers.

We are inherently influenced by the work we see from others, and as such this has given rise to a lot of popular trends and styles of photography which I see bringing about a bit of a copycat culture. The point is, I think it’s important to find your own themes and ideas in order to progress, rather than to simply emulate.

Crafting your own photo project is one of the best things you can do, and helps provide a sense of direction for your work. It’s not easy to come up with ideas, but when you do it arguably makes for a much more rewarding experience.

Fushimi Inari Shrine. Kyoto, Japan. Initially I had planned for a simple, clean shot of just the pathway, but as a couple approached and started posing for their own photos, I decided to try and incorporate them. With my camera locked down on a tripod and manual settings dialed in, I was able to take multiple frames and then easily mask out the other photographer in editing, leaving just the girl in the kimono, my stolen model if you will! Canon 5D Mark II, 50mm lens. 1/40s @ f8, ISO 400.
Fushimi Inari Shrine. Kyoto, Japan. Initially I had planned for a simple, clean shot of just the pathway, but as a couple approached and started posing for their own photos, I decided to try and incorporate them. With my camera locked down on a tripod and manual settings dialed in, I was able to take multiple frames and then easily mask out the other photographer in editing, leaving just the girl in the kimono, my stolen model if you will! Canon 5D Mark II, 50mm lens. 1/40s @ f8, ISO 400.

What gear do you use?

I currently shoot with a Nikon D810 and a range of Nikkor zoom lenses and primes, along with a Fuji X100F and Ricoh GR. I also like to switch things up a bit and shoot occasionally on 35mm, for which I use a Nikon F3. ❂

You can see more of Peter Stewart’s work on instagram @petestew, on Facebook and at peterstewartphotography.com.

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