China Expat is a cultural and literary forum for expatriates interested in China and has been published by Asia Briefing Ltd since 2001. The sites resident China culture writers have included such expatriate luminaries as 
Tom Carter Snaps True China
by Ernie Diaz
Are you one of those kooks who spends more time staring at the Forbidden City workers than at the place itself? If so, you’re in good company with Tom Carter. His 640-page photobook, China: Portrait of a People, forsakes temple and tower to focus on China’s many faces. For those who read more in a twinkling eye or a lined brow than in a slate roof, the book is a revelation, providing a more honest picture of this turbulent land than a rack of China travel books pre-approved by the Ministry of Information.
China: Portrait of a People is the fruit of Tom’s two-year long march. Hoofing it through all 33 provinces on his own thin dime, Tom has amassed a comprehensive folio of China’s many peoples, photographed with an authentic hand that knows bus station grime and back-country dirt. Many of the pictures startle with their immediacy and candor, thanks to Tom’s resolve never to hide behind a zoom lens, to engage all his subjects as individuals. This commitment led him to close scrapes with coal mine authorities, and with police during a peasant uprising, but also to the most unconventional work of photo-journalism in some time. Here are some of his snaps, with accompanying captions
Beijing: Feng Tailocals on the eve of their 55th marriage anniversary.
Beijing: Expatriates-China’s unofficial 57th minority group. In Wudaokou, the New Zealander has established one of the city’s most popular café-bars, aptly named Lush, which attracts Chinese and expat students from the surrounding university district.
Aba Tibetan-Qiang Autonomous Prefecture: the second-largest Tibetan area in Sichuang is home to the ethnolinguistic subgroups Aba, Chabao-Jiarong and Zhugqu.
Chongqing:Engrossed in a game of xiangqi(Chinese chess).
Chongwu:The women of Hui’an County. A subgroup of the Han, the Hui’an are known for their unique folk customs and distinctive traditional attire, including yellow bamboo hats and blue kerchiefs.
Dalian:Police officer and her steed. Dalian’s female Mounted Police Unit was established in 1994 and is the first of its kind in China.
Dongshan: Cottage industry-In the local school yard, children have fun husking the community corn.
Hexi:From the mountain-sized sand dunes of Dunhuang down to the province’s capital Lanzhou on the Yellow River, the Hexi Corridor is part of the ancient Silk Road trading route which threads through northern Gansu.
Fenghuang:Women of the Miao ethnic minority wearing traditional indigo-blue turbans and hand-embroidered smocks.
Gegentala:110-kilogram Mongolian wrestler postures for his audience during the grassland’s famed Nadam Festival, meaning ‘Three Manly Games’. The traditional Mongolian festival takes place in late spring and includes wrestling, horseracing and archery.
Guangzhou:Waitress being trained at an upmarket restaurant.
Puxian:Mining is known as ‘the deadliest occupation in China’ and the State Administration of Work Safety calculates over 6,000 annual mine-related deaths(not including health consequences such as Black Lung or unreported fatalities at illegal ‘black mines’).
Yan’an:View of peasant shanties and cave dwellings at Qingliang Shan in central Yan’an.
Shenyang:On 3rd March 2007, the provincial capital suffered its heaviest snowstorm in 56 years. Arctic gales measuring 30 meters per second and minus 10℃ were not unlike the strike of a razor against bare skin, though some resourceful individuals took shelter in simple plastic bags.
Shanghai:The largest city in China and the eighth largest in the world, with a population of approximately 20 million.
To purchase China: Portrait of a People, click here.
Related posts:
- China’s Most Beautiful Villages: A Photo Essay
- Zhang Tingqun “Constructing China”
- Are China Expats De-Facto Colonialists?
- China Briefing’s China Business Guides
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Different place different people. Walking through thousands of miles ; Reading through thousands of the books to know the real china. China: Portrait of a People, a really interesting meaningful book tells real China.
一方水土一方人，行万里路，读万卷书，方知天下中国。China： Portrait of a People，一本真实而有意义的教课书。
Great work, keep it up. I love returning back to this site and reading the quality content you always have on offer.
That means a lot to us, Zoran. Cool name!
The pictures are so awesome that they shown a true Chinese tradition and the People. Every picture tells 1000 stories about the China and its very rich people culture. alivemax
Really amazing pictures, thanks for sharing it ! and congrats to the photograph !
great pictures, very inspirational.
Many thanks for this amazing post
That picture of the corn husltling is quite disturbing, their feet is on their food!
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I agree with you.
I agree with you,thanks !
That picture of the corn husltling is quite disturbing, their feet is on their food! anghinare
there is just beautiful place. i just love going to china.
The pictures are so cool man. Chinese people are very cultural. It also shows that they are very smart. Using polythene bag to prevent the head from getting wet was a very smart idea.
Really awesome culture. The Chinese are really beloved to their culture and I envy that being from the U.S. The U.S. should show some more class in my opinion
a great collection of images showing the various elements of the chinese culture.
fantastic job in giving credibility to the individuals who make up the chinese culture
beautiful images.
each image tells a great story.
love how Tom has portrayed such a positive energy and has reflected the chinese culture in such a beautiful manner.
the images are really powerful
agree with previous comments
the images are beautiful
Yeah the images are really beautiful ! Great shoot
Very nice pictures… thx you very much !
Thanks
Thanks. Good work. I enjoy it! China is a beautiful country.
These amazing photos really capture China. I want to visit now!
Those are some magnificent pictures. They are so natural yet very moving. Drug Rehab
Really amazing pictures, thanks for sharing it ! and congrats to the photograph ! Skinfood
pictures, thanks for sharing it ! and congrats to the photograph !
Those are some magnificent pictures. They are so natural yet very moving.
Good work of artist, these photos are beautiful and very original.
Good work of artist, these photos are beautiful and very original.
These amazing photos really capture China. I want to visit now!
beautiful images. each image , Very nice pictures… thx
I saw this fellow while visiting Storm King Art Center over the weekend and admired his unique and colorful style. He looks ready for an adventure in his straw hat and heavy boots, but seems quite content taking a little rest on a nearby bench.sohbet
I am amazed at these beautiful pictures, thank you.
Interesting stuff, have you ever thought about selling those photos?
Excellent pictures , good work.
cool….Love the pics ….saved all of them
I love the police woman picture.
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Those are some magnificent pictures. They are so natural yet very moving
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These photos are very successful, congratulations to the artist.
The Chinese population supposed to have the lowest stress levels per person than anyone on the planet. These pictures certainly back this idea up!
There are great photos.
Ohh admin.Very good sites.Thank you for sharing your article I would always follow
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That police woman just captured my heart today.
Those are some magnificent pictures. They are so natural yet very moving.
Those are some great pictures. Says a lot of the cool cultures over there.
I really love those pics.
Asian people are great for pictures. What kind of camera and lens did you use?
a great collection of images showing the various elements of the chinese culture.
fantastic job in giving credibility to the individuals who make up the chinese culture Thank youu
I wish I had been on a trip that beautiful. Next time… take more pictures!
I like the guy with the big belly and the big smile!
Love photo like this . Smeiling face here.
I saw this fellow while visiting Storm King Art Center over the weekend and admired his unique and colorful style. He looks ready for an adventure in his straw hat and heavy boots, but seems quite content taking a little rest on a nearby bench.
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I agree to you. These pictures are reaklly cool. They are showing real soul of china.