At the mention of the words “Social worlds, natural worlds” my mind immediately flies across oceans to the place I call home, Hong Kong. Images of Wanchai and Central (the main district for business and head quarters for government offices and banks) spring to mind; people, many people, each wearing a dark business suit, each hurrying to an important business meeting. Cars sit gleaming, with engines whirring, but halted by the crowds, watching as pedestrians push past. And high above, rise concrete buildings competing to reach the skies, yet indifferent to the commotion below. In this world of people, metal and concrete any images of the natural world; ebbing waters, sprawling trees, blue skies, seem distant. In many of today’s modern cities across the world it seems that man-made materials, glass, metal and concrete, have taken greater and greater precedence. At the same time a clearer distinction and gap between the two almost opposite worlds can be seen. The irony is in the fact that the true beauty of both worlds is most apparent when viewed together, as two harmonious yet contrasting worlds. Like the Chinese elements of Yin and Yang, dark and light, natural and man-made, so too I see the human social world and natural world as complementary opposites. It is only through the two worlds’ differences that beauty is revealed.

In each of the images presented here, I have attempted to select photographs that reflect elements of both worlds, the social and the natural simultaneously.