Frequently Asked Questions

This page features answers to frequently asked questions, an age-old internet tradition. I’m not making these up either—people really do ask me these questions often enough to warrant writing out a bunch of boilerplate responses!

How do you find all these places? In short: some combination of hard work, diligent research, and sheer luck. When I was new in Taiwan I stumbled upon many interesting places simply by riding my bike around and chancing upon something at random. As I grew more familiar with local culture and history I began to appreciate the variety of places I might encounter, sharpening my powers of observation while in the field. Working on this project has also been very educational; I’ve had to become proficient in conducting research across a language barrier, and there’s always more to learn once you get started. Ask a simple question like “why is this old bridge here” and the answer probably leads to more avenues of research to pursue. I’ve also ransacked blogs, government web sites, Facebook groups, and message forums for leads, often while chasing some oblique reference that piqued my interest. Google Maps is an invaluable research tool. Finally, I receive tips from friends and followers.

Why movie theaters? I stumbled into documenting the many old movie theaters of Taiwan after writing up my exploration of Datong Theater in Taitung City. An article I referenced in that post mentioned that it was the last of approximately 36 theaters in the county—and I was struck by the idea that it would be interesting to figure out what happened to all the others. Soon I learned that Taiwan was once home to more than a thousand standalone cinemas, with one in almost every settlement of more than 10,000 people, and almost all of those shut down by the 1990s or early 2000s. Thus it became a scavenger hunt, one that could be played by scanning satellite maps for buildings of the appropriate dimensions, methodically entering a variety of search terms into Google, or simply showing up in some small town and wandering around historic old streets.

What’s with all the tigers? If you follow me on Instagram you’ll probably notice many images of Huye (虎爺), the Tiger God of Taiwanese folk religion, part of an ongoing project to document the many ways in which this deity is venerated in Taiwan. I became especially interested in Huye after living in Taiwan for several years and never noticing how prevalent he is. The reason? Huye is almost always located at ground level, beneath altars or tables, and is sometimes difficult to find if you don’t know to look for him. Naturally the idea of a somewhat hidden god appeals to me—and it’s also fascinating to see how he manifests. Sometimes Huye is fierce, but he’s often depicted as adorable, with green eyes, protruding teeth, and a disarming smile.

What camera do you use? The short answer is “nothing special”. Many photos featured on this site were shot on a battered old Nikon D3100 with the standard 18–55mm lens, an entry level DSLR, but I’ve borrowed better gear for some expeditions and occasionally post images captured on a smartphone. Later I upgraded to a Nikon D3400, and since 2023 I’ve been shooting with a Panasonic Lumix S5 II. For more information consult my page on camera history.

What is your photo post-production workflow like? I use Adobe Lightroom to process my photos. Years ago I was applying elaborate treatments to achieve vintage effects and the like, but as of the late 2010s I’m mostly keeping it simple and closer to the source. After a shoot I import photos and manually geotag everything from memory, while it’s fresh. I also organize everything into place-based folders, the raw material of future entries. Usually when I am drafting up something new I bounce back and forth between Lightroom and a web browser to conduct preliminary research and identify the formal names of whatever I captured. I don’t bother with more advanced adjustments in Photoshop or other applications.

What technology powers this site? Previously I was running WordPress with a highly-optimized theme I designed myself. Nowadays this site is built with Astro and a wide variety of tools. I have an entire page about the site’s tech stack for anyone interested in a deeper dive.

What’s with all the Chinese characters? Chinese characters unlock doors—each character sequence can be used to find out more about a person, place, thing, or idea. If the subject is something in the Sinosphere and you haven’t got the actual characters in front of you it’s often exceedingly difficult to find useful information. Working backwards from various romanization systems is difficult even for people familiar with the language. If you’re writing about anything to do with China or Taiwan and you’re not including original characters you’re doing your readers a disservice. (And yes, I write everything myself, so you may find some mistakes—I’m always learning!)

Can you recommend some places to visit in Taiwan? This site is basically one big index of places I might recommend—and just about everything has a rating. Browse around!

Can you tell me where a particular place is? I’ve included all the information I wish to share about locations in what I’ve already published. I don’t mind giving some tips if someone shows they’ve already done some work and they’re truly stumped—but by and large, it is an exercise for the reader to divine exact coordinates where none are otherwise provided.

Can you suggest locations for my photo/video shoot? Yes, if you’re willing to hire me as a location consultant. This site already contains an incredible wealth of free information, beyond that you’re going to have to pay for my time and travel expenses. Visit the contact page and describe the nature of your project for a quote.

Can I use your photos for my project? If your project has an academic quality or is genuinely non-commercial then you may use my work with proper attribution—read the terms of use for more about that. My work is available for commercial licensing; visit the contact page and let me know more about your project for a quote.

Have you thought about writing a book? Yes, I have a few long-form projects in the works, but progress is slow as I’m just working on this in my spare time, and I consider this site to be superior in many ways to anything physical.

How can I support your work? You’re welcome to make a contribution to my Patreon page if you’d like to support what I do around here.