Photographer Jasper James shot his "City Silhouettes" series using a double exposure technique. "I used a toy plane in this shot," says James. "I wanted to see what it would look like out of curiosity."
Shenzhen, China —
Photographer Jasper James shot his "City Silhouettes" series using a double exposure technique. "I used a toy plane in this shot," says James. "I wanted to see what it would look like out of curiosity."
JASPER JAMES
This was one of the first images he shot for the series. He shot the photo using film rather than a digital camera.
Tokyo, Japan —
This was one of the first images he shot for the series. He shot the photo using film rather than a digital camera.
JASPER JAMES
This photo was from James' first visit to Shenzhen, China. "Shenzhen was one of the first places to benefit commercially from the opening up of trade between China and the West and has a certain energy to it that I tried to tap into for this project."
Shenzhen, China —
This photo was from James' first visit to Shenzhen, China. "Shenzhen was one of the first places to benefit commercially from the opening up of trade between China and the West and has a certain energy to it that I tried to tap into for this project."
JASPER JAMES
"I came across this old man when I was location scouting," recalls James. "I noticed him looking out at the Pudong cityscape outside and quickly made a double exposure of him and the view, before he had time to notice and change his gaze. I like the way it combines new and old China in one image."
Shanghai, China —
"I came across this old man when I was location scouting," recalls James. "I noticed him looking out at the Pudong cityscape outside and quickly made a double exposure of him and the view, before he had time to notice and change his gaze. I like the way it combines new and old China in one image."
Jasper James
"This was a random guy I spotted looking out at the Tokyo sunset," says James. "The magic hour light in Tokyo on a clear day is my favorite time to shoot."
Tokyo, Japan —
"This was a random guy I spotted looking out at the Tokyo sunset," says James. "The magic hour light in Tokyo on a clear day is my favorite time to shoot."
JASPER JAMES
This photo was one of the first photos James shot for the series on China's National Day. "I had just flown to Shenzhen and I didn't think it (double exposure) would work. I found a building and when I came out of the lift there was a little boy with a flag. I quickly shot a pic, and then shot another out the window. Then I could see it straight away -- this sort of idea of Chinese mega-cities. It was a good starting point."
Shenzhen, China —
This photo was one of the first photos James shot for the series on China's National Day. "I had just flown to Shenzhen and I didn't think it (double exposure) would work. I found a building and when I came out of the lift there was a little boy with a flag. I quickly shot a pic, and then shot another out the window. Then I could see it straight away -- this sort of idea of Chinese mega-cities. It was a good starting point."
Jasper James
This image of Ai Wei Wei was commissioned by the "Smithsonian" magazine for a story on Ai's exhibition in Alcatraz Prison in the US. "At the time, the artist could not leave China and was under virtual house arrest," explains James. "So the magazine asked me if I could work on an image that combined Ai Weiwei with Alcatraz Prison."
Ai Weiwei —
This image of Ai Wei Wei was commissioned by the "Smithsonian" magazine for a story on Ai's exhibition in Alcatraz Prison in the US. "At the time, the artist could not leave China and was under virtual house arrest," explains James. "So the magazine asked me if I could work on an image that combined Ai Weiwei with Alcatraz Prison."
JASPER JAMES
While James most often uses single figures in the "City Silhouettes" series, he says he liked the visual dynamics of the two people in this frame.
Shenzhen, China —
While James most often uses single figures in the "City Silhouettes" series, he says he liked the visual dynamics of the two people in this frame.
JASPER JAMES
Tokyo is one of James' favorite cities to shoot in. "The view of Tokyo from the towers is so amazing, especially the transition from late afternoon to night, when the red lights on all the high towers start twinkling on and off."
Tokyo, Japan —
Tokyo is one of James' favorite cities to shoot in. "The view of Tokyo from the towers is so amazing, especially the transition from late afternoon to night, when the red lights on all the high towers start twinkling on and off."
JASPER JAMES
In one of his "City Silhouettes" shoots, James noticed a park directly below the tower he was working from. "I zoomed in on this just to see how the green trees would work with the image."
Tokyo, Japan —
In one of his "City Silhouettes" shoots, James noticed a park directly below the tower he was working from. "I zoomed in on this just to see how the green trees would work with the image."
JASPER JAMES
James says cities with the tallest skylines aren't necessarily the best ones to shoot in. "You have to find the right city, with the right scale of volume. With commercial commissions, I have had to shoot in San Francisco, Singapore, Hong Kong, but sometimes these cities don't have the same impact of scale, or the buildings are mismatched, at different heights."
Shenzhen, China —
James says cities with the tallest skylines aren't necessarily the best ones to shoot in. "You have to find the right city, with the right scale of volume. With commercial commissions, I have had to shoot in San Francisco, Singapore, Hong Kong, but sometimes these cities don't have the same impact of scale, or the buildings are mismatched, at different heights."
JASPER JAMES
James has been working on the series on and off over the past decade. "It would be good to bring it to a close with a series of prints and to publish it as a series in some form," he says.
Shenzhen, China —
James has been working on the series on and off over the past decade. "It would be good to bring it to a close with a series of prints and to publish it as a series in some form," he says.
JASPER JAMES
James has been commissioned by both commercial brands and publications off the back of this series. "I think these images work on a purely visual and design level, but they also have an open ended quality that is neither negative or positive, but rather voyeuristic, with the figure looking detached yet part of their city," he says.
Bangkok, Thailand —
James has been commissioned by both commercial brands and publications off the back of this series. "I think these images work on a purely visual and design level, but they also have an open ended quality that is neither negative or positive, but rather voyeuristic, with the figure looking detached yet part of their city," he says.
Jasper James
James is drawn to capturing Asian cities. "Living in Beijing, I have easier access to a lot of these cities and also urbanization is a big story of our times, especially in Asia," he explains.
Shenzhen, China —
James is drawn to capturing Asian cities. "Living in Beijing, I have easier access to a lot of these cities and also urbanization is a big story of our times, especially in Asia," he explains.
JASPER JAMES
James uses a mix of models and regular people in his photos. "Strangely enough, I've had a couple of different women contact me to mistakenly claim they might be the model in this photo," he says.
Shenzhen, China —
James uses a mix of models and regular people in his photos. "Strangely enough, I've had a couple of different women contact me to mistakenly claim they might be the model in this photo," he says.
Jasper James
James initially started experimenting with double exposure by playing with a camera that could switch between taking Polaroids and film. He used the Polaroids as a "sketchbook" until he was able to find the right exposure settings before shooting on film.
San Francisco, California —
James initially started experimenting with double exposure by playing with a camera that could switch between taking Polaroids and film. He used the Polaroids as a "sketchbook" until he was able to find the right exposure settings before shooting on film.
JASPER JAMES
In this photo, a man looks out towards the old city in Hyderabad, India.
Hyderabad, India —
In this photo, a man looks out towards the old city in Hyderabad, India.
JASPER JAMES
This photo is of an Italian man James met on social media. He was living and working in Shenzhen at the time.
Shenzhen, China —
This photo is of an Italian man James met on social media. He was living and working in Shenzhen at the time.
Jasper James
James shot this portrait of Malaysian vocalist Najwa for a British Airways "High Life" feature on Kuala Lumpur's music scene.
Najwa —
James shot this portrait of Malaysian vocalist Najwa for a British Airways "High Life" feature on Kuala Lumpur's music scene.
JASPER JAMES
James travels around the world for work. The photo of this woman was for a personal project he did in 2016.
Kampot, Cambodia —
James travels around the world for work. The photo of this woman was for a personal project he did in 2016.
JASPER JAMES
"Photography for me is a vehicle to engage with the world around me, make a living and enjoy an interesting life," he says.
Kampot, Cambodia —
"Photography for me is a vehicle to engage with the world around me, make a living and enjoy an interesting life," he says.
JASPER JAMES
This photo was taken for a feature in "Conde Nast Traveller India" about the <a href="index.php?page=&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.17000ft.org%2Fabout-us%2Fmission-and-vision%2F" target="_blank" target="_blank">17,000 ft Foundation</a>. The not-for-profit organization sets up schools in remote areas in Ladakh.
Ladakh, India —
This photo was taken for a feature in "Conde Nast Traveller India" about the 17,000 ft Foundation. The not-for-profit organization sets up schools in remote areas in Ladakh.
JASPER JAMES