This Meter Reader Turned Photographer Captured The Most Perfectly Timed Images

When Tao Liu first took a job as a water meter reader in 2005, he wasn’t too fond of the profession. He rode a motorbike up and down the city of Hefei, China, all day to read meters. He knocked on doors, read water meters, and wrote down numbers. Though he got plenty of exercise, he described the job as tedious and exhausting. “Life was constraining. I wanted to be free,” he said in an interview. All that changed, though, when he decided to bring a camera along for the ride three years ago.

Now 32, Liu spent the past three years capturing photos all across Hefei. The spontaneous, sometimes serendipitous photos capture people from all walks of life in ways that are funny and intimate. As a prolific photographer, his photos eventually went viral on the Chinese social network, Weibo, which led him to interviews with Time, Global Times, and eventually to people around the world.

Many of his photos come across as funny, but humor isn’t always the only thing Liu looks for when he snaps his photos. He’s interested in capturing his own interpretation of the world. He also highlights some of the issues faced by people in China today, like rapid urban sprawl and commercialism. That said, Liu isn’t immune to seeing the humor in his photos. “Precious human emotions, dramatic scenes and moments full of black humor seem to clash with my heart…that’s where I found a long lost joy and happiness,” he once wrote on his Weibo page.

(via Colossal | Global Times)

As a photographer, Liu is self-taught, and looks to the works of various photographers for inspiration. One of his biggest idols is Japanese street photographer Daido Moriyama, who Liu describes as “very focused,” and who even led him to decide on what camera to use (a Fujifilm X100). His sudden global recognition as a photographer comes as a surprise to him. Ultimately, he takes pictures out of a love for photography, not to make money off the images. “I want to express the idea that the over-commercialization has eroded people’s living space and made them feel small,” he says. “I want people to care more about others, instead of fame and fortune.”

Liu continues with his photography, and you can keep up with his adventures through Hefei on his site.