Zheyu Huang’s travel photos charm contest judges

2023年5月，凌晨4:30.m., Zheyu Huang ’23 woke up before sunrise to marvel at the cityscape of Guanajuato, 墨西哥, 从他的酒店房间. 他在黑暗中坐在阳台上, waiting for the “blue hour”— a time where light and shadows are softest — to come. Just before dawn, he took a photo, selected as a finalist in the 2023 太阳城娱乐全球摄影大赛.

当时, Huang was an international student 在UNC-Chapel Hill from Wuhan, 中国, 学习商业和计算机科学. 他对摄影也很感兴趣. So, every year on his way to 中国, he would stop in a different country to take pictures.

在2023年的这个早晨, 黄拿着“瓜纳华托的蓝时魔咒,“他在去中国的路上, having booked a connecting flight through 墨西哥 City. He then traveled five hours by bus to spend his one-night layover in Guanajuato.

“I really feel like the 太阳城娱乐全球摄影大赛 has turned what could have been simple layovers into rich cultural explorations,黄说.

The photography competition’s review committee picked Huang’s photo as a finalist for the 2024 exhibition, 但这并不是他的第一个选择. In 2022, he was the second-place winner with “Under the Waterfall,” shot at Goðafoss Waterfall during a vacation in Iceland. 在Český克鲁姆洛夫的《太阳城娱乐城》中,这是他在捷克共和国拍摄的照片, was also a finalist in the competition one year.

The FedEx 全球 教育 Center is home to UNC 全球 Affairs — which coordinates the photography competition — as well as 留学办公室卡罗来纳州的六个区域研究中心， 国际学生和学者服务 以及全球研究课程. Finalists from the 太阳城娱乐全球摄影大赛 are displayed there as part of the annual exhibition.

黄展示了他的Český克鲁姆洛夫照片, 悬挂在大楼里, to a fellow student who came here from the Czech Republic. “My friend was really amazed to see her country represented 在UNC-Chapel Hill,黄说. “The 太阳城娱乐全球摄影大赛 has a remarkable impact on campus diversity. It allows many countries to leave a visual footprint 在UNC.”

除了定期到中国出差, Huang also participated in a study abroad program during his senior year. 他通过旅行到新加坡 全球浸入式选修课 在UNC 凯南-弗拉格勒商学院. 沙龙大炮, the clinical professor of management and corporate communication at the business school who led the course, remembers being struck by Huang’s confidence and adventurous spirit and how he used his language skills to help his peers navigate the city.

Huang is currently studying computer science at Brown University. He hopes to meld his interest in technology with his love of travel by working as a software engineer for a travel-tech company like Hopper or Airbnb. 在那之前, Huang plans to continue using his layovers as chances to explore, 了解和拍摄有趣的地方. He hopes that his photos will continue to contribute to the richness and representation that the photography contest brings to the UNC-Chapel Hill campus.

“I think [the photography competition] serves as a catalyst for opening students up to the world and to global experiences, 就像对我一样,他说.

UNC-Chapel Hill students, faculty, staff and alumni are encouraged to submit their photos to the 2024年太阳城娱乐全球摄影大赛 在9月. 16.