Sai Yuing Pun Baby

This portfolio includes two projects I worked on while living in Hong Kong from 2011 to 2014: "Insomnia" and "Hong Kong Top Models." During that time, I was an MFA student at SCAD Hong Kong, freelancing and taking photos in nightclubs. It was a period of great uncertainty for me. At that time, I wasn't taking medication, and it was only later in life that I sought treatment for my severe insomnia with a mental health professional. Despite my lack of knowledge at the time, I documented the condition and attempted to explore the hypnagogic states, conveying the feeling of exhaustion. I also followed a group of fashion models from former Soviet countries working in Hong Kong. I associated with their community because of our background, age, and determination to find a better life abroad. I chose to shoot both projects on film for natural reasons. For "Insomnia," I needed to capture photos during sleepless nights without seeing them immediately. Regarding the "HK Top Models," it was important that my subjects didn't see the photos in the moment, as I didn't want them to start posing or ask me to delete the images.