Young photographer goes out into countryside to take free family photos

Some of his subjects had never had their photo taken

A young photographer has earned acclaim online for taking free family portrait shots for people who otherwise may never have had the opportunity.

For the last three years, 25-year-old Yang Dongqing from Yunnan’s Shidian County has been venturing out into the mountainous villages surrounding his hometown, offering to take photos of families living there free of charge.

Yang says that so far he has taken photos of more than 200 households and thousands of villagers. He explains that some of these people had gone their whole lives without having their picture taken. He hopes that the photos will bring them happiness.

Yang’s mission is reminiscent of one taken on by Chinese photographer Ma Hongjie, who spent more than a decade documenting families from all around China with all of their belongings spread out in front of them.

Check out some of those photos below:

[Images via China News Service]