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She is a woman of many talents： servicewoman， war correspondent， adventurer， traveler， writer， documentary producer and photographer.
But what thrust her firmly into the spotlight were her experiences during regular visits to Africa since 2000. On each of her nine visits， she ventured deep into rural villages， living with local people for months at a time， documenting life with her camera and keeping meticulous notes of her adventures.
She is photographer Liang Qiaohui， who has to date published five books and shot two documentaries on Africa. She now prefers to be known by the name local Africans call her， Liang Zi.
“Living in Africa for so many years， I gradually fell in love with the continent and people there. For me， those African people are just like my family members， my brothers and sisters and they are my best friends，” Liang， 53， told ChinAfrica. “Also， because of me， China is no longer a faraway and mysterious country in the eyes of [some] local villagers in Africa.”
Chasing a dream
Liang’s passion for Africa can be traced back 40 years to when she was at secondary school. At the time she read a book about the Sahara Desert written by a famous Chinese female writer， San Mao.
“I was deeply impressed by the kindhearted people， different lifestyles， vast desert and tropical rain forests there. At that time， I hoped someday I could go to Africa to have a look at the continent and people with my own eyes，” Liang said.
In 1977， at the age of 16， she joined the army， and later became a military photographer. In 1985-86， she participated in the SinoVietnamese border conflicts， photographing events during the two years.
“My experience [as a servicewoman] greatly tempered me mentally and physically. Thanks to that， I have a strong will， which helped me a lot when I went to different places in Africa on my own，”Liang said. In 1989， she retired from the army and became a magazine photographer in Beijing. But she said her dream of going to Africa continued to dominate her thoughts and she began making preparations to realize her dream.
First trip
Liang is not a person who likes a quiet and idle life. In 2000， she resigned from her job and flew to Thabang， a small village in northeast Lesotho.
Upon hearing one of her friends knew the village head， she decided to go. “I immediately realized it was quite a good opportunity to start my first African trip，” Liang said. “I didn’t want to miss it， or I would never realize my dream again.” Helped by the village leader， Liang soon settled down and lived with local villagers as her neighbors.
During her four-month stay there， she found that the lifestyle of Africans in her village was totally different from what she had read about or seen on TV.
“They [villagers] were really kind to me and ready to help at any time，” she recalled.“Without their help， I don’t think I could have stayed there for so long. They treated me like a family member.”
Four months later， she returned to China with bags of film rolls and filled notebooks. In September 2001， she published her book A Chinese Woman Photographer’s Life in a Village of Lesotho. This was the first book specially introducing Lesotho to Chinese at that time， according to Zhang Xianyi， former Chinese Ambassador to Lesotho.
“I know I am actually engaged in bridging folk cultures [of China and Africa]， and this is work with great significance. I had new faith in what I am doing，” she wrote in her book.
Ongoing discoveries
Liang’s successful start encouraged her to continue her adventures. She returned to Africa a further eight times， including trips to Sierra Leone in West Africa， Eritrea by the Red Sea and Burundi in East-Central Africa. Each time， she wrote books or shot documentaries to record her experience. “The more I go to Africa， the less I think I know about the mysterious continent，” she said. “That further encourages me to go there.” Her images introduce to Chinese audiences the continent’s wide open landscapes， sunny weather， roaming animals and smiling faces.
Liang said she was deeply impressed by Red Sea fishermen. Although they don’t have much money， they are optimistic in nature and happy with life， not stressing about trivial matters， something Liang said others could do well to learn.
“Africa is backward in material development compared with some other places of the world， but African people always smile and enjoy their life，” Liang said.
Friendly attitude
As with all travel， Liang has had her share of challenges in Africa. In 2003， she went to a small village called Tio near the Red Sea in Eritrea. It was her third trip to the continent. She found the women there did not want their pictures taken.
“I knew they did not regard me as their friend， and I had to show them that I was there as a friend，” Liang said. She set aside her cameras and lived with them like a native， talking to different families and getting to know who they were. When some of the villagers became ill， she helped out by offering Chinese medicine and massage techniques. As villagers had little or no access to medicine， her caring attitude was warmly welcomed. Liang found that after more than a month， when she again picked up her cameras to record village life， she met no objection.
“They [now] take me as their friend. People， no matter where they live， have the same feelings： When you act as their friend， they will treat you as their friend，” said Liang， who believes this is the reason she has been welcomed during her trips to Africa.
In 2011， her documentary I Love Africa aired on China’s Travel Channel. The 30-episode documentary， which recorded her trips to Africa over the past decade， was immediately received warmly by audiences.
Liang has also visited Afghanistan four times to shoot videos documenting the changes to women’s status in the post-Taliban era.
Now， Liang is planning her next trip to Africa early this year.
She attributes a lot of her success to the strong support of her family， who she says are very open-minded， and to the fact that her husband is also a photographer.“He knows what photographers must do to realize their dream.”
But what thrust her firmly into the spotlight were her experiences during regular visits to Africa since 2000. On each of her nine visits， she ventured deep into rural villages， living with local people for months at a time， documenting life with her camera and keeping meticulous notes of her adventures.
She is photographer Liang Qiaohui， who has to date published five books and shot two documentaries on Africa. She now prefers to be known by the name local Africans call her， Liang Zi.
“Living in Africa for so many years， I gradually fell in love with the continent and people there. For me， those African people are just like my family members， my brothers and sisters and they are my best friends，” Liang， 53， told ChinAfrica. “Also， because of me， China is no longer a faraway and mysterious country in the eyes of [some] local villagers in Africa.”
Chasing a dream
Liang’s passion for Africa can be traced back 40 years to when she was at secondary school. At the time she read a book about the Sahara Desert written by a famous Chinese female writer， San Mao.
“I was deeply impressed by the kindhearted people， different lifestyles， vast desert and tropical rain forests there. At that time， I hoped someday I could go to Africa to have a look at the continent and people with my own eyes，” Liang said.
In 1977， at the age of 16， she joined the army， and later became a military photographer. In 1985-86， she participated in the SinoVietnamese border conflicts， photographing events during the two years.
“My experience [as a servicewoman] greatly tempered me mentally and physically. Thanks to that， I have a strong will， which helped me a lot when I went to different places in Africa on my own，”Liang said. In 1989， she retired from the army and became a magazine photographer in Beijing. But she said her dream of going to Africa continued to dominate her thoughts and she began making preparations to realize her dream.
First trip
Liang is not a person who likes a quiet and idle life. In 2000， she resigned from her job and flew to Thabang， a small village in northeast Lesotho.
Upon hearing one of her friends knew the village head， she decided to go. “I immediately realized it was quite a good opportunity to start my first African trip，” Liang said. “I didn’t want to miss it， or I would never realize my dream again.” Helped by the village leader， Liang soon settled down and lived with local villagers as her neighbors.
During her four-month stay there， she found that the lifestyle of Africans in her village was totally different from what she had read about or seen on TV.
“They [villagers] were really kind to me and ready to help at any time，” she recalled.“Without their help， I don’t think I could have stayed there for so long. They treated me like a family member.”
Four months later， she returned to China with bags of film rolls and filled notebooks. In September 2001， she published her book A Chinese Woman Photographer’s Life in a Village of Lesotho. This was the first book specially introducing Lesotho to Chinese at that time， according to Zhang Xianyi， former Chinese Ambassador to Lesotho.
“I know I am actually engaged in bridging folk cultures [of China and Africa]， and this is work with great significance. I had new faith in what I am doing，” she wrote in her book.
Ongoing discoveries
Liang’s successful start encouraged her to continue her adventures. She returned to Africa a further eight times， including trips to Sierra Leone in West Africa， Eritrea by the Red Sea and Burundi in East-Central Africa. Each time， she wrote books or shot documentaries to record her experience. “The more I go to Africa， the less I think I know about the mysterious continent，” she said. “That further encourages me to go there.” Her images introduce to Chinese audiences the continent’s wide open landscapes， sunny weather， roaming animals and smiling faces.
Liang said she was deeply impressed by Red Sea fishermen. Although they don’t have much money， they are optimistic in nature and happy with life， not stressing about trivial matters， something Liang said others could do well to learn.
“Africa is backward in material development compared with some other places of the world， but African people always smile and enjoy their life，” Liang said.
Friendly attitude
As with all travel， Liang has had her share of challenges in Africa. In 2003， she went to a small village called Tio near the Red Sea in Eritrea. It was her third trip to the continent. She found the women there did not want their pictures taken.
“I knew they did not regard me as their friend， and I had to show them that I was there as a friend，” Liang said. She set aside her cameras and lived with them like a native， talking to different families and getting to know who they were. When some of the villagers became ill， she helped out by offering Chinese medicine and massage techniques. As villagers had little or no access to medicine， her caring attitude was warmly welcomed. Liang found that after more than a month， when she again picked up her cameras to record village life， she met no objection.
“They [now] take me as their friend. People， no matter where they live， have the same feelings： When you act as their friend， they will treat you as their friend，” said Liang， who believes this is the reason she has been welcomed during her trips to Africa.
In 2011， her documentary I Love Africa aired on China’s Travel Channel. The 30-episode documentary， which recorded her trips to Africa over the past decade， was immediately received warmly by audiences.
Liang has also visited Afghanistan four times to shoot videos documenting the changes to women’s status in the post-Taliban era.
Now， Liang is planning her next trip to Africa early this year.
She attributes a lot of her success to the strong support of her family， who she says are very open-minded， and to the fact that her husband is also a photographer.“He knows what photographers must do to realize their dream.”