Woman photographer shoots wild animals, helps promote ecological protection

Gu Ying, formerly a professional paraglider, is now a wildlife photographer. Gu has spent much time shooting wild animals in Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve, in northwestern China's Qinghai province, since 2016. "My responsibility and obligations are to record wild animals in a real, comprehensive way, and to reveal the actual living conditions of the animals to the public. I hope the public will learn about the wild animals, and then help protect them," says Gu.

Becoming a Photographer

Both of Gu Ying's parents served in China's air force. Under their influence, Gu developed a yearning to fly when she was young. One day, in 2003, paragliding caught her attention, while she was hiking. The sport evoked her childhood dream of flying.

Gu took some paragliding courses, and she later became a professional paraglider. She practiced paragliding for half a year before she won the gold medal in a national paragliding competition. She became a member of China's national paragliding team in 2004. She won gold medals in national paragliding competitions three times over the next five years. Unfortunately, she had an accident while she was practicing in 2009; she fractured the second lumbar vertebra, and she was confined to bed for the next three months. She had to suspend her paragliding career for at least one year.