Street Talk: Elvis Yu
The website humanclock.com features people from around the world taking odd and interesting photos of themselves telling the time. Inspired by the phenomenon, 22-year-old Elvis Yu launched Onemin, an application for iPhone and desktop that shows Hong Kong people telling the time. He talks to Minnie Li about famous faces, heroes and embarrassing moments.
HK Magazine: Tell us about Onemin?
Elvis Yu: Rather than just having a boring clock on your iPhone or desktop, the Onemin application shows a photo of a different Hong Kong person for every minute of the day. That means 1,440 different photos for a day! It’s based on the idea of the human clock which has become popular around the world but we are the pioneers in Hong Kong. We roam the streets and ask people to hold a board telling the time then we take a picture of them.
HK: How did it feel taking photos of strangers?
EY: At first I felt embarrassed but the embarrassment only lasted for a week. It is important to go with the flow. Every encounter is short and even if someone rejects you, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see them again.
HK: Were Hongkongers happy to be part of your human clock project?
EY: It was 50-50. Some people were easygoing and friendly and instantly agreed to be in a photo. For example, we met legislator Tanya Chan in City’Super and she was very nice and agreed to be in a photo. In contrast, some Hongkongers were very shy and walked straight past as if they had not heard or seen us.
HK: What are the criteria for choosing models for Onemin?
EY: They must look natural and represent Hong Kong. Prettiness is not a must. We have asked a mother to be photographed with her baby but also an artist who wraps himself in paper boxes as a protest against high land prices.
HK: Did you have any problems taking all the photos?
EY: We were asking people in my friend’s bar to be in the photos when suddenly, an angry man who acted like “Chan Ho Lam” (a gangster in the Cantonese film “Young and Dangerous”) roared at us and ordered us to delete all the photos because we took pictures of his friends. We deleted all of them in the end because we didn’t want my friend to get into trouble.
HK: If you could photograph anyone for Onemin who would it be?
EY: Steve Jobs. I am a big fan of him. I read an article which described Steve as one of the ten great figures. Also among the list were Cao Cao (a military genius and warlord during the Three Kingdoms period) and Superman. We should learn from Steve. Onemin is a “tribute” to him.