Photo by Jiang Jianxiong / for China Daily

The Miao New Year is about two months earlier than the Lunar New Year celebrated by most Chinese. As most of the villagers work outside the village, the once-joyous Miao New Year has become less festive.

Saving the jia

Photographer captures heavenly locales

"Photographing and recording Yaogao village is not only my interest but also my responsibility. No one has photographed a village like me," Jiang says.

"I want to set an example that is meaningful. Future generations will be able to learn about the lost culture of the village through my photos."

The China Folklore Photographers Association, with more than 40,000 members, also aims to record cultural heritage.

Professor Tao Lifan, a cultural heritage expert at Minzu University in Beijing, says photography plays an important role in the study of folk customs. Most of the folk customs and cultures from China's long history were only recorded in written documents.

"The past three decades have witnessed a rapid loss of folk customs and cultures, with many leaving no record in images," Tao says.

"China has more than 1,200 intangible cultural heritage items. It's difficult to photograph and record them all, but if we don't do it now, they might be gone in 10 years."