For Su Dike, an indie director and meteorological photographer, the fascination with typhoons began not in a classroom, but under a quilt, as he lay awake listening to the terrifying sound of his first major storm.

It was the summer of 2012. Su, then 12 years old, had just moved with his parents from inland Chengdu in Sichuan province to Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province, when Typhoon Haikui slammed into the country's eastern coast, offering a brutal introduction to the raw power of nature.

"The sound of the wind was horrible. I had never heard such a fierce wind before," says Su, now 24, who recently graduated with a master's degree from the Communication University of China.

Despite failing to fall asleep that night, Su discovered a unique "rhythm" to the typhoon, which sparked his strong interest. He surfed the internet, devouring everything he could find about typhoons — their paths, the elements that form them and their immense energy.