Japan
Morning Sun | Tokyo
Traveling to Tokyo from California is always great for the first few days because it’s very easy to wake up for the sunrise. I don’t typically wake up until 10am since my lifestyle of working as an editor for an ad agency has made me completely nocturnal. So when you factor in the time difference between California and Tokyo, sleeping in until 5am is perfect for me.
Dazaifu | A Walk Through Tradition
After spending a lot of time in Japan and getting use to the culture shock, I’ve finally begun to see things differently.
A Quick Stay In Yufuin Japan | X-Pro2 / X-T2
We took the train from Fukuoka to Yufuin Japan. The ride is a few hours through Japan’s countryside, carved out by rivers and rice fields hidden between volcanic peaks, the landscape here is amazing and is one of Kyushu’s must see spots. It’s also a great place to relax, or to just shoot some travel photography.
The Beauty Of Simplicity | Fujifilm X-Pro 2
You can spend hundreds, or even thousands on landscape photography tutorials, or . . . you can just shoot with Fujifilm.
Here is all I did to get these results.
Fukuoka From Above
This is shot with the Fuji X-T1 and the Fujinon 56mm f1.2 lens. A absolutely awesome combo for exploring the city.
The blog this week has been slow, E3 is coming up and I’ve been very busy working on many trailers for it while fighting the flue, bronchitis and pink eye. It’s been a crazy last few weeks.
Once that’s over, I should be able to get back to my normal posting schedule. I have a few reviews I’m trying to finish and there are some new cameras to test.
Under The Bridge
This is another shot from the car. We were driving across an extension bridge and I managed to time this perfectly with my Sony A7r.
Getting a shot like this on the tripod with this kind of symmetry would be difficult enough, to think that I got it while sitting in the passenger seat of a car going 40km/h is a small miracle. That’s what I love about photography, the little surprises you get when you’re just having fun. 🙂
View of Hakodate Japan
In the city of Hakodate Japan you can ride a gondola up to the top of a nearby mountain and see the view of the city. It’s a pretty popular view and very spectacular, except it’s insanely crowded.
Japan and especially Hokkaido has become a hotspot for Chinese tourism. I guess they’re looking to escape the air pollution that plagues most of Asia. Can’t blame them either, well yeah I guess you can. It’s mostly their fault.
That’s one great thing about North America, it’s like the Garden of Eden compared to Asia when it comes to air quality.
See shot details.
Fukuoka City Rush & What’s Coming Up
The other day I accidently posted this image as part of my Fujinon 56mm f1.2 Review. I’ve been actually working on two reviews simultaneously and this photo was for my Fujinon 10-24mm f4 Review.
Anyway, still working on my Fujinon 10-24mm f4 review. It’s a bit more complicated and takes a lot longer since it is a zoom lens. There are also a lot of settings I’m still experimenting with on the Fuji X-T1 and I’m learning a lot about this camera.
For example the camera automatically corrects for some diffraction. It’s called Lens Modulation Optimization.
A Perfect Day In Southern Japan
We finally had a break in the weather. It’s been stormy and windy because of the typhoon, but yesterday it cleared up for a perfect day.
I’m not exactly sure where these rice terraces are on a map, but they were pretty amazing. They extend all the way down into the bay and to the right, out of frame were these giant windmills just over the hill. It was such a perfect view. And not a soul was there.
Shooting Japan From Inside A Car
This trip to Japan has had me in the car a lot. Driving, driving, driving. Especially in Hokkaido when I had the flue. That was not fun. Two days with a fever with some bronchitis sprinkled on top. I’ve also learned a new meaning of pain. Descending down from 36,000 feet in an airplane with congested sinuses.
Anyway, something I saw Patrick La Roque do awhile ago was shoot the city from inside his car with the Fuji X30. The results were awesome and inspiring so I thought it could also work as an interesting perspective of Japan. It turned out to be a pretty fun way to shoot and a great way to pass time while stuck in a car. Thanks Patrick for always inspiring.