Author: travel67

USO Color Blast Okinawa 2014

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This morning was the USO Color Blast 5km Fun Run on Okinawa. The Color Blast is very similar to the Indian festival of Holi. Participants throw powdered paint at each other and everyone comes away from the event a lot more colorful than when they arrived. The Color Blast combines throwing paint with a 5km run, and the paints used are waterbased and non-toxic. (This is not always the case in India. I had to throw away most of my clothes and scrub off a couple of layers of skin to remove the paint after shooting Holi in Jaipur.)

Friday Night Lights

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My friend Chris said his son was playing football on Friday night and invited me to come along and take a few pics. Jonathan is a Tiny Mite football player. This is tackle football for kids aged 5 to 8. They put on their pads, helmets, and mouthguards then attempt to decimate the competition. We had a few minutes before the game so I took the Pentax 645Z, a 25mm wide angle, and the B1 strobe onto the edge of the field. A few quick shots while there was a little color still in the sky and we were done. I don’t know anything about American Football (I believe one team used a refrigerator as a player in the ’80’s). However, when I wanted Jonathan to give me his game face I simply said show me Hulk and got exactly what I wanted.

Yotsudake Dancers, Ryukyu Dynasty Parade, Kokusai Street.

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Yotsudake is one of the traditional Ryukyu dances. The dancers wear a flower shaped hat, and a bingata kimono. They hold a pair of instruments similar to castanets which are made from four (yotsu) pieces of bamboo (take). They clap the yotsudake in time to the music. These images were all shot with the Pentax 645Z and the 90mm lens. The 90mm lens is an excellent portrait lens, allowing a shallow depth of field when needed and also has image stabilization to reduce motion blur due to camera shake.

Shurijo Castle Festival – Traditional Procession November 3rd 2014

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Before my more linguistically minded friends point it out, I realize that as jo means castle saying Shurijo Castle is a tautology, and may cause annoyance. However as the official title of the festival on posters and leaflets was Shurjo Castle Festival, I shall use their version. On November 3rd the ceremony begins in the courtyard of Shurijo. The procession of courtiers, envoys, guards, regents, and of course the king and queen then parade out of the castle. They descend through the various gateways and along the main road almost to the monorail station. Monday was a gorgeously sunny November day, but it did mean I was looking for patches of shade when shooting portraits. There were many excellent  fake beards on show. There were also several priestesses (yuta) who were once the religious counsel to the royal family. They still play a role in modern Okinawa as mediums and advisers.

Halloween in Mihama

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Mihama’s American Village in Chatan Town is the place to be on Halloween. The fancy dress competition is probably the most popular event of the year. I stopped by on the way home from helping set up the Okinawa 9 exhibition in Naha and took a few pics. I used the Pentax 645Z, 90mm lens and the Profoto B1 strobe with a beauty dish for light. Spooky fun.

Zombie Walk in Okinawa

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On Sunday, I was invited to the Annual Zombie Walk in American Village, Chatan. The zombies lurched their way from the AEON parking lot to Depot Island. Some may have expected that terror would smother the area like a wool blanket laced with smallpox. The reality was smiles, selfies, and an impromptu dance-off between a zombie and a group of high school girls. Awesome. Pics taken using the Pentax 645Z and the Profoto B1 with voice activated light stand (Thanks Cody)

100 Kata for Karate Day at Zakimi Castle

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October 25th is Karate Day. This year James Pankiewicz, owner of the Dojo Bar, organized the first 100 Kata for Karate Day challenge. Kata are the set forms which train the mind and body in the various techniques of karate. When done properly they are also hard work, and doing 100 in a row is a martial arts marathon. The mayor of Yomitan Village allowed the event to take place inside Zakimi Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I had imagined that this would be bureaucratic nightmare to pull off, but James managed it. The event took place at dawn on the 25th with James’s own master, 10th-dan Toshimitsu Arakaki opening proceedings. Teams from numerous dojos came to the castle to perform their 100 kata. Even more amazing was that there were hundreds of other dojos across the world that got involved and were also performing their own 100 Kata for Karate Day. It was a real pleasure to photograph the event, and I expect to be there next year as the 100 Kata Challenge …

Toyota 2000GT

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I took some more photographs of a client’s Toyota 2000GT on Sunday night. An exceptionally beautiful motoring icon, and now extremely rare. It was fun to get into the driver’s seat for a moment while I was checking the lighting. It’s not often you get to sit behind the wheel of a million dollar car. In both images I used the Profoto B1 strobe and a medium softbox to add some light to the car (above) and subject (below).

World’s Largest Tug of War

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Last weekend was the world’s largest tug of war. It is held each year on route 58 in Naha City, Okinawa. First the two halves of the rope are joined together with a giant wooden pin. Kings of the west side and east side are then carried to the center of the rope. Thousands of spectators including Okinawans, tourists and local American military take part in the event pulling for either the East or West team. I was pleased that this year I could add to my selection of images of the tug of war . I already had a fantastic overview shot from 2010, but it was great to get some POV shots from the center of the action. The above shots were all taken with the Pentax 645Z and the 25mm lens held above my head on a monopod. The photo below was with the Pentax 645D and 55mm.