Author: travel67

Okinawa – International Destination Weddings

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Okinawa is a popular wedding destination for mainland Japanese, and more recently couples from Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China. I teamed up with the Marine Bijou wedding chapel, and model Yuki to produce some stock imagery that I can use in future projects. I shot with the Pentax 645Z allowing me to provide clients with huge data files if needed. For the “pre-wedding” images I used only natural light then switched to Profoto strobes in the chapel and on the beach. Outdoors in the blazing sunshine, one assistant (Chris) held the Profoto B1 in a white softlight reflector, while another assistant (Cody) held a large Lastolite diffusion panel that put Yuki into soft shade. The strong tropical sunlight really brought out the colors in the ocean, while the diffuser and powerful strobe allowed us to avoid harsh shadows. I got a great series of images so a huge thanks to Marine Bijou, the make up artist, Yuki the model, and assistants Chris and Cody. If you’ve found this blog because you’re looking for a wedding photographer in …

a Cirque ~ Clown Macbeth ~

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I’m starting a new project documenting the traditional dancers of Okinawa. The first group I have met  with is Udui Haru and their teacher Keiko Miyagi. The group were part of a performance of Macbeth on Friday along with the theater group Ryukyu Cirque. The director of the production is Makoto Inoue, who also plays the role of Macbeth. Dancers Riko Sugama, Hitoshi Tamaki, and Chinatsu Higa play the roles of Lady Macbeth, the gatekeeper, and King Duncan. The performances are at the National Theater Okinawa, in Urasoe on Sept 19, Dec 17 and Feb 6. Curtain up at 7pm. Well worth checking out, a unique blend of Shakespeare and the traditional Okinawan arts.

Nao by Aldebaran Robotics

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Along with Pepper, Aldebaran Robotics produce Nao, an autonomous, programmable humanoid robot. Nao is far more advanced than it’s younger sibling. At around US$8000 dollars, it is not really a consumer product, but an innovative way to study robotics. Nao has taken over from Aibo as the robot of choice for educators, and teams of Nao compete in the Robot Soccer World Cup. Of course, Nao is far from human. In fact, as I told the robot at the Softbank store in Tokyo, “You’ll never be a real boy”. Nao made his opinions on the matter quite clear…

Pepper by Aldebaran Robotics

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Pepper is a humanoid robot by Aldebaran Robotics and SoftBank Mobile. They are currently on display at a few special Softbank stores in Tokyo. Pepper will go on sale in Japan in 2015 with a price tag of around US$2000 dollars. This is a lot of money for a household gadget, but amazingly cheap for high-tech robotics. It is a fraction of the price of Paro the robotic seal or Aibo the robotic dog. My guess is that there will be some kind of obligatory monthly wifi contract you need to sign up for when purchasing Pepper. This would provide updates for the robot and be the main source of income for Softbank.

Total Immersion – Action Asia Magazine September/October 2014

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The September/October issue of Action Asia magazine is now on sale (print and iPad) and has a four-page feature on scuba diving in Okinawa. It’s always good to see your writing and pics in print, especially when it will help boost tourism to Okinawa. I have several more features for other magazines coming out over the next few months, but until they’ve been published I can’t say when, where, or the subject. Stay tuned 🙂

Climbing Mt. Fuji at night – Part 2

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At 6PM I left the 5th Station and started the climb up Fuji. There were many other hikers on the trail, including several larger groups with a leader at the front and an assistant  at the rear. Following the trail is very easy. It’s well signposted and there are plenty of people around. By 7PM it was dark, but I’d brought with me a great new LED Lenser headlamp and a spare flashlight. I’d also brought my full size tripod, the 645Z, and three lenses so my pack was a little on the heavy side. Hauling all my camera gear up the mountain did mean that I could get some interesting light painting shots on the climb. The sign above was lit with the flashlight, while the background had a 30 second exposure. The following shot was a three minute exposure as a group of hikers wound up the trail past me. The leader and assistant had the red LED stick and the green LED globe. The other hikers between them were using white LED headlamps. At 12.30 …

Climbing Mt. Fuji at night – Part 1

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There are several ways to climb Mt. Fuji. I’ll describe what I believe is perhaps the best and easiest option. During the July / August climbing season, you can get a bus from outside Shinjuku train station all the way to the 5th station on Fuji. Book tickets at the office which is next to Yodobashi Camera. You catch the bus from the “extraordinary bus stop” just a few meters away. A one way ticket is 2700 yen and it takes about 2 hours 30 minutes from Shinjuku to Fuji. The 5th Station on Fuji is already up in the clouds at 2304 meters. I arrived just after 5pm so that I could take photographs in the late afternoon light, but many night climbers will opt for a bus that gets in at 18.55, or on weekends 20.15 or even 21.55. Many hikers will buy a walking stick that that can be branded at the various huts on the way up. I was already carrying enough gear, so I didn’t bother. Hiking boots are advisable for the …

Morio Higaonna, 10th dan Okinawa Goju-ryu karate.

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Morio Higaonna, 10th dan Okinawa Goju-ryu karate. Photographed at the Naha Budokan on September 1st 2014. Higaonna is the founder and Chief Instructor of the International Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate-do Federation. He is also a Living National Treasure. Described by some as the most dangerous person in Japan in a real fight. Morio Higaonna produced a blood curdling kiai (shout) when demonstrating techniques. He was also a lovely humble man, who was praised the project, and encouraging in what we are undertaking. His smile grew over the brief photo session as I kept asking him to punch again, or do a different technique.

Fukagawa Hachiman Festival, Tokyo – Part 3

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After getting a few portraits and some general overview shots, I started looking for other angles. At one junction, where the mikoshi make a 90 degree turn, I noticed there was an elderly man watching the proceedings from the upstairs window of his home. I waved at him, pointed to my camera, and a few minutes later I was also watching the festival from the upstairs window. It turns out Kawauchi-san has lived in the same place since he was a kid. He watches the parade every year, and was quite happy to have some company for a little while. It was great to be able to look down on proceedings. I was able to capture a good selection of images I wouldn’t have been able to get otherwise. I even had enough time to shoot some video. A huge thank you to Kawauchi-san for happily letting a stranger into his home, and even giving the stranger a bottle of cold tea on a hot day in August.