E161-403F (Coincidentally, this is also the launch code for several ICBM's)
Turn on printer, insert new yellow ink cartridge (one of twelve). Printer mocks me with blinking orange light. Slow realization that this will be a frustrating and expensive experience. Must make cup of tea….
Inside an elevator on a cold day in Niigata
I really should wander around with my camera more often. Rather than planning exactly what I want to photograph, I should explore and see what’s out there. It’s both liberating and challenging.
As I no longer have to pay for film and processing on each shot, I should use the opportunity to go out and shoot more (or even a lot more). I tend to notice repetition and geometric patterns quite easily (This may have something to do with my father
So my question is…. what catches your eye, shapes or colors?
Lighting test - gridded beauty dish with blue gel back light
Spent a couple of hours on Saturday with fellow photographer Luna testing out colored gels.
I have a feeling that this blue back lighting is pretty standard in the laboratory scenes of C.S.I. Las Vegas. (I think they also tend to put a green or yellow gel on the main light.) The above image was desaturated slightly in Photoshop.
Here’s a piece I wrote for the Asahi Weekly Newspaper on February 2, 2003
Rise of the Vending Machines
The drink machine at my British secondary school seemed to have three settings: 1) You put in your money and nothing happened. 2) You put in your money and it gave the wrong drink. 3) The machine dispensed the correct drink but did not dispense the plastic cup. If you got the third of these options, it usually meant you’d be spending the rest of the day walking around in wet shoes.
Japan seems to have a love for, if not an obsession, with vending machines. It’s not just the number of them (over 5 million) but also the variety. There are machines for rice, hot meals, toothbrushes, hairnets, certain genres of videos, and even underwear.
Drinks machines are by far the most popular. They seem to be on every street corner offering Coke and Fanta along with Japanese tea, sports drinks and juices. My personal favorites are the hot drinks available in the winter. There is nothing better than a warm can of hot chocolate on a snowy Hokkaido evening. You can use the unopened can straight from the machine to defrost your gloves or mittens, then pull the tab and warm your insides, too.
What does frustrate me is that there aren’t anywhere near as many aluminum recycling bins as there are vending machines. Couldn’t it be common policy that every can machine has a regularly-emptied can and bottle collector right next to it? It would be an easy way to make convenience shopping more environmentally friendly.
What worries me more are the beer and cigarette machines. In Japan, the legal age for buying both alcohol and cigarettes is twenty. How can this law be realistically enforced when there are vending machines selling both of them on the street? Unless these machines can somehow check the age of each customer, they are allowing teenagers easy access. Although some machines automatically switch off at night it still leaves plenty of opportunities for children to use them. There are plans in development to produce age I.D. cards that would have to be used in cigarette vending machines. I doubt, however, that tobacco companies are in such a hurry to introduce the system.
Vending machines provide convenience for customers and easy profits for companies. Maybe we need to think about what effect this convenience is having on the environment and the health of Japanese teenagers.
In 2008, an age identification card for smokers was introduced in Japan. It’s called the TASPO card and the system seems to be working. Teenagers are still smoking, but at least they’re having to be a little more resourceful to get their fix.
Japanese Cigarette Vending Machines (9 out of 10 horses smoke Marlboro)
TASPO age check system
Winter in Niigata
I spent the first 6 months of my time in Japan living in Niigata. It’s a busy port city, famed for its excellent rice and heavy winter snow falls. This shot really reminds me of the paintings by L. S. Lowry. It has the same grey, industrial bleakness as my hometown of Manchester. The factory with the red and white towers is the paper mill.
(This bleakness is not a permanent state, both cities do have some lovely sunny days.)
I spotted this Red-crowned Crane on the back of a bridal kimono while wandering around Niigata. The Red-crowned Crane is thought to bring luck, longevity and fidelity which is why it’s often found on wedding kimono. Hopefully I will get to see some real Red-crowned Cranes (Grus japonensis) later this winter in Hokkaido.
Red-crowned Crane on Kimono
Lonely Snow Monkey
Snow Monkey Grooming
Sleepy Snow Monkey
Stoic Snow Monkey
I didn’t spend that much time with the monkeys this year, but came away with a few good shots. Really pleased with the detail I was getting in the eyes and fur, then a nice drop off into creamy bokeh.
Weather proofing of the body and lens was useful as it was snowing at the time, and the monkeys tended to splash when they were getting in and out of the water.
Snow Monkey Paparazzi (1)
Monkey, there’s no other superstar, you know that I’ll be your papa – paparazzi
Japanese Snow Monkeys at Jigokudani Onsen, Nagano Prefecture
Pentax 645D with Pentax-FA 645 55mm
Read the article about snow monkeys and how to get to Jigokudani on my main website
Snow Monkey Paparazzi (2)
Dosojin Fire Fesitval is held on January 15th each year in Nozawa Onsen, Nagano Prefecture.
A “shaden” or temporary shrine is built of beach wood and then the town’s 42 year old men (an unlucky age) sit on the top. The town’s 25 year old men (another unlucky age), drunk with sake, stand at the base of the shrine. Local men and boys carrying flaming torches try to set fire to the shaden while the drunken 25 year olds must protect them by hitting the torches with pine branches.
The battle goes on until flames take hold of the shaden and the 42 year old men quickly descend by ladder to safety.
The shaden is then engulfed by flames, and everyone staggers home.
Dosojin Fire Fesitval, Nozawa Onsen
Dosojin Fire Fesitval, Nozawa Onsen
Dosojin Fire Fesitval, Nozawa Onsen
Last Friday I arrived at sunny Naha airport with a ticket to Niigata. Unfortunately, the flight was cancelled due to heavy snow up on the mainland. They told me the next flight to Niigata was the following day, when things would probably be back to normal.
The problem was I needed to be in Niigata that night, so that I could get to Nagano the following day. ANA allowed me to change my ticket and get on a flight to Haneda. I then got the monorail and local train to Tokyo Station, and finally jumped on the bullet train to Niigata. I arrived in Niigata 4 hours later and 11,000 yen poorer than I’d expected, but at least I’d made it. Let the adventures begin.
Heading north for the winter.
Looking down on Mount Fuji
Rise of the "Kawaii" Machines - This robot told you to check that your baggage tag and your baggage receipt matched. Future versions of the robot are expected to be weaponized and have a more scary face.
TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography 