TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography

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Hakodate, Hokkaido (Day 2)

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Hakodate is also famous for its warehouses made of red brick. This is of great interest if you live in a country where most buildings are concrete. If you’re from England, it’s a little strange to see people oohing and aahing over a brick wall. ( I shall resist starting a rant about the ugliness of most modern Japanese buildings.)

Brick wall in a sea of concrete

Another building of note in Hakodate is the Goryokaku Tower. Constructing a new tower in Hakodate had seemed to me a little redundant as there is a mountain if you want night views of the city. However, the reason for the tower, and it’s pentagonal design is that it overlooks the Goryokaku Park and Fort. The fort is surrounded by a moat in the shape of a five pointed star (although it does have an extra mini point at the entry).

Goryokaku Tower, Hakodate, Hokkaido

The building at the centre of the star is a reconstruction of the Hakodate Magistrate’s Office.

Goryokaku Park, Hakodate, Hokkaido

After visiting Goryokaku Park I decided to head up Hakodate mountain again to see if I could get the classic night view shot. The sky was reasonably clear when I set off, but it wasn’t long until the clouds started rolling in.

Above the clouds on Mt. Hakodate

I never got the classic night view photograph, but I’m pretty happy with this out of the mist shot. Always a good idea to try and work with the weather rather than against it.

Hakodate, Hokkaido

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From Aomori I took the train north to Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The train goes through the Seikan Tunnel, the longest (and deepest) undersea tunnel in the world.

Hakodate is famous as one of the first international trading ports in Japan. Like Nagasaki and Kobe it is home to a wide range of religious buildings.

Russian Orthadox Church, Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan

Perhaps the most famous attraction in Hakodate is the “million dollar” night view from the summit of Mt Hakodate. On my first day it was a little cloudy so I didn’t attempt the standard night shot and got some shots of others admiring the view.

View from the summit of Mt. Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan

It was crowded from the traditional viewpoint looking over the city, but if you just went around the corner you could get some nice shots looking west over the ocean.

Looking west from the summit of Mt. Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan

And for those interested in the 645D. Here’s a crop from the above image of the bottom right ship.

Crop of the above image.

Aomori, Nebuta Matsuri – Pushing the floats

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The giants floats of Nebuta Matsuri are pulled through the city by teams of exhausted looking men. On the final day of the festival the parade took place in the middle of the day, and as you might expect at 1pm on a sunny August afternoon it was blisteringly hot.

Nebuta Matsuri Floats, Aomori City, Japan

Musicians accompanied the floats and were likewise melting in the sun. I got a few shots and then retreated to the shade, and air conditioning, of a museum.

Nebuta Matsuri Musician, Aomori City, Japan

Aomori – Nebuta Matsuri

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From Aktia I took the train north to Aomori. Nebuta Matsuri is one of Japan’s most famous festivals. Giant floats depicting scenes from ancient fables are dragged along the streets of Aomori City.

Before the parade started I got some shots of the participants, then I turned my attention to the floats.

Nebuta Matsuri Portrait, Aomori City, Japan

Nebuta Matsuri, Aomori City, Japan

Digital Discovery #3

It is very easy to fool yourself into thinking an image is badly exposed by quickly reviewing the image on the rear monitor. What looks completely underexposed when standing in bright sunlight may actually be accurate. Better to use the histogram to check exposure. I often used my Sekonic light meter to get an accurate incident light reading.

Digital Discovery #4

I hardly used the auto focus on my new 55mm lens. Auto focus worked fine, just used to doing it by myself. When shooting portraits at F2.8 the depth of field is shallow so you need to be very accurate with the focusing. If you don’t focus perfectly on the eyes, the larger files really show your mistakes.

Akita – A few final images

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Akita Kanto Matsuri Portrait (645D 55mm lens)

Akita Castle

Lotus Flower, Akita Castle Moat

When I looked at the full res file of the lotus image I was impressed by the amount of detail. I thought others might like to check it out so I uploaded a full sized JPEG to Flickr which you can check out here.

Another place of note in Akita was the Masakichi Hirano Museum of Fine Art. It is worth checking out just to see the huge “Annual Events in Akita” wall painting which at just over 20 meters in width is one of the largest canvas paintings of the 20th Century.

Akita Kanto Matsuri – Competitive lantern balancing

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There’s something amazing about the fact that the people of Akita have taken the simple act of carrying a paper lantern and made it into a competitive event.

Carrying one lantern. Easy.

Carrying fifty. Tricky.

Balancing those fifty lanterns on your head. Unbelievable.

Doing it at night. Ridiculous.

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Lantern balancing judges

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Lantern balancing

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Lantern balancing at night

A big thanks to Anton, a great kiwi guy I met on the street and press-ganged into holding my off-camera flash for the night shots. Couldn’t have got this last shot without you mate.

Another big thanks to Ian who let me crash on his floor when all the hotels were full. (If you want to see a Japanese festival, book accommodation early or you’ll be begging for floor space!)

Akita Kanto Matsuri – Kid Portraits

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Digital Discovery #1

The LCD screen on the back of the camera is a great way to interact with the people you are meeting. Take one shot of a kid, and then show the image to the whole group. You then have 10 kids who want their photo taken.

Digital Discovery #2

Having a whole group of kids wanting you to take their photo could be a problem my old camera. As it cost about $1.50 each time I pressed the shutter I had to be quite selective with the shots I was taking. (You can’t even fake taking a photo with the 67II as the shutter is so loud.) With digital I could happily shoot everyone (and delete images later).

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Kid Portrait (1)

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Kid Portrait (2)

Akita Kanto Matsuri - Kid Portrait (3)

I handed out business cards to the parents of these kids, so if you are one of their parents please contact me so that I can mail you the digital file or prints.

この子供さん達のご両親で、写真を希望される方は連絡ください。

Akita Kanto Matsuri – preparing the lanterns

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Attaching lanterns to the bamboo frame

Bending the bamboo mast to make a sail like strucutre

Placing candles in the lanterns

Akita Kanto Matsuri

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I flew from Naha to Haneda, then jumped on the Shinkansen to Akita. There are cheaper way to travel (as I would learn later in my trip) but I needed to get to Akita before the festival got going in the evening.

I dumped my big bag at the hotel then rushed out to try and get some shots of people preparing for the festival. Akita Kanto Matsuri is a lantern festival so I wanted a shot of a local, preferably in traditional dress, and with lanterns. Dripping with sweat, I made my way around the back alleys until I found just what I was looking for. Kids, lanterns, and beautiful golden light.

So here it is, one of the first images from my trip.