Nissan GTR
A fun shoot with another Japanese icon. The Nissan GTR is a technological marvel, able to make far more expensive European and American supercars look archaic and sluggish.
Nissan GTR
Shot with the 645Z and 25mm lens. Shutter speed was kept relatively slow at 1/125 to show motion on the road. A huge thanks to Michael for bringing his beast to the shoot.
Nissan GTR
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Another in the Beyond the Dojo series shot with Shimabukuro sensei at Katsuren Castle. The castle is a very important place for him. On January 1st he holds the first training session of the year within its walls. His grandmother was also one of the noro (priestesses) that would lead prayers at the castle shrines.
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Shot with the Pentax 645Z and 25mm lens. Profoto B1 strobe with white softlight reflector.
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Tsuneo Shimabukuro, 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate and 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo. Photographed as part of the Karate Masters Portrait Project on September 16th, 2015.
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Photographed using the Pentax 645Z, 90mm lens, Profoto 7a generator with pro-head in a white softlight reflector.
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Tsuneo Shimabukuro 島袋 常雄 9th-dan Uechi-ryu Karate, 9th-dan Ryukyu Kobudo
Yesterday, Shioya Ungami was held in Shioya Bay on the north west coast of the main island of Okinawa. Shioya is part of Ogimi village which is famous for having one of the longest living populations in the world.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
The festival begins with prayers and then the men of the village race dragon boats across the bay. The only woman in the boat is a yuta which is a local priestess. When the dragon boat arrived at the beach, the yuta was carried across the water so she didn’t get her feet and clothes wet.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
Many of the ladies and girls of the village wade into the water to sing and bang drums as encouragement for the dragon boat racers. They also stopped and prayed after the arrival of the first set of boats.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
The boats then raced back across the bay again as the ladies sang and waved.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
After the races the singing and dancing continued. Many of those laughing and bounding around were in their seventies and eighties. Many of the spectators were even older.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
The soaked clothing, towels, and straw crowns were hung out to dry on the stone walls of the village.
Shioya Ungami Sea Festival, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, Shioya Bay, Ogimi Village, Okinawa
There are many reasons why the people of Ogimi have such long lives, but one is community spirit. Ungami is such a positive, happy event for everyone young and old. Their lives are not just long, but also filled with dancing, singing and laughter. The world has much to learn from this tiny Okinawan village.
Kensho Tokumura, Hanshi 9th-dan Ryukyu Dento Kobujutsu Hozon Budo Kyokai
Kensho Tokumura, Hanshi 9th-dan Ryukyu Dento Kobujutsu Hozon Budo Kyokai photographed for my Beyond the Dojo project on the beach in Heshikiya, Katsuren, Okinawa.
Kensho Tokumura, Hanshi 9th-dan Ryukyu Dento Kobujutsu Hozon Budo Kyokai
These images were all shot with the Pentax 645Z paired with the 25mm wide-angle lens. A Profoto B1 strobe with a white softlight reflector was used for off camera flash.
Kensho Tokumura, Hanshi 9th-dan Ryukyu Dento Kobujutsu Hozon Budo Kyokai
I’m really enjoying shooting these wide-angle portraits. The kobudo weapons when held towards the lens give a wonderful depth to the images.
Kensho Tokumura, Hanshi 9th-dan Ryukyu Dento Kobujutsu Hozon Budo Kyokai
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Preparations
Obon (or bon) is a traditional festival to honor the spirits of ancestors. In Okinawa families often have picnics at the tombs where the remains of previous generations were laid to rest.
Eisa are traditional Okinawan folk dances usually performed during Obon. There are huge commercial gatherings of dancers such as the All-Okinawa Eisa Festival in Koza, but small local events take place all over the prefecture.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Drink!
Last weekend I drove down to Heshikiya on the Katsuren peninsular to photograph their local eisa event. The dances begin around dusk, but I like to arrive early to get some portraits and preparation shots before the event begins.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – It burns!
At the Heshikiya Eisa all dancers are 25 years old or younger. As with many parts of Japanese life there is a clear hierarchy of members, and as with many of these hierachies
it is based on age. In this group, the oldest take on the senior chondara roles (black jacket). Next are the chondara with the traditional brown and white costume, and then the younger drummers. Women can also take part, here they were accompanying dancers. (At other events there are also female drummers.)
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Sad Chondara
Once ready they guys passed around some drinks which judging by the reactions of those who downed their cup was probably neat awamori (Okinawan Thai-rice sake / rocket fuel)
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Happy Chondara
The Heshikiya Eisa has an unusually large number of chondara. In some Eisa groups there is a single chondara whose role is a mixture of conductor, cheerleader, and clown.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Drummer Boys
At the Heshikiya Eisa the chondara were the stars of the show performing their own dances.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Dance by the senior chondara
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa – Dance by the senior chondara
As the sun set, the locals gathered around one of the shrines and all the drummers began to dance. Once finished they would move on and perform again in another part of the village.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa
As I walked away from the shrine, another group of dancers were preparing to perform with their own colorful chondara to lead them.
Heshikiya Eisa, Katsuren, Okinawa
With Cezar Borkowski Sensei at the Dojo Bar, Naha
Honored to get an award from Cezar Borkowski and the World Ryukyu no Kaze Society for documenting the karate masters of Okinawa with James Pankiewicz. A big thank you to those who nominated me for this, and of course to the inspirational karate masters who let me take their portrait.
Although we produced a book in December , we are nowhere near completing the project. James and I will hopefully continue to photograph the karate masters on Okinawa for many more years.
Maternity Sessions in Okinawa
Last week I had a maternity session with fellow photographer Wendy Sparks. It was a pleasure to photograph her family at this special time.
Maternity Sessions in Okinawa
Motobu has great locations for sessions including secluded beaches and Bise’s fukugi trees. Studio sessions are also possible at the new house.
Maternity Sessions in Okinawa
Thank you Wendy & Brian for choosing me as your photographer and allowing me to share a few of your pics on the blog. All the best with your growing family, and your move back to the States.
Can Shisa and Velociraptors Coexisit?
At the start of the year there were whispers in the air that Universal Studios might build a theme park in Okinawa. Not long after there were rumors that officials were considering both Nago’s Neo Park, and Motobu’s Expo Park as possible locations.
In March, Glenn Gumpel (CEO of USJ) stated that they were considering a park in Okinawa. In the last few days it has been announced that the park will be a tropical resort with the theme of relaxation without the Universal name.
It’s wonderful that giant corporations are looking to invest in Okinawa. They can help it grow as a tourist destination, but I think a somewhat generic tropical resort may be a missed opportunity if USJ and the Okinawan Government are hoping for it to bring about a new surge in tourism.
There are already several excellent resorts that cater to those looking for a tropical paradise. Busena Terrace and Hotel Orion Motobu are both superb with luxurious facilities set on pristine beaches. If visitors want to sample traditional culture they can head to Okinawa World on the south coast or Ryukyu Mura in Yomitan. What they are suggesting sounds too similar to what we already have. Would it really draw in new tourists or simply move them around with existing businesses actually seeing a decrease in visitors.
Universal Studios could create a new park that large numbers of tourists especially international visitors will want to see. Tokyo Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan can draw in people who otherwise wouldn’t have made the trip to Chiba or Osaka. They do this by having major attractions such as The Wizarding World of Harry Potter that can’t be seen elsewhere in Asia.
Harry Potter however isn’t the solution for Okinawa. Blue skies and tropical heat just wouldn’t match Hogwarts or Diagon Alley. What Okinawa needs is another iconic movie series that is produced by Universal Pictures, ideally set on a tropical island, with characters that are liked by multiple generations. Bring on the velociraptors.
Jurassic Park at USJ
There’s already a Jurassic Park ride at Universal Studios Japan, but it’s a single ride amongst many. Meanwhile, the Jurassic Park movie series has been brought back to life and is more popular than ever. Jurassic World is now the third biggest movie of all time. It has taken over $1.5 billion worldwide and it hasn’t even opened in Japan. They just announced a sequel in 2018 so dinomania isn’t ending anytime soon.
Jurassic Park at USJ
Jurassic World and Okinawa is too good a match to not at least consider the possibility of a movie themed park. You can still have your relaxing tropical paradise, but with the occasional triceratops.
Expo Park fireworks festival, Okinawa
Last Saturday was the Expo Park fireworks festival in Motobu. The event is famous for the spectacular display of 10,000 fireworks, followed shortly after by the island’s longest traffic jam.
A few quick tips for shooting fireworks:
Capture multiple bursts of fireworks in one image using a long exposure.
Don’t open the aperture too wide or have the ISO too high or the fireworks will show up as white. In the above shot I used ISO 100, F14 and 30 seconds.
Use a nice stable tripod.
Shooting only the fireworks in the sky is one option, but including some other visual elements that are unique to that particular event may make for a stronger image. The ocean and the tiny palm trees beneath the fireworks are included in the first shot to show scale and place. However the torii gate at Itsukushima is perhaps the best background I’ve had for a fireworks image.
Itsukushima Fireworks Festival near Hiroshima
TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography 