All posts tagged: Japan2

Unkai (雲海) – the sea of clouds.

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It was the third time that I visited the summit of Mount Fuji (富士山), Japan. But this magical and unique place has something new for it’s visitors. Each time they come back, each time they decide to overcome many hours of tough efforts, doing the climb to 4000 meters height in total black darkness: a new face of Mount Fuji presents itself. This time, Mount Fuji showed me what my Japanese friends called Unkai – 雲海 – “the sea of clouds“. You have hiked above the clouds, you have hiked above everything there is on this world. You are now in between. Beneath you, there are still some light visible that the gigantic city of Tokyo projects into the sky, giving it an aura like look. But above: The most crystal sky of stars and infinite clarity. And you’re in this pitch black surrounding – everything you see next to you is black rock, black volcano sand. This moment and physical challenge give you a humble feeling that everything beneath you just mean nothing – …

Tokyo Street (vol 5)

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This time some more scenes and abstract pictures. Less portraits for now. Have only two days left in Tokyo, so there will probably be one more posting with pictures from here. Time just flies by here. Looking forward to see how my next travel destinations in the US: SF and NYC differ from the street experience of Tokyo. What I am looking forward as well is how the cities… sound different. I can only recommend to sometimes stop, or slowly walk, and actively listen to a city. Listen to it’s nature and soul. It feels like it was a huge animal that never ceases to grumble. It never stops. May these be some inspiration how Tokyo looks – and sounds like.

Tokyo Street (vol 3)

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More days in Tokyo, more street photography. As usual all shots done with the Canon 135mm f/2 lens, my very favorite one for street/portrait so far. I feel that it gives this sense of distance and closeness at the same time, what is a good analogy for Tokyo somehow. Although people are right next to you, the distance between the two of you is usually miles away.

Tokyo Street (vol 2)

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I went out to shoot some more street photography. Turns out to be really fun to do. Most scenes were shot in Tokyos ‘hip’ area Shibuya-ku (渋谷区), Yoyogi (代々木) and Harajuku (原宿). I tried to keep the tonal/coloring close to my first shots in vol 1, as this is what Tokyo feels like for me when wandering through the streets: A bit cold and anonymous, with lots of unique characters inside going their own ways.

First steps in street photography.

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Tokyo is a great place for street photography. An infinite pool of styles, ranging from complete conformity to eccentric, colorful individual looks. So I tried to take my first shots, which turned out to be hard, especially with weak light and rain all around. We wandered through several streets and good spots where people would walk by and you might catch a good shot. The results is … a selection of umbrellas I suppose. First steps, lots to learn. :-)

Travel Plans for August 2013

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Meine Pläne im August 2013: 30. Juli bis 02. August: Okinawa, die beliebte Pazifik-Urlaubs-Insel der Japaner. 02. bis 06. August: Vom südlichsten Punkt Japans zum nördlichsten nach Sapporo, Hokkaido. Außerdem das ländliche Hokkaido mit den wunderbaren Lavendelfeldern in Furano besuchen. 08. & 09. August: Den Fujisan noch ein zweites mal besteigen. Ich kann es einfach nicht auf mir sitzen lassen, den Sonnenaufgang nicht gesehen zu haben. 16. – 18. August: Das Daimonji Festival in Kyoto. 21. – 24. August: Ab nach Südkorea, 4 Tage in Seoul. 27. August: Rückflug nach Kölle. Auf meiner Liste steht noch Hiroshima und Osaka, da muss ich noch schauen wie ich das unterbringen kann. Wenn es sonst noch ein Must-See gibt, her damit. :-)