Here’s a random scene from Shinjuku, one of the most dynamic neighborhoods in Tokyo. You’ll see all sorts of random things happening here. And you can’t ever go wrong with visiting a random food place, where everything is tasty… these random food guys always know when it’s right to arrive.
I took this in a relatively “seedy” area of Tokyo near Kabuchiko. It’s not really as dangerous as it used to be. Many years ago, it was pretty rough while I was there with a bunch of Nigerians who were under the control of the Yakuza, so things can go sideways at any time. Luckily, I knew about these things so I never got in any serious trouble. It’s still a bit sketch around there late at night, but it’s a lot better than it used to be.
What’s better than a personalized meal in Japan by a master chef? Not much else, as far as I can surmise. This is a photo from our tour across Japan where we visited several different locations all around the country. I think if I had to choose one country’s food for the rest of my life, it would probably be Japan. Most people think it’s just sushi, but the broad range of options is never-ending.
I think this guy is hilarious…
This is one of my favorite little alleys in Tokyo, and it is very close to Shinjuku. I’ve been there a few times, but I often forget exactly where it is. Sometimes, I purposefully set out to find this place, and I get completely lost and end up in a different area. I mean, that’s okay. I guess I could mark it on Google Maps, but I like the challenge of trying to find this little treasure again.
Sometimes when I get bored, I listen to all sorts of podcasts about the nature of reality. It’s also been influenced a lot by my morning meditations with the Sam Harris Waking Up app. Once you start to just notice things appearing in your sensorium, it can be quite the spectacle. So, I started working on this fractal based on a more organic formula to explore this idea further. The music I coupled it with is also a favorite that was introduced to me by a shaman in LA and it’s called “Devi Prayer” by Craig Preuss & Ananda. Enjoy the journey! 🙂
How awesome is the rain in Tokyo? It’s one of my favorite times to go out and take photos. The Blade Runner reflections go off the chart and all these cool Japanese people carry interesting umbrellas. I think I stayed up till around 2AM taking photos and walking the streets to find different subjects. By the time I got back to the hotel with Ethan, I was completely soaked and freezing, but it was worth it! 🙂
What an incredible city this is to shoot at night! I love taking photos at night and it could not be any safer. You might see a few drunken salarymen out wandering the streets, but they are all happy and good fun! The other thing I like about the whole scene is how it slides a bit into the cooler, blue colors, which gives it more of a Blade Runner feel.
Maybe at the end of this, if I’m still in Lockdown, I’ll do an ALL JAPAN week! But we’ll get started with these five…
If you haven’t seen a show called “Devs” – then definitely check it out if you like Sci-Fi. It’s made by the same guy that did Ex Machina, so if you loved that, you’ll love this show too.
This area of Tokyo is gold for photos! There’s not a bad angle, and, even better, no one cares if you use a tripod. Or, if they do mind, Japanese people are so polite that they would never say anything anyway.
While I was in Tokyo with my son Ethan, we ended up visiting a few different museums. This is from the Mori Art Museum, which is on the top floor of the Mori Building in Roppongi. They seem to swap out the exhibition every three months or so. This one had all kinds of cool stuff in it, mostly related to optical illusions.
It was my plan to get to Tokyo for every single Halloween, but I missed it last year because of some family stuff. But, this year, coronavirus permitting, I plan to go! It’s absolutely amazing because everyone is in costume and the Shibuya area is completely crazy. Also, since it’s in Japan, everyone is super nice despite the insane number of people out partying in the streets. It’s a goldmine for photography, so I can’t wait to get back out there with my Leica lenses to capture more photos like this.
