Photo Tour of Japan | Portrait Session in Kyoto

Jan 23 | Evan | No Comments |

I am going a little out of order from my recent photography tour in Japan with this post here, but this portrait session was such a huge hit with the group, I wanted to go ahead and share it. After Tokyo and Hokkaido our group travelled to Kyoto. While the main purpose of this photo tour of Japan was focused around landscapes and nature photography in Japan, I had arranged for two models to wear Kimono clothes and spend some time with us in Kyoto. The girls rented the clothes from one shop I had used before called Yume Kyoto. From my past experience, I knew the staff at Yume Kyoto was super friendly and helpful, so it was an easy decision to return to their shop. Also, I should mention that their shop is conveniently located on the edge of Gion, across the street from Yasaka Shrine. Yume Kyoto also can do hair and have other options to return the clothes the next day or to your hotel.

Kyoto Portrait Session-017

For the portrait session, we started out in Maruyama Park then went to Yasaka Shrine before crossing the street over to Gion. We had a little time left, and with the idea to avoid the crowds that had been joining in on the photos and following us, we went to a small shrine off the Path of Philosophy in Kyoto called Honen-in. Everyone had a great time and I’m sure next time I plan a group trip to Japan or maybe even for a private custom tour of Japan, I will try to arrange something like this again!

More from this photo tour of Japan is coming soon! Here is the list of the places we visited and photographed in Japan.

Shiretoko Five Lakes
Shiretoko Pass
Utoro Sunsets
Furepe Waterfall
Oshinkoshin Waterfall
Lake Akan
Lake Mashu
Lake Onneto
Sounkyo Onsen
Kamikawa Angus Farm
Ginga Waterfall
Lake Daisetsuko
Sounkyo Ropeway
Oobako
Blue Pond (Aoi Ikke)
Shirogane Falls
Moss Garden Temple (Kokedera)
Bamboo Forrest in Arashiyama
Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji)
Nanzenji
Fushimi Inari Shrine
Portrait session with models in kimonos – You are here!

Interested in your own custom photo tour and experiences in Japan? Contact Japan Photo Guide today to start your adventure!

Photo Tour of Japan | Shiretoko Five Lakes

Jan 22 | Evan | No Comments |

In September and October of 2013, Japan Photo Guide and PhotoSafari.ru worked together to prepare a tour for photographers from Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania and of course myself from USA. Including myself, we had 15 photographers touring Japan from Tokyo to Hokkaido to Kyoto. After spending a few days in Tokyo, our first stop on our trip to Japan was up to the northern island of Hokkaido, Shiretoko Five Lakes, which is part of Shiretoko National Park. Our group took a flight from Tokyo to Memanbetsu and then bus to Utoro, a small town just outside of Shiretoko National Park on the Shiretoko Peninsula. We spent a few days at the Shiretoko Grand Hotel in Utoro and overall I was very pleased with the hotel. Staff was friendly and helpful, rooms were comfortable and convenient and food was good. No complaints at all for the hotel we stayed in for our base for Shiretoko National Park…

shiretoko-five-lakes-009

The weather on the other hand, I had a few complaints! During our first few days, it was mostly rainy and dreary or cloudy. That being said, we still had a few nice moments of light to create some great landscapes of the Shiretoko area. In this post I am sharing photos of Shiretoko Five lakes. The first lake can always be accessed via a raised walkway no matter when you visit, but other lakes have some restrictions, depending mostly on bear sightings and the season. That is why, before visiting Shiretoko Goko, it is important that you read their information site as depending on the season, there are different procedures for visiting. For us, we had to attend a short information session before entering the walkway around most of the lakes.

Weather permitting, each lake provides views of Shiretoko Mountain Range. I have been here twice, once in the summer when ground path was closed due to bear sighting and once in early October where the ground path around the lakes were open to walk. Unfortunately, the weather was nicer when the ground path was closed, so I only got to visit the first lake that summer day.