2017 Winter Wildlife Tour of Japan | Snow Monkey Portraits

Mar 11 | Evan | No Comments |

In collaboration with Magic Is Photo Safaris, I escorted a small group of wildlife photographers for a Winter Wildlife Tour of Japan in search of Japanese Snow Monkeys, Red Crowned Crane, Swan, Steller’s Sea Eagles and whatever else we could find! You can see all the posts (though you are currently on the first one) from the 2017 Winter Wildlife Tour of Japan Trip Report. First up was perhaps what I was most looking forward to, the Snow Monkeys in Jigokudani in Nagano Prefecture. On the other hand, the walk to get to the snow monkey park was not something I was really looking forward to!

Not only because it takes about 40 minutes to walk the narrow, snowy and icy path, but even on solid, non slippery ground, I tend to be slightly more clumsy than most! There were a few close calls but somehow I managed not to fall down while going to the snow monkey park. This winter wildlife tour in Japan allowed me to visit the snow monkey park for the second time (actually, first time was in 2015 off season so no monkeys, 2016 I visited with snow so I count this as second time) so I had a better idea of what to expect and somewhat of a plan for my photos this time around with the three days we had with the monkeys.

Like previous trips, my main takeaway is that after spending just a few minutes with the Japanese Snow Monkeys, it’s obvious of our connection with them. Like us, monkeys love, have family, play, fight, are curious and like to stay warm when it’s cold! With that in mind, I had 3 goals in mind for my photos this time with the monkeys in Japan.

As I don’t have a lot of wildlife experience and my studio is a portrait studio, I first wanted to take portraits of the monkeys. Perhaps obvious, but really wanted to approach it similar to my process of photographing humans. Next, I was really looking for moments of family and love. Photographing the snow monkeys is a lot of fun, but even just observing the snow monkeys is a sure way to laugh and smile, and that’s what I was looking for my third goal.

Oh and these along with all photos taken during the Winter Wildlife Tour of Japan were taken with my new Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II, a mirrorless micro 4/3 camera which I have a lot of good things to say about but probably won’t fully reflect on until after my 2017 Cherry Blossom Tour of Japan. I do want to note that the above photo with the waterfall in the background was handheld at 1/20 a second, not 100% sharp but quite impressive!

Private and Custom Tour of Japan | Flowers and Swords in Kyoto

Aug 19 | Evan | No Comments |

The Japanese Summer was getting hotter and hotter but our custom tour of Japan would continue! After spending a few days in Kanazawa and Shirakawago, we headed to Kyoto, my favorite city in Japan. Part of the reason why I love Kyoto so much is all the wonderful experiences that can be had in the area!

First we visited a Japanese sword smith that I had arranged for some private experiences in previous years. It’s always fun to visit with and watch this master demonstrate his art. Not to mention, we can create some really interesting photos with the sparks from his hard hitting efforts!

Though even better than that, is the experience talking with such a master sword smith about his art. It’s easy to see his passion through his kind and welcoming personality. Guests traveling with me in Japan that are come here always tell me that visiting with the sword smith was one of the highlights.

Having spent time learning about the sword making process, it was time for another great experience in Kyoto, Ikebana experience and course. Ikebana is Japanese flower arrangement and is the form of art creating, yes you guessed it, arrangements of flowers!

We first got a short introduction about different types of flower arrangements and the history of Ikebana and then had a hands lesson to create our own flower arrangement with fresh flowers from Kyoto. The class is in an old style Japanese home, machiya, which really adds to the atmosphere of the ikebana experience and makes for great photos as well!

Private and Custom Tour of Japan | Shirakawago and Kanazawa

Aug 17 | Evan | No Comments |

After spending a great couple of days in Kamikochi, our private tour of Japan continued to Shirakawago and Kanazawa, by way of Takayama. First up, we would stay the night in a gassho-zukuri which translates to built like praying hands for the triangle shaped roof that are suppose to look like a Buddhist monk’s hands as during prayer.

There are a few of these small villages throughout Japan though the ones in this area are, largest to smallest, Shirakawago (Ogimachi), Gokayama (Ainokura) and Suganuma. We spent time in all 3 and slept in one of these traditional grass huts in Ainokura. As these villages have become world heritage sites, especially Shirakawago has become very popular and crowded during the day. We were happy to stay in Gokayama which was much less crowded and allowed for better photography opportunities. Of course like many places that get crowded, early in the morning is best to take photos if you can wake up!

After a night in Gokayama, our tour of Japan continued to Kanazawa. Since last Autumn, this was my third time visiting Kanazawa, going to Kanazawa with a private tour of Japan just a week or so earlier, and enjoying Fall leaves in Kanazawa in 2015. Since the opening of the new Hokuriku Shinkansen in April of 2015, Kanazawa tourism has picked up quite a bit with easier access from Tokyo.

Instead of staying in a hotel, we stayed 2 nights in Kanazawa in a machiya, a traditional style home. If traveling with a small group or family, I think it’s a great experience a little what life is like in a traditional Japanese home. In addition to checking out the DT Suzuki museum, 21st Century Art Museum and of course Kanazawa’s famous Kenrokuen, we spent some time with a Japanese certified guide that helped us plan a special and private meeting with one of the gardeners at Kenrokuen! A trip to Kanazawa wouldn’t be complete without visiting the old samurai district, Nagamachi, and old geisha district, Higashi Chaya, so we made time to visit there as well! Next up, a private experience with a Japanese sword smith and a flower arrangement class!

Private and Custom Tour of Japan | Kamikochi

Aug 11 | Evan | No Comments |

After short stay in Tokyo, the private (hiking) tour of Japan would continue onto one of my favorite places in Japan, Kamikochi. Kamikochi is located in Nagano Prefecture and is only open from April through October and can only be accessed by bus or taxi, not private car. It’s a great place to escape the crowds of Japan and get in touch with nature. Though nature is about all that there is in Kamikochi and they intend to keep it that way with their five rules, or as I like to say, the Kamikochi Five (nice ring to it).

Basically, you aren’t allowed to feed the wild animals, you cannot take anything away from or bring any foreign species into Kamikochi, you cannot litter and keep on the paths. Speaking of the paths, they are mostly flat either raised wood, dirt or gravel. Easy to walk for all ages.

Kamikochi really is a photographer’s and perhaps hiker’s dream. For this private tour of Japan, we stayed in Kamikochi for 2 nights, but easily could have stayed longer to take more photos of the mountains, lakes and streams as well as exploring by foot the natural surroundings. While we stayed on the flat terrain, as that was enough hiking for us, there are more challenging paths up the mountains.

And did I mention there are monkeys? Monkeys always make for some interesting observing and photographic opportunities! A few more monkey photos from our private tour in Kamikochi and then a gallery of more monkeys and a few photos of Kamikochi.