2014 Summer and Fall Tours of Japan

May 09 | Evan | No Comments |

Japan Photo Guide is excited to announce 2 opportunities to experience Japan in 2014! In June and July of 2014 there is limited availability of short day tours or photography/portrait sessions in Japan. Whether in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hokkaido, Miyajima or someplace else, please contact me about what you want to do in Japan this summer!

The next option is a small group tour to Japan in Autumn of 2014! This will be an small group (maximum of 9 plus me) tour of Japan including Tokyo, Miyajima, Takeda Castle Ruins and Kyoto and the surrounding areas like Nara and Arashiyama. The tour will have a photography focus, but there will also be plenty of cultural and other experiences that you don’t have to be a photographer to enjoy, so partners/friends are welcome (and will get to sleep in while we up early for good light)! Even though it is a group tour, the trip to Japan will still be customized for participants to get the most out of it! Hope to see you in Japan!

Cherry Blossom Tour of Japan | Maiko Portrait Session

Apr 20 | Evan | No Comments |

The 2014 cherry blossom tour of Tokyo and Kyoto  in Japan had been going great and filled with special experiences so far.  When planning this trip to Japan, one of the experiences I was most excited about was this portrait session with a real maiko!  A maiko is an apprentice geisha or geiko as they are referred to in Kyoto.  Many westerners think that these women are prostitutes, but this is not the case (and has not been for quite some time).  Maiko, geisha or geiko are really entertainers that not only must know how to perform songs and dance, but also how to social interact and talk with high ranking politicians and members of elite society.  For more information about maiko, geisha, geiko and their history, the wikipedia page is a good place to start.

To schedule time with a maiko is not so easy.  First, you have to know somebody with a connection.  I had a few interactions with maiko and geiko, and because of my experience with some geisha houses and my Japanese, I could have scheduled something by myself, but like many things in Japanese culture, the most direct way is not always the best.  So even for me,  the best way for me to arrange time with one is to go through one of my connections in Kyoto.  Even if you have a connection or two like myself, availability can be a problem as there are not so many maiko around!   Thanks to my connections, we were able to arrange 2 different portrait sessions with 2 different maiko.  Now that we had the time scheduled, the difficult part was finding a beautiful place, where we wouldn’t be overrun by tourist rushing to take photos!  So all the popular places were out of the questions, but we were able to find some more isolated areas that allowed us to make beautiful portraits in Kyoto.  Here are just a few of my favorite portraits of the two maiko in Kyoto during cherry blossom season:

 

Tour of Japan | Samurai Experience

Apr 20 | Evan | No Comments |

After spending some time as a Ninja, I was able to stop by for a few minutes to check out the samurai experience being offered by the same group that introduced me to the Ninja Experience, IJCEE.  The Institute for Japanese Culture Experience and Education has an office in Tokyo, but can help to arrange special experiences all over Japan, especially in Kansai area as well.  I was able to meet with some of the staff in the Tokyo office for a brief time and since there was a Samurai Experience going on at the same time, I stopped in for a few minutes to see that and take photos.  Like with the Ninja Experience, there was a master/teacher and a translator to handle the explanation and history.  I think since I was there taking photos, they let their customer wear the traditional armor, so if you do this experience, not sure you can wear it or not!

I could only stay for a little while, so I didn’t really see any of the action, but I’m sure there was some sword action and teachings about fighting/samurai culture and history.

Tour of Japan | Ninja Experience

Apr 19 | Evan | No Comments |

While still in Tokyo for the cherry blossom tour, I arranged an experience at a small dojo to learn about life as a ninja, the tools/weapons ninjas used and even to learn a few moves.   For this special experience, it was just the boys as the girls had their day to go shopping in Tokyo.  Actually, it worked out nicely as this was one of the few rainy days we had in Tokyo, so it was nice to have something to do inside.  The ninja lesson started off with a brief ritual and demonstration of the master’s abilities.  The master that was our instructor comes from from a family whose lineage has been a family of ninjas and was eager to share their history and way of life from back in the day.   Of course, you cannot have a ninja lesson without looking the part!

Once we looked the part, we learned about throwing ninja stars, drawing/using swords and other weapons as well as some of the techniques used for surprise attacks and of course defense.  The whole experience lasted a little more than an hour and was enjoyable and not really cheesy.  Another option we had considered was going to the Ninja Restaurant in Akasaka, but I think this is better for a guys day, especially if kids are involved.

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