Winter Photo Tour of Japan | Snow Monkeys!

May 12 | Evan | No Comments |

Located in Nagano Prefecture, the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park in Yamanouchi has become a very popular place for tourists visiting Japan to include on their Japan tour itinerary. If you google snow monkey Japan, you will find all sorts of articles and a few videos and then if you go to the images section of google, your heart will possibly melt from all the cute photos of these monkeys trying to stay warm during Winter in Japan!

While the snow monkey park is manmade, the surrounding mountains are the monkeys natural habitat and you can usually position yourself to so it’s not obvious you are in a park. The crowds of people have been increasing though, so sometimes it’s harder to avoid other humans in the photos with monkeys! Although, the other humans sometimes provide some interesting photo opportunities as well, like this guy who thought it was a good idea to get close to the monkey here:

It’s almost a perfect comic strip as the monkey’s reaction went from “What are you looking at?” to “Go away” to laughing to himself over how scared the human was! Besides taking photos here I really enjoyed just observing the monkeys in the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park…

I saw many characteristics displayed by the monkeys that appeared to be similar to humans, for example, love (grooming, taking care of, hugging and a little more… intimate), curiosity (one baby monkey untied a person’s shoes for example), bullying (one monkey launched a surprise attack on another) and of course, the natural desire we have to get warm when it’s cold. The peak season to visit the monkey park in Jigokudani is February as that’s when Yamanouchi tends to be the coldest and gets the most snow. I went just at the beginning of March and the path still had quite a bit of snow/ice and the snow monkey park had some snow but you can see that it wasn’t covered in snow. The snow monkey park may not be great for everyone visiting Japan, but as it can be done as a day trip from Tokyo, it certainly makes for a nice an unique opportunity to take photos in Japan! Below are a few more photos of the snow monkeys in Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park.

Interested in visiting Japan and the snow monkey park with me? Go ahead and contact me to get your escorted trip to Japan or photography tour of Japan started! Also, Japan Photo Guide is partnering with Magic Is Photo Tours for a 2017 Winter Photography Tour of Japan. At the time of this post, there are only 4 spots left for that trip!

2015 Fall Photo Tour of Japan | Kokedera Saihoji

Feb 20 | Evan | No Comments |

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Kokedera, The Moss Garden Temple also called Saihoji. Kokedera, which is located west of Kyoto in the Arashiyama area, does require advance reservations (I’d recommend at least a few weeks or a month and give multiple dates if you can) and an entrance fee of 3000 yen per person but is 100% worth visiting, especially in the Fall with Autumn’s leaves! Quick note for photographer’s tripods are not allowed.

When you visit Kokedera, first you will attend a short service and have the chance to practice your Japanese calligraphy by writing a sutra. Don’t worry though, you won’t get graded and the Japanese characters are lightly printed so you are basically tracing the sutra at Kokedera. Most of the seating will be on the floor though there are some tables outside the main hall with chairs. You should arrive 15 minutes ahead of your reservation time at Kokedea, especially if you or somebody in your group will want a chair. When you are finished with the sutra, you will be free to explore the beautiful temple grounds, the main garden of which is almost completely covered by moss. For more information about how to make a reservation at Kokedera, take a look at Japan-Guide’s website.

The 2015 Fall Photography Tour of Japan included Tokyo, Kanazawa, Shirakawago, Okayama, Hiroshima, Miyajima and Kyoto! Interesting in joining your own escorted tour of Japan with Japan Photo Guide? Contact us to get the planning of your trip to Japan started or join one of the group tours of Japan!

2015 Fall Photo Tour of Japan | Arashiyama Bamboo Grove

Feb 19 | Evan | No Comments |

Much like when I visit and make photographs at Fushimi Inari Taisha in Southern Kyoto, visiting the bamboo groves in Arashiyama allows me visit and photograph the same subject looking for some new angles. Or like the photo above and below, some random techniques with the bamboo. This time in the bamboo grove in Arashiyama I was making photographs with long exposures, all at least 20 seconds.

I was hoping to capture more movement at the top as the lighter tops of the bamboo move much more than the sturdier bases. I’m happy with the way the photos of the bamboo came out this time but I’m already trying to think about what I will try differently next time I visit the bamboo grove in Arashiyama with the 2016 cherry blossom tour of Japan! Any suggestions?

2015 Fall Photo Tour of Japan | Maiko Portrait Session

Feb 18 | Evan | No Comments |

The last few times I’ve escorted tours to Kyoto, I’ve been able to arrange portrait sessions with a real maiko (geiko apprentice, “geiko” is how geisha are referred to in Kyoto). It’s always a a lot of fun to take portraits of a real maiko though I have to admit, with how beautiful they are and amazing the colors in the kimono are, it’s almost too easy and hard to take a bad portrait of a maiko. I’m only half serious, but still, I think you know what I mean!

Actually the most difficult part about hiring a maiko as a model is really keep the other visitors (and sometime locals of Kyoto even) from crowding her. While it’s very exciting to see a real maiko or geiko in Kyoto, it’s very important to show good manners and not to chase, crowd or trap them. It can be quite scary to have many people aggressively following you and taking portraits of you, especially if there is a language barrier. Okay, small public service announcement is over, enjoy a few more portraits of the maiko!

Japan Photo Guide Maiko 002