Old and New

When people travel abroad, it's obviously tempting to photograph things that appear exotic to their eye, hence the propensity to document the best-known tourist attractions. Such subjects are also what their audience wants as a way of vicariously living through through this kind of imagery: luscious nature, unusual architecture, traditionally clad people.

I won't lie that I'm not similarly attracted to, say, Shinto shrines and the most famous sites of natural beauty when it comes to Japan. Yet what I'd almost rather photograph—when there is the possibility to do so—is everyday scenes that are either aesthetically pleasing or attractive in some other way. That is to say, their interest should arise from something other than exoticism.

Take this simple night scene, for instance. It emphasizes the contrast between a row of lanterns and the “window,” through the trees, onto a major street in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Old and new. Traditional and contemporary. 

Yet by being in Japan, this scene strikes me more than similar instances in places like Moscow, which I may even overlook, where old churches can often be found next to sleek high-rises. 

So the goal, perhaps, is to be even more subtle. 

Japan, Again

I just returned from my much-needed, albeit equally brief vacation, which I took, you guessed it, in Japan. I've done a few travel updates on my Instagram, but have neglected this blog.

This changes now.

My first update is a simple image of one of the many fox statues at the iconic Shinto Fushimi-Inari shrine, the earliest structures of which date to the 8th century, in Kyoto. I'm no expert on Japanese mythology, though it seems like here the fox carriers a similar multifaceted function to foxes from other cultures: messengers for communication with another world, tricksters. 

Spring and the City

An exceedingly brief, one-day stop in Washington, DC still left me some free time to not only visit the Smithsonian's Natural History museum, but also stroll through some of the most obvious monuments. Despite the surprising Chicago-style winds, I still managed to snap some mobile shots of the springtime surroundings, while trying not to be blown away!

Dazaifu Revisited (Sort of)

I am currently working on a large project putting together several images to decorate a number of spaces. One of the spaces has a Japanese theme as far as the photographs are concerned. Of course, I have a fairly large library on this subject from previous trips. (And is there any question about how much I'd love to make another trip to expand the said library?) 

It has been worthwhile for me to review what I've shot over the years and realize that some of the initially less striking images, like the Dazaifu shrine detail below, work well in particular decorative contexts. Printing them on canvas also underscores the already rich textures.

Oh, and sharing this image is a nice change from all the blue-tinted wintry photographs I've been posting lately, isn't it?

Heart of Moscow (From the Archives)

This is the proverbial heart of Moscow.

You can even see the Kremlin looming in the background. I could wander here for hours.

Blueprints of these streets—both the old, narrow, winding, covered with cobble stone and broad, multi-lane highways—exist semi-consciously in my mind or, perhaps, on a more primal, physical level.  I walk and walk these streets somewhere at the intersection of sight and disjointed memories: I've been here before, and I'll be here again. 

You know, I think I'm really liking this self-imposed archival section of the blog. Not only does it allow me to reevaluate my previous work, but also to discover certain aesthetically pleasing photographs that have been hiding in my files!

From the Archives

Some days, I miss my hometown more than others, especially when I don't know exactly when I'd be able to visit next. This bout of nostalgia prompted me to dig up a number of yet-to-be-edited photographs, and here we are. Posting images of the Kremlin might seem a bit contrived, but no less beautiful, at the same time, particularly at night.

Japanese Streets

It's getting progressively more difficult to update this blog daily, nor am I sure that it's necessary. Nonetheless, I'll try—for now.

I've begun processing some of my images taken on Japanese streets—this series was shot primarily in Shibuya, Tokyo. Whenever I encounter such projects created by other photographers, most of them focus on unique fashions or, for the lack of a better word, weird characters. I, on the other hand, did not have a grand overarching scheme to doing so apart from simply documenting urban daily life (which is not to say that either of these two categories was excluded).

In many ways, the everyday can say more about a city than its historic and tourist-oriented sites. This is the reason I enjoy sitting at a cafe people-watching—even without a camera—when I travel.

Here is a small sampling.