The above picture was taken in the Koukoen next to Himeji Castle. You can see part of the castle walls in the photograph.

The reason you are seeing this photo today is a rather random one. I’ve been disappointed in my ability to take pictures so that the pictures look like what my eyes see. Frequently if I focus on my subject the sky turns a cloudless white even if it is blue or filled with lovely clouds. Alternatively, if I focus on the sky my subject turns black.

Today I saw this post and decided to give Photomatix a try. The above picture was my random test subject. Photomatix didn’t work on it though. For Photomatix to work you really have to take three pictures of the exact same scene using three different exposure settings. Since my camera (Canon PowerShot S3 IS) does have an Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB Mode) option I will give it a try in the future. However, all of my past pictures will have to remain in their whited-out sky state.

Posted on December 7th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, himeji, japan pictures, sakura. Comments: 2

Ueno Park (上野公園) in Tokyo is famous for its cherry blossoms. Unfortunately, we were a bit too early (in late March) to see many. Another week or two and this road would have been really spectacular. The fact that there weren’t many blossoms didn’t seem to deter the Japanese from having all sorts of hanami (花見, flower viewing) parties.

If you look closely at this picture (maybe after clicking on it so it becomes larger) you’ll see hundreds of bins for recycling on either side of this road. It’s rare that you see trash bins in Japan even though things are cleaner than just about any place on earth. But in Ueno Park during the hanami season there are more recycling bins than anywhere I’ve seen before.

The sign on the lower right says そう資源 別ゴミ箱 which means something like “preserve our natural resources by separating garbage into the different bins.” On the lower left it says カン (cans) and 生ゴミ (living garbage, like banana peels, etc.)

I should also mention that the above picture was taken at about 10 a.m. in the morning. Imagine the number of people in the afternoon and evening when the blossoms are going crazy!

Posted on November 17th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, people, sakura, Tokyo, ueno. Comments Off on Ueno park 上野公園

Otherwise known, in English, as the Walk of Philosophy, The Philosopher’s Path, or The Philosopher’s Walk (哲学の道 or tetsugaku no michi), this is a small path beside a canal between Ginkakuji (The Silver Pavilion) and the Nanzenji area of Kyoto.

Early in April you will see many cherry blossoms along this path. We purchased some hand-painted postcards from an artist immediately after she painted them along the path. They hang in a frame in my bathroom where I am happily reminded of this path on a daily basis.

Posted on November 13th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, kyoto, sakura. Comments Off on Kyoto Path of Philosophy

In Kyoto, and other places in Japan, you can view cherry blossoms (sakura) at night. Spotlights or lanterns are frequently used to get the desired affect.

Posted on September 29th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, kyoto, night photography, sakura. Comments Off on Nighttime sakura

Himejijo (姫路城) is probably the most impressive castle in Japan. The city of Himeji is a relatively short side trip from Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and Okayama. We went on a Saturday, which was a mistake, just before the cherry blossoms peaked. It was so crowded inside that we could barely move. In fact, we couldn’t move at times. But we still had a good time, especially on the grounds.

If you decide to visit Himeji, your best bet is to go on a weekday. If you must go on a weekend, be sure to get there before 11 a.m. The afternoons can get very crowded with people inside the castle.

Himejijo and the grounds are featured prominently in the Shogun miniseries. We had a good time watching it after having been there.

Posted on September 17th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: castle, cherry blossoms, himeji, japan pictures, sakura. Comments Off on Himeji Castle