New Year's vist to the Shinagawa Aquarium

The family stayed around Tokyo for New Year's and visited the Shinagawa Aquarium the day after. This was the second or third time that we visited this aquarium. They have dolphin and seal shows in an outdoor stadium that always draw a crowd. Inside they have may tanks and a water tank tunnel, which lets you walk under green turtles, stingrays and fish as they swim by. The smaller tanks made it fairly easy to take some nice shots of the more interesting tropical fish on display .

Blotched foxface rabbitfish

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 800, 1/100 sec.

Banggai Cardinalfish

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 800, 1/125 sec.

Red Lionfish

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 3200, 1/80 sec.

Winter Hats

Last August 2013, I took a walk through Shibuya and took many photos of people in hats and blogged about it in a post titled, Thinking about hats.... Seems that I am experiencing a sort of artistic déjà vu and shot more people in hats in Shibuya with the same trusty 30-year old 85mm f/1.4 AI-S Nikkor.

However, these samples were not of the straw variety favored in the summer, but were suited for a Tokyo winter although the fashion inspiration had to cross the pacific from the American west. Seems that the original hat of the West, the “Boss of the Plains” is admired for its fashion sense and practicality in the land of the rising sun.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 85mm f/1.4 AI-S @ f2.8, ISO 100, 1/80 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 85mm f/1.4 AI-S f4.0, ISO 100, 1/250 sec.

Momori Clover Z vs KISS

Momoiro Clover Z has been collaborating with Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame band KISS. Their collaboration (or is it VS) single will be released tomorrow 28 January 2015 in Japan. Although I experienced the Momoiro Clover Z phenomenon last year though the unusual parade of fashion near the Meiji Jingu Gaien, the hysteria move a notch higher and expand globally. A gigantic billboard announcement was on display at Shibuya Station on 19 January 2015.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 85mm f/1.4 AI-S @ f1.4, ISO 500, 1/8 sec.

Good Shot

I spotted this young lady with her prize from Meiji Jingu walking towards Harajuku and Omotesando. New Year arrows or Hamaya (破魔矢) are sold at most shrines in Japan. The Hamaya are displayed in peoples homes to ward off evil spirits. This is the first time that I have seen the target as a good luck charm. If I figure out what it is called and more information, I will post it here.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 85mm f/1.4 AI-S @ f2.8, ISO 100, 1/1600 sec.

Daibutsu Hiking Trail - Kita-Kamakura, Parting Shots from Kōtoku-in and Hase - Part 7

These are the last parting shots from my New Year's Daibustsu Hike. The first if of one of the guardian Nio at the entrance gate (or Nio-mon) to Kōtoku-in. The second is of a shimekezari. This New Year's wreath is hung over doorways or on doors to welcome the Shinto spirits. The third shot is of the crowded street leading up to Hase-dera Buddhist temple. It is one of the most famous temples in Kamakura and was founded in the 8th century. The last shot is of a lolly-pop that I glanced upon and quickly took a shot as I was making my way back to the Hase train station with my family.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 100, 1/250 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 100, 1/1250 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 100, 1/250 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f4.0, ISO 100, 1/100 sec.

Daibutsu Hiking Trail - Kita-Kamakura, Kōtoku-in - Part 6

The end of the Daibutsu Hiking Trail emerges from the woods above a tunnel and street several hundred meters away from Hase Station, Kōtoku-in and the Daibutsu. Arriving at Kōtoku-in were were lucky to be greeted by clear blue skies. A picture perfect end to a great hike in Kamakura.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 20 mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/60 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 20 mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/400 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens f8.0, ISO 100, 1/200 sec.

Daibutsu Hiking Trail - Kita-Kamakura, Kuzuharaoka-jinja - Part 5

The next stop on our way to the Daibutsu was Kuzuharaoka-jinja (there's more information in English here). This small shrine dedicated to Toshimoto Hino was founded in 1887 by Emperor Meiji. There is Daikokuten statue here that is popular among women who want a good marriage partner. I didn't find the statue (I wasn't looking for it) but I did find the matchmaking stones that are tied together. There is also a Masaruishi stone on prominent display at the entrance to the shrine. According to the sign, "Throw a dish at the rock to be rid of all malign influences in life..." There's a one-hundred yen donation for a small plate that you can throw at the rock.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 35 mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/320 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 17 mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/80 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 16 mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/500 sec.

Daibutsu Hiking Trail - Kita-Kamakura, Nōkyōchō or Shuincho from Jōchi-ji - Part 4

This is the nōkyōchō or shuincho from Jōchi-ji. It's a little more elaborate than the one from Tōkei-ji.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 35 mm, f4.5, ISO 400, 1/100 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 35 mm, f4.5, ISO 400, 1/160 sec.

Daibutsu Hiking Trail - Kita-Kamakura, Tōkei-ji and Jōchi-ji - Part 3

This set of photos from my New Year hike reveals some behind the scenes processing. I used to use Adobe Photoshop, but for the last few years I have been using Nikon NX2 to process the RAW files (NEF) from my Nikon. Usually I avoid over-processing since it slows down my workflow, and try to get the final shot in camera. However for first shot of the bell at Tōkei-ji and the two shots from Jōchi-ji, I wasn't satisfied and needed to bend the digital pixels to my will.

The temple bell or Bonshō at Tōkei-ji just didn't "pop" as I thought in would. The usual adjustments to curves and levels, contrast, and exposure, left this image a little too flat. However, I then tried B&W and finally selected a sepia version as the preferred version of this image. What do you think of my choice? Does this have more impact than the color version?

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 16 mm, f4.0, ISO 800, 1/125 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 16 mm, f4.0, ISO 800, 1/125 sec.

The next shot is some colorful autumn maple leaves. The leaves remaining on branches were thinning out and starting to lose their vivid fall colors. The colors in the original RAW file were also a little flat. The processing was a little more straight forward, curves were adjusted, color saturation boosted and contrast increased.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 35 mm, f4.5, ISO 400, 1/20 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 35 mm, f4.5, ISO 400, 1/20 sec.

The last shot is of Hotei, god of happiness at Jōchi-ji temple. The highlights in the original are almost blown out; however, since I shoot in RAW, there is still some hidden detail that can be coaxed out of the digital pixels in the file. The work on this image is basically a straight forward dodge and burn job. Darken the highlights, but not too much, and keep the shadow areas from receiving any additional exposure. In NX2, it is fairly easy to select and mask the areas to be dodged or burned-in using color control points.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 31 mm, f5.6, ISO 400, 1/1250 sec.

Nikon D600 with Nikon 16-35mm f/4G ED VR II AF-S IF SWM @ 31 mm, f5.6, ISO 400, 1/1250 sec.