JAPAN in WINTER
BEAUTY in SIMPLICIITY
Hokkaido in Black and White
Japan is known for its stunning beauty in its uncomplicated art and architecture. Simplicity in lines and forms. Simplicity in dress. Where else does a photographer want to go to find landscapes that offer opportunities to create calming images than winter in Hokkaido? Snow blankets the land allowing only the graceful structure of leafless trees to stand out against the white of the landscape. Small animal tracks help lead the eye to the subject. Enjoy the peaceful effect of these attached images...
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Hokkaido in Color
The soft colors created by the winter light in northern Japan lends itself beautifully to the use of color even in minimalism photography. These scenes in particular seemed to tell the story better in color. This set includes the fox in the landscape in some of the images! Click here to see them all.
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Simplicity in Architecture
Modern Japanese architecture holds true to the concepts of clean lines and simplicity as seen here in some night shots in the city. Beauty in the use of lighting its lines and curves juxtaposed against each other. Check out this series of black and white images!
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WILDLIFE of HOKKAIDO JAPAN
Red Crowned Cranes
The northern most island in Japan, Hokkaido, houses resident red crowned cranes, named for the red skin on the crown of their heads. They are stately birds standing as tall as 5' with wing spans as much as 8'! These birds mate for life which is between 30-40 years. They exhibit an interesting form of mating behavior known as "dancing". They will approach each other in a manner that looks like a dance, then start honking which can set up the others to do likewise. You will see images here of the honking (in cold air!) as well as dancing with their wings furled out and legs in the air. They are such fun to watch!
We had a sudden snow squall come up which triggered the birds to take off flying. The atmosphere turned a shade of blue with snow swirling all around us. Here are a few images I captured of the cranes on a sanctuary and in the river where they spend the night. We were fortunate to see mist rising at sunrise one morning casting a gorgeous mysterious light onto the birds and hoar frost on the trees turning them shades of pink and lavender. Click here for the cranes
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Sea Eagles
The alarm went off at 4:30 am our first day of photographing sea eagles, also known as Steller's Sea Eagles. At 5:45 am we boarded the boat in -0 degree temperatures! The boat cut its way through chunks of sea ice as the sun began to rise across the water. Gradually sea eagles appeared above us as the word went out that it was time to hunt fish. With telephoto on the camera and settings in place we began to track the birds. As word went out, more eagles flew in. The skies turned shades of pink and yellow as eagles flew up and down all around us - a hundred or more. I discovered how hard it is to track a moving bird in low light! Getting the shutter speed right with the light constantly changing on moving birds was a challenge.
Many, many fast shots later it all came together. Eagles swooped and dove, caught fishes and lost fishes, squabbled with other eagles or just hung out with their fellow eagles on an iceburg. It was exhilarating despite the bitter cold. Here are a set of images from three mornings of shooting. Of course, all are available for purchasing should any strike you!
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Foxes, Deer and Swans
Winter is perfect for wildlife photography as besides the large animals, little animals show up beautifully against the white background of snow - almost like one is shooting in a studio! The foxes were adorable - so tempting to want to reach out and pet one such as this little guy who came right up to our car, his nose all covered in snow. He just cocked his head much as my little bernedoodle dog would. Irresistible. These guys were very healthy looking - shiny fur and plump.
We found herds of the Ezo deer, a large animal with amazingly large racks of antlers. They were not at all shy so photographing them was easy.
The whooper swans, however, were more of a challenge as they congregated together creating a chaotic scene or they took off in flight making it a challenge to get sharp faces while showing the motion of the wings. In some instances I chose to let them all blur making for a more impressionistic image. We found them staying warm around the hot springs which also added an ethereal mood to them with steam circling around them. For a selection of wildlife images, click here!
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PEOPLE, FOOD and SCENES of JAPAN
Snippets of Japan
Having shot nearly over 6000 images in my two weeks in Japan, it becomes a major task to whittle them down to the ones that best represent all the experiences. It is a culture of respect - of elders, of children, of the food they serve and of their gods. The shrines and temples are filled with people coming for blessings and paying homage to their deities. This is a woman cleansing herself before entering the Meiji Jingu Shrine in Tokyo, a ritual seen at all entrances to temples and shrines.
The emphasis on simplicity in living surrounds you with pieces of art and fountains. The characters of the language become part of that art. There is also a reverence for antiquity as seen in the villages still intact for centuries. Here are a few snapshots depicting Japanese culture and its landscapes.
A RESTORATIVE PROJECT
2020 - 2024
Finding Calm Amidst Chaos
The last few years have been so tumultuous politically and culturally along with the impact of a pandemic. Photography became a means for me to bring some calm into the chaos and stress of the last few years. As a child I longed for snow days when the snow laid a blanket down over my busy on-the-go world. Everything seemed suspended in calm and quiet. The soft snow hid all the imperfections of the landscapes. Summers were spent on an island on a lake in Maine. There was nothing like curling up with a book in the hammock on a foggy day. It was quiet and peaceful with only sounds of loons. Fast forward decades to our world where chaos seems everywhere. I have found relief in being out with a camera in the fog and snow of my childhood. Fog and snow throw a blanket over our world as a way of slowing us down, bringing with them a hush over the land. Quiet and calm is restored. We are restored. Enjoy a bit of relief from this chaos. Just looking at a beautiful peaceful print on a wall in a moment of stress makes life so much better!
Peaceful Snowfall
A collection of images from wanderings in winter. Winter affords a time for restoration much like bears hibernating. Snow makes us stop a moment. Its fluffiness is like down, absorbing harsh sounds of our world.
Enjoy some ethereal magical images of snowfall through this collection. Click here for more.
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Blankets of Fog
Fog, like snow, calms the world. Visibility forces cars to drive more slowly, muffling the noise of engines. A foggy blanket absorbs sounds. It also visually simplifies an otherwise chaotic scene minimizing what our eyes see. Clutter vanishes. It is restorative like snow when we take a moment to stop and take it in.
Take a meditative moment and click here to view some images created in fog.
