Anthony’s KidZania Job #2: Construction Work
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Yeah, That'll Do -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 50 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 3200 — map & image datanearby photos
Yeah, That'll Do

Continuing with the story about our visit to KidZania in Nishinomiya, Japan the other day, where Anthony started his play by working as a gas-station attendant and then got some banking done before searching for his next job.

It turns out that he got lucky, because as he was showing interest in a construction job, the foreman said that a job was about to start and that they had room for one more, so he didn't have to wait at all.

(Unfortunately, the uniform color is that blinding, pure orange that I have such trouble with, as I discussed in the middle of the first KidZania post. I don't doubt that a skilled photographer could handle this, but I ended up with all kinds of shades of yellow mixed in. Sigh.)

Minor Uniform Adjustment ( I just love his face in this one ) -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 4000 — map & image datanearby photos
Minor Uniform Adjustment
( I just love his face in this one )
Heading Off to Work giving Mommy a (slightly apprehensive, “well, here I go!”) smile -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 66 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 1800 — map & image datanearby photos
Heading Off to Work
giving Mommy a (slightly apprehensive, “well, here I go!”) smile
Wide Range of Talent -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 56 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Wide Range of Talent
Crane (Left) And Partially-Built Tower (Right) -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 2500 — map & image datanearby photos
Crane (Left) And Partially-Built Tower (Right)
Two “Caution: Construction” Signs (one at white arrow is real; at left arrow is play) -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 1000 — map & image datanearby photos
Two “Caution: Construction” Signs
(one at white arrow is real; at left arrow is play)

The 10 kids went to the back of the construction zone for some instruction, and to be divided into four groups. After a while, Anthony and some other kids left the construction zone and entered the city, going where I had no idea. I followed....

Business Trip? -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 1800 — map & image datanearby photos
Business Trip?

Turns out that they were moving to the second-story level of the construction zone, via some stairs near the flight-attendant academy. Whatever Anthony's job was involved an extra safety harness and tether....

Equipment Instruction -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/80 sec, f/2.8, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Equipment Instruction

I was happy when we got home to show Anthony photos of workers on a crane wearing the same safety harness.

Anyway, while this was going on, a group down below was working on prepping the top of the tower for installation....

Tip Top of the Tower -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 4500 — map & image datanearby photos
Tip Top of the Tower

The crane had already moved the top half of the tower tip from its position in the square box to on top of the hexagonal part, and now the kids were securing it together. The crane was operated by a couple of kids from a console on the second level near Anthony, and the two sets of kids (those operating the crane and those at the business end) communicated with hastily-learned voice and hand commands identical to what you'd hear at a Japanese construction site.

Meanwhile, another group of kids was at work constructing a bridge that leads to the base of the tower....

Moving the Keystone Pieces Into Place of a segmented arch bridge -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 4500 — map & image datanearby photos
Moving the Keystone Pieces Into Place
of a segmented arch bridge
Watching The Cranework -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/80 sec, f/3.5, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Watching The Cranework
Hoisting Up the Tower Tip -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.5, ISO 5600 — map & image datanearby photos
Hoisting Up the Tower Tip

At this point Anthony's group had to call out instructions to the kids operating the crane, to position the top just above its mount, then let it down. The kids then rotated the tip to lock it into position on the base of the tower.

Final Adjustments -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 60 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Final Adjustments
tongue sticking out, Releasing the Hoist -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 5600 — map & image datanearby photos
tongue sticking out,
Releasing the Hoist
Final Inspection -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 27 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Final Inspection
Putting Safety Equipment Away -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/50 sec, f/3.2, ISO 6400 — map & image datanearby photos
Putting Safety Equipment Away
meanwhile, down below... Bridge Load-Bearing Structural Test -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 4000 — map & image datanearby photos
meanwhile, down below...
Bridge Load-Bearing Structural Test
Getting Ready To Flip the Switch on the lights running up the tower and into the just-installed tip -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 32 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 3600 — map & image datanearby photos
Getting Ready To Flip the Switch
on the lights running up the tower and into the just-installed tip
Getting Set Up for a Group Photo -- KidZania Koshien -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2009 Jeffrey Friedl, http://regex.info/blog/
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/100 sec, f/3.2, ISO 1800 — map & image datanearby photos
Getting Set Up for a Group Photo

All the kids then got on the bridge, and they snapped a photo, after which the kids lined up to receive their pay. We were told to stop by after an hour, and they'd have free copies for the kids, and indeed they did.

Continued here...


All 4 comments so far, oldest first...

First, yeah, that’s what I was waiting for for Anthony! I bed he loved that. I can’t wait to see what he did next.

Second, why on earth is a Japanese caution sign in English? And “Open”? Aren’t these things that should be in the country’s native language? Just curious.

“Open” and “Closed” are often used in daily life (though “Closed” generally appears as “Close”), so these signs mimic real life. The construction sign, now that you mention it, is a surprise. Maybe the one I thought was real (it’s in front of an area under construction) is not. Being used to both languages, it didn’t even register which one it was in. Doh! —Jeffy

— comment by Marcina, USA on July 4th, 2009 at 7:32am JST (14 years, 9 months ago) comment permalink

18:35 2009 07 03 Burlington Ontario Canada near the western end of Lake Ontario.
Temperature 21 degrees C, overcast. (Wish the whole world would go metric, so much easier
unless you’re discussing kilopascals per square centimetre and variants therein.)

KidZania is something I would have expected in Germany, or Switzerland, maybe
one of the Scandinavian countries. The balance of the world’s countries,
including my own Canada somehow don’t qualify in the smarts area to think, build and have
something such as KidZania. IMO

I would assume, when KidZania is closed and shuttered, all of the activities
that happened are returned to numeral one, stage one. So the tower construction would be
disassembled along with the bridgework and similar. Ditto for everything else.

And is the whole affair sponsored by a company or series of companies?

This is audience participation at its best; the instructions and similar
are given by employees whose position is to instruct the participants?

I noticed on the Automatic Teller Machine (and noted too any of the digits would function)
that there are five digits or codes; here in Canada so far we only have four digits to consider.

Each session lasts for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the job, but after that, everything is reset for the next group of kids. You’ll notice that the benches for the waiting kids faces outward, to discourage watching the current session while you wait (so that, presumably, the experience is fresh for you when it becomes your turn).

I learned via a comment left on my first post that KidZania started in Mexico, and has now reached several countries (including the US, with the horrible name of “Wannado City”).

The lead photo of the banking post shows a PIN of 4 digits. Maybe you counted in metric? 😀 —Jeffrey

— comment by Bryce Lee in Burlington ON Canada on July 4th, 2009 at 7:50am JST (14 years, 9 months ago) comment permalink

Hi Jeff,

Quick question about the orange: You mention skilled photographers doing much better. Do you mean with the software, or the shooting? If the shooting… how would you do better? -do you mean with the lighting/lighting presets? I don’t mean exposure but those cloudy day, fluorescent light, sunset, etc -those settings.

Also when you do go post shooting and try to fix the color are you just going from memory or do you use some other cue? ( Our memories can be deceptive).

I’m shooting with a measly RICOH R8 and recently saw a fungus growing on a log (in NJ) that was so bright red it almost looked fake. Its fascinating when you see such vivid colors in/produced by nature. The red in my photos was blown out to this weak orange. Just curious about your techniques for adjusting color.

If I knew exactly what a better photographer would do, I guess I’d be that better photographer. But what I should have done, I think, is add -1 or -2EV so that the color channels don’t get blown out, then correct the brightness in post as best I could. Without being careful the result could look HDR-fake, but one would hope this is not a totally unsolvable problem. For the color balance, you can get a close approximation of the most accurate representation the situation allows by keying off something in the scene that’s supposed to be white (although there are many shades of “white”, so YMMV). But that often doesn’t give pleasing results, so I use that as a base and go from there, using my own memory and tastes to drive the final product, until I get frustrated and give up and revert back to “As Shot” 🙂 —Jeffrey

— comment by Ron Evans on July 5th, 2009 at 4:37am JST (14 years, 8 months ago) comment permalink

Jeffrey,
You have been using your Nikon D700 for a long time now.
What is your opinion of its build quality (like the storage-media card door)?
What do you think about the ‘web-reported’ un-centered 95% viewfinder coverage?
Thank you.
Alex

It all seems fine to me. I haven’t noticed much about the coverage, because my inability to hold the camera level means I need to shoot a bit wide, anyway, so I can rotate that last 0.5 degrees one way or the other in post. The biggest hassle to me is the focus-mode-selector switch, which is the same easy-to-bump style as on the D200. IIRC, my friend’s D90’s switch is much nicer. The card door pops open sometimes, and it wouldn’t surprise me to hear stories of it getting damaged if it popped open while shoving into a bag. I’d like to say that I take care and so haven’t had any problems, but I’m pretty rough and haven’t had any problems. —Jeffrey

— comment by Alex Chng on July 6th, 2009 at 8:32pm JST (14 years, 8 months ago) comment permalink
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