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![Saturday In the Park local hubbub at the Itami Sky Park next to Osaka (Itami) Airport -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Saturday In the Park local hubbub at the Itami Sky Park next to Osaka (Itami) Airport -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078632_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 500mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 220 — map & image data — nearby photos
Saturday In the Park
local hubbub at the Itami Sky Park next to Osaka (Itami) Airport
![Ringside View -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Ringside View -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078604_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 170mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 280 — map & image data — nearby photos
Ringside View
Prior to Kansai International opening as Osaka's international airport in 1994, the closer-to-town Osaka Airport filled that position, but now it's used mostly for domestic flights. It straddles the border between Osaka and Hyogo prefectures, but lies mostly in Hyogo, in its city of Itami, so it's often referred to as “Osaka (Itami)”.
Immediately next to it, running more than a kilometer long, is a thin strip of city park called the Itami Sky Park. We stopped by while visiting some friends last spring.
![Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078592_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 290mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 280 — map & image data — nearby photos
We tried some badminton, but it was a windy day and without buildings or trees to inhibit it as it crossed the airport, at the park it was absolutely howling....
![Hitting It Forward made it go backwards -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Hitting It Forward made it go backwards -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078597_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 420mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Hitting It Forward
made it go backwards
Luckily, there were lots of jungle-gym type things sprinkled across the length for kids of various ages...
![Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078609_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 50mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
![Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078613_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 50mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 1250 — map & image data — nearby photos
![Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078638_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 500mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
![Occasional Passers-By -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Occasional Passers-By -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078601_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 500mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Occasional Passers-By
![this particular one was Meant for Younger Kids but still fun -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ this particular one was Meant for Younger Kids but still fun -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078654_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 50mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 1100 — map & image data — nearby photos
this particular one was
Meant for Younger Kids
but still fun
![Late-Afternoon Snack -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Late-Afternoon Snack -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078647_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 500mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Late-Afternoon Snack
![Nom Nom Nom -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Nom Nom Nom -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078649_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma 50-500mm OS @ 500mm cropped — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 2800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Nom Nom Nom
![Something in Bloom -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Something in Bloom -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078599_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 420mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 360 — map & image data — nearby photos
Something in Bloom
![Heading Down -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Heading Down -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078664_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 500mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 1000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Heading Down
![Race -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/ Race -- Itami Sky Park -- Itami, Hyogo, Japan -- Copyright 2011 Jeffrey Friedl, https://regex.info/blog/](/i/JF7_078667_sm.jpg)
Nikon D700 + Sigma “Bigma” 50-500mm OS @ 116mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Race
We barely saw one small part of it... there looks to be much left to explore. If you're in the area with kids, it's highly recommended.
Looks like you guys had fun. Greg had fun playing at that park with some pals, and on another day we went to the airport itself, which has an outdoor deck where you can watch all the action. Another time they had a summer festival where Greg was able to try on uniforms and climb on the tarmac vehicles and participate in an airplane pull. They put a tow rope on a 757 and about 70 kids in a line pulling together were actually able to get it rolling. That was fun.
Great photos. I really like the ones of Anthony in the roped jungle-gym photos. Very nice
I actually just read the comment from Nils and I have to say that a bunch of kids pulling a 757 would be quite a site!
The 2nd shot of your kid in the ropey jungle gym is exceptionally nice. (JF7_078613_sm.jpg). The light reflecting off of the ropes in the bottom right corner along with the color of the ropes themselves, -looks very warm and inviting. Your son is just out of focus but not so much and then the in-focus ropes juxtaposed against the out of focus ones in the background… Rule of thirds, blah blah blah. My eyes also takes a very nice trip in this photo: 1st to the lower right corner, 2nd travel up the human subject; register their facial expression, 3rd my eyes wrestle with the 2 walls of rope lattices. Rinse & Repeat. Very nice photo, like something out of a magazine. How far away from Anthony were you in getting this shot?
Thanks for your kind words… your analysis goes much deeper than mine (which is “I like it” 🙂 ). IIRC, the ropes were probably about two feet above my head. —Jeffrey