Going over some pictures from our recent trip to Okinawa, I was disappointed with those from our visit to Kouri Island, a small island a bit more than a mile in circumference off the northwestern coast of Okinawa. It's an island that has, more or less, nothing for tourists except the bridge leading to it, which is pretty.

I hadn't even looked at the pictures until today, and when I did, I was depressed by a lot of flat boringness that didn't really reflect the dynamic nature of the weather and the interesting landscape.

Until I came across this one.

After getting my Nikon D700 and putting its low-light capabilities to the test (see: "Impossible Photography: No Light, No Tripod, No Hope. D700 and a 50mm f/1.2" and "A Few More D700 f/1.2 Night Shots") I quickly expanded my understanding of the lighting conditions in which I could do handheld photography. In exploring this new territory, I often pushed too far and ended up with poor results, but surprisingly often I got results that would have been considered impossible just a couple of years ago, such as Anthony blowing out birthday candles, or riding his bike at dusk, or doing [...]

Continuing from yesterday's post, Japan's Coming of Age Day Holiday Spectacle, here are some portrait-type shots I was able to get. Let me reiterate, though, that I was scrambling to get anything, having gotten there and hour and a half after the ceremonies had ended, and didn't have time to scout locations that would give me both a good background and steady stream of photographic fodder. So, I got what I could, where I could, when I could.

I had noticed a sliver of light from the setting sun make its way between buildings, and saw this girl approaching, so [...]

I really need to learn how to use a calendar. Yesterday I missed the fire-department parade because I forgot about it, and today for the same reason I mostly missed the frightening spectacle that is Coming of Age Day in Japan, a holiday for those who turn 20 years old during the current school year, celebrating their official entrance into legal adulthood. This year's ceremonies were for those born between April 2, 1988 and April 1, 1989, inclusive. It's the first to include those born during the reign of the current emperor, and the last for which I can say [...]

Today was the annual Kyoto City Fire Department New-Year Parade, held out in the street near my place. According to the press release, it involved about 3,000 people, 56 fire trucks/vehicles, and two fire-department helicopters. The same event three years ago, which was my first outing with a dSLR, was overcast and gloomy, but today it was bright and sunny.

Unfortunately, I missed it.

I'd forgotten about it, and was reminded only by the thunderous rumble of the helicopters flying very low, immediately overhead, taking part in the finale. (The press release said that only two would take part, but [...]