I heard from a friend today that the plum blossoms at the Kitano Tenmangu Shrine (北野天満宮) in northern Kyoto are at their best, so I thought I'd revisit my went-too-early visit from two weeks ago, last written about here, with more of the same.... blossoms blossoms blossoms.

I prefer the white ones over the pink, so let's start out with some of those...

I'm always amazed at how a tiny change in perspective or composition can make an otherwise similar photo feel completely different. Maybe it's just me, but this next shot, almost identical to the one that leads this [...]

Today's post combines a couple of things I've written about recently, Läkerol candy and Japanese pottery, as seen in "Cornucopia of Tasty Läkerol Licorice" and "Failing a New Portraiture Challenge: Reflective Pottery".

The latter post detailed the tough time Zak Braverman and I had photographing some reflective tenmoku pottery by Koji Kamada (鎌田幸二). In the end we were able to rescue enough shots in Photoshop that he could use them to create the invitation cards for a show, and in thanks he gave us each a bowl that he had made but couldn't sell due to some (apparently minor, because [...]

Going back to round out my posts about my first visit to the Hosen-in Temple (宝泉院) in Kyoto's mountain suburb of Ohara last fall, today's post picks up after parts two and three.

The path from the main road is flanked by stalls selling all manner of snacks. These senbei were pretty and, according to Damien and Paul who accompanied me on this trip, tasty; I generally shy away from carbs, so I photographed rather than ate...

We got off that main path and took a back route through village streets that Damien knew, freeing ourselves from the crowded path [...]

I'm not sure what's with the bull near the entrance of the Kitano Tenmangu Shrine (北野天満宮), but people come up to rub its snout.... perhaps for good luck, I suppose.

Yesterday's post was about the temple's plum orchard, but there's plenty to see in the free open areas of the shrine. The tree near the bull is the closest to the entrance, so I usually start my visit there.

I actually can't always tell the difference among the blossoms (plum, peach, apricot, and cherry). There might be some peach here, I dunno. Lots of variety...

This shrine allows tripods, quiet [...]

As I mentioned in my previous post, the plum is starting to bloom in Kyoto. One of the famous spots for it is the Kitano Tenmangu Shrine (北野天満宮), which has a large orchard that you can visit for 600 yen (about US$7). It's not worth paying to see the orchard yet, though, because the blossoms are pretty sparse. I got my calendar confused, so paid to go in...

Close ups on individual branches are still fruitful, but you can get plenty of that in the free open area of the shrine. It's when the orchard is brimming with blossoms that [...]