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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 cropped — ¹/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Tree in Section

In the mountains of Northern Kyoto, after the stop along the logging road that produced last week's “Deep In The Mountains Above Kyoto's Kumogahata Village”, we moved deeper in/up the mountains and eventually came upon our first “vista” with a distant view. It wasn't particularly magnificent by any stretch, but it was the first we'd seen so it was nice.

I knew instinctively that I'd not be able to capture the sense of depth and elevation, and I was correct...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/800 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Blah

The “tree in section” in the center of the photo is way below us down a steep slope, but the photo really gives no sense of that. The next version, with the focus much closer, hints more at the true scenario, but is still lacking...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/2000 sec, f/1.4, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Somewhat Less Blah

While stopped at the “vista” point, I noticed some semblance of a trail leading up the mountain, and we took it for a distance...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 5000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Trailish

In the distance, top center of the photo above, you can see a moss-covered rock. How big is the rock? Here's a closer look...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/125 sec, f/4, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Looks Sort Of Big
but check out those form-fitting roots...

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 4500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Funky Form-Fitting Roots

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/320 sec, f/2.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Built to Spec

The form-fitting roots are interesting, but I find the lack of scale irritating, and I have to resort to an out-of-focus Paul for some scale...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/160 sec, f/1.4, ISO 280 — map & image data — nearby photos
Finally Some Scale
it was a big rock

I wish I knew how to capture the essence of scale (bigness, tallness, deepness, far-awayness, etc.) better. It's quite a challenge. (And hence we have the horrible pun of this post's title. :-))

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Tree (and Ferns) Growing On Bare Rock

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Towering Boulders, Towering Trees

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 2200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Not Everything Is Towering

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Another View of the Funky Roots

Continued here...

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/1.4, ISO 900 — map & image data — nearby photos
Private Viewing
House-side garden at the Shimyouin Temple (志明院)
remote northern mountains of Kyoto Japan

During yesterday's trip into the woods of northern Kyoto, we came across the remote Shimyouin Temple (志明院) at the end of a dead-end road that branches off from another dead-end road; in other words, it's remote.

As I wrote yesterday, I was with Paul Barr and Katsunori Shimada, and we were out on one of our photo expeditions, having spent the previous two Thursdays similarly occupied in Uji (as evidenced by many posts recent, such as this, this, this, and many more I've yet to write). We take a lot of photos among us because that's our main goal, yet it speaks as a testament to yesterday's Shimyouin Temple that we spent the better part of two hours enjoying it without taking a single photo among us.

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/100 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Garden and Background Waterfall

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/7.1, ISO 3600 — map & image data — nearby photos
No Cameras Beyond This Point

Photography is completely forbidden beyond the big gate through which the path leads up the mountain to the main temple and its various associated sites; we had to leave our cameras at the priest's house by the parking lot. They feel that the area is too holy to allow photography (though I don't understand the relationship between the two).

I didn't enjoy that I wasn't allowed to take pictures, but it's their land and I'm free to leave if I don't agree to their rules. I'm glad I stayed, because after paying the 300 yen to enter, dropping off my camera, and passing through the gate and heading up the mountain to the temple and its various sites, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. It's not that it was particularly spectacular in any particular way, but it felt completely “real” and noncommercial. In comparison, a popular tourist spot like the Kiyomizu Temple feels as superficial as Disneyland.

They have a little waterfall/fountain that claims to be the source of the Kamo River that runs down the eastern length of Kyoto. It wasn't more than a small stream up there, but by the time it gets to the city proper, it can be quite the angry river.

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Gate and Steps Beyond

As nice as the site was, the real treat for me was chatting with the priest and his wife. The wife had lived at the site for 42 years, since marrying the priest, and was as cute as a button. We were talking about living life so remotely, and she lamented that the best they could do for an Internet connection was ISDN (a technology so slow that it would take the better part of 30 seconds to download just the first thumbnail in this post). The way she pouted as she said osoi mon... (“it's so slow”) was cute beyond words. I guess you had to be there.

Paul and I enjoyed a lazy coffee in the house while viewing the garden and the rain, while Shimada-san opted for green tea. We were in no rush about anything. It was really nice. We had the place to ourselves the entire time.

Eventually the priest, Masumi Tanaka (田中真澄) returned home, and we all chatted. He's 72, looks and acts much younger, and is full of personality. Sadly, they declined my request to take their portrait (“It's embarrassing!”), but a web search found them in this photo flanking a visitor two weeks ago.

However, he did grant us permission to take photos of the garden from the house, so it's at that time we broke out the cameras, and one such photo leads this post.

One of the stone lanterns in the garden reminded me more of the Vancouver Olympic symbol than a Japanese stone lantern...

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 4000 — map & image data — nearby photos

As I started to write this post, I compared the time of the first garden photo to the time of a photo I took in the parking lot when we arrived (of a sign showing the name of the temple). I'd expected that it might be 30 or 45 minutes that we had enjoyed the temple and the garden, so was quite surprised to find that we had lolled around for 110 minutes. I guess it was just that enjoyable.

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/500 sec, f/1.4, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Priest's House

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/320 sec, f/2.8, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Looking Down to the Parking Lot

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/500 sec, f/1.4, ISO 320 — map & image data — nearby photos
Monks' Quarters

The temple is apparently a training ground for the “marathon monks” of nearby Mt. Hiei, though none are in residence at the moment. (Kyoto friend Nils Ferry wrote a couple of years ago a bit about one of these “marathon monks”, the 50th person — in the last 426 years — to complete the full 1,000 day ordeal, here.)

There were a few stone things near the parking lot (not lanterns, but more like tabernacles of some kind), covered with moss and ferns, which is always pretty...

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos

The priest and his wife both speak a bit of English, and they welcome visitors and even small groups, and are quite friendly. Extremely off the beaten path and difficult to get to without a car (the nearest bus service comes as close as a mile away, but it will end early next year), but highly recommended if you bring the right attitude to appreciate what the place and its people has to offer.

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/4.5, ISO 1000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Dwarfed
( there's a person in there )

As I mentioned in this morning's post, I went out today again with Shimada-san and Paul Barr on a photographic excursion in the mountains, this time to some remote mountains in northern Kyoto, a bit further north from the small village of Kumogahata. Our first stop was at a slightly wide enough point on a dead-end logging road that stabbed deep into the wilderness....

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lots'a Ferns, Lots'a Trees

It was raining pretty much the whole time, which made for some inconvenience with the camera, but it sure made for lush green views.

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/160 sec, f/3.5, ISO 900 — map & image data — nearby photos
Snapped Like a Toothpick
( this tree, which fell across a river, is a good foot thick )

Much of the area was unkept wilderness, with trees lying where they fell over time. However, some tree-falls were more noticeable than others; the formerly-towering tree seen above left a little mark where it had reached across the river to the road when it fell...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/640 sec, f/1.4, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Ouch

The part of the trunk that had fallen over the road been cleared, but the dent remained in the guardrail, and the remains of the bulk of the tree fell away to the river, as seen in the prior photo.

It turned out to be an exceedingly common situation, with nary a section of guardrail left unmolested for miles on end. Judging from the freshness of many of the cuts, it seemed to be a perpetually-recurring condition.

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 640 — map & image data — nearby photos
Monumentally Massive

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Cut Down To Size

I could have spent an hour just exploring that one stump. The top of the stump was covered in moss, indicating that it had been felled quite some time ago. Here are two shots from the top...

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Nothing In Particular
seed pods or cones of some kind, and a stick, I guess

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 5600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Daddy Longlegs
I had other shots where he was in better focus, but I like this one best

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/8 sec, f/11, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Nonstop Waterfalls
rushing water tumbled over rocks for miles on end

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/320 sec, f/1.4, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Corporate Parking
Nature, Inc.

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Slope of Ferns

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/160 sec, f/1.4, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Last Look Before Moving On

We didn't stop at this location because of the scenery — it was like this for mile after mile as we pushed up the mountain — but because a small pulloff was available on the narrow road, so I could stop without blocking the road. It turns out to have been a good move, because a logging truck came by at one point and was able to squeeze by without shoving my car into the river.

We then moved a bit further up the mountain, to a spot where the road forked and I could easily park...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/200 sec, f/6.3, ISO 5000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Tree Across From Where We Parked
I sort of like the look of its lean out over a stream

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/4.5, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Little Brother

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Bridge of Questionable Dependability

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Stance of Questionable Dependability

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Our Office For The Day

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/250 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1400 — map & image data — nearby photos
The Road Is Now Open

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/250 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Next to the Road

These were our first stops, but it wasn't even noon yet and we had much exploring awaiting us. We took the “road is now open” road deeper and higher up the mountain, long past where it showed on the map. We eventually had to turn around when we came upon a huge boulder sitting in the middle of the road, but this was not before another stop at another wide point in the road led to another set of photographic delights, but that'll be for another post.

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/500 sec, f/1.6, ISO 1250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Eerily Bright

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For the past two Thursdays I've headed out on photo expeditions to the twisty rural mountain roads of Uji City (southeast of Kyoto) with Shimada-san and Paul Barr. Today we'll switch it up and hit some mountain villages to the north of Kyoto, but I've still got so much from the earlier trips I want to post. Since we're leaving in a few minutes, I'll just post a few quick shots from the first trip, which has already yielded “Scenes From Rural Japan: Mountain Village in Uji City” and “Rural Uji's Kiyotakigyuu Shrine”, among others...

While driving through a deeply-forested mountain road, we came upon an area that was eerily bright. It was slightly surreal, but I don't think I captured the effect in the shot above.

We stopped at a trailhead and hiked for a short while...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/200 sec, f/4.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Going Up

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/160 sec, f/2.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
“Take Care Against Fires”

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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/320 sec, f/2.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Steps

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/500 sec, f/3.2, ISO 200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lotsa' Layers

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/640 sec, f/2.5, ISO 200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Heading Off To Fetch More Seedlings

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four long minutes later
Still Going
“An Honest Day's Work” Personified

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 300mm f/2 — ¹/2500 sec, f/2, ISO 1000 — map & image data — nearby photos
A Photo Of Boots Walking In The Mud
now I am a real arteest

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Continued here...

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/100 sec, f/8, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos

Deep
one of the garden areas of Kyoto's Sanzen-in Temple (三千院)

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Fumie is in the thick for preparations for her fall ballet recital, but she took a rare day off on Sunday for an outing up to the Sanzen-in Temple (三千院), half an hour's drive to the mountains north-east of Kyoto. She particularly wanted to see the hydrangea they're somewhat known for, and since they were having a “hydrangea festival” (あじさい祭), the timing seemed fortuitous.

Anthony got a pre-visit snack of mitarash dango at a shop just outside the entrance...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/125 sec, f/3.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
one down,
Two to Go

>
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/1.4, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Tasty

He couldn't eat them all, but the sauce is a bit too sweet for my taste, so we formed a symbiotic relationship whereby I ate the remaining dango after he had licked the sauce off.

There was a steady light rain and I was concentrating on family more than the camera anyway, so I didn't even bother with pictures of the main garden. Some can be seen in posts from prior visits, here and here.

Still, plenty of photographic opportunities presented themselves during our stroll, many of which seem enjoyable as desktop-backgrounds, just like these from my first visit a couple of years ago...

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/160 sec, f/9, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Inviting

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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO 4000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lawn of Moss

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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lone Tree

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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Serene Tension

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/400 sec, f/5, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Engulfed

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Family Portrait

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/100 sec, f/8, ISO 1600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Deep
( vertical version )

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/1250 sec, f/1.4, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
More Interesting Than Nature

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Random Bridge

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Too Early
I guess the hydrangea still need a couple of weeks

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 2200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Way Too Early

So much for the “festival”.

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Investigations

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 5600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Mad Scientist

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 5600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Ferns

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Fountain

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Full Reach

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — ¹/320 sec, f/7.1, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Outlying Building

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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 — ¹/160 sec, f/2.5, ISO 1000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Almost Out

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Finally Some Color!

These hydrangea near the exit were the furthest along, with a few washes of blue coming out...

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 900 — map & image data — nearby photos

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 500 — map & image data — nearby photos

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/2.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos

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Heading Home

Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/400 sec, f/4, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Waiting For Me
( sorry )