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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 80 mm — 1/320 sec, f/3.5, ISO 200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Another photo from yesterday's Shichi-go-san event with Anthony. Anthony gestures to his grandfather with his ougi (folding fan).
I thought I'd give this one a try in B&W, which is a much more difficult proposition than you might expect if you've never done it. In Adobe Lightroom you can adjust all kinds of parameters for how the conversion from color is done, completely changing the character of the result in wild swings with a flick of a slider. Even while remaining in the grayscale world, the creative opportunities are endless... and if you are not guided by an innate sense of what you want, you end up wandering around in circles. This doesn't even consider the additional dimensions that doing a monotone or duotone rendition add.
My brain got fried pretty quickly. I have no idea whether this particular rendition is what I want, because I have no idea what I want other than to move on to something else. 🙂
UPDATE: Okay, I removed the fence rail in the background that had the unfortunate placement of looking like it was Anthony's fan thurst through Grandpa's arm.
And to appeas my Mom who likes a little color better, here's a version with that antique 60's faded-color look...
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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/125 sec, f/2.8, ISO 720 — map & image data — nearby photos
Anthony
two weeks shy of seven years old
As I mentioned the other day, today Anthony had his first shichi-go-san event, an important milestone in Japanese culture for kids aged six, four and two. The event's name means “seven, five, three”, and represent the ages when you add a year to account for their time in the womb.
The Heian Shrine near our place is very popular for this, and last year I would sometimes just hang out around the shrine during and photograph the kids, the results of which I've posted in “Kids in Kimono: Cute Enough to Eat”, “More Kids in Kimono: Still Cute”, and one section of “How I Spent My Saturday in Kyoto”.
This time it was my kid, who is far cuter than the others (of course), so I did my fair share of photography, and then some. I used two camera bodies and three lenses, but I didn't get many photos – only 508 – because photography was not allowed within the inner areas of the shrine itself. Of the 508 photos, about 100 vie for status as my favorite. I foresee many postings on this in my blog's future.
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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/125 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Appetizer
Moritaya Restaurant
Kyoto, Japan
As I mentioned in yesterday's post, we took Fumie's folks out for their 35th wedding anniversary, to Moritaya (モリタ屋) for sukiyaki.
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/60 sec, f/4.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Preparation
waitress/cook prepares raw egg for later dipping cooked meat and veggies
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 15 mm — 1/80 sec, f/3.5, ISO 4500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Getting Started
Sukiyaki involves cooking fresh veggies and meat right at the table, with a bit of sauce and water. One specialty to the Kyoto style is to sprinkle a bit of special sugar (some kind of large-grain coarse white sugar) into the pan, which both adds a bit of sweetness and prevents the meat from burning.
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/80 sec, f/3.5, ISO 5000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Offering a Taste
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 24 mm — 1/80 sec, f/4, ISO 5600 — map & image data — nearby photos
The Scene
Nikon D700 + Sigma 30mm f/1.4 — 1/80 sec, f/1.8, ISO 1100 — map & image data — nearby photos
A Bit More Sauce
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 35 mm — 1/80 sec, f/2.8, ISO 4000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Mmmm, Grape Juice!
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 52 mm — 1/80 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Sugar for the Second Course
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 40 mm — 1/80 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3600 — map & image data — nearby photos
“More, Please”
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/80 sec, f/3.5, ISO 3600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Dessert
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 35 mm — 1/80 sec, f/4.5, ISO 2500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Happy Tummies
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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 82 mm — 1/2500 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Satisfied Accomplishment
I had a photogenic day today. Riding bikes out in the park with Anthony, I taught him how to ride down steps. He was apprehensive, but I demonstrated, he tried it, and was successful.
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 120 mm — 1/1000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Off-Road Rider
Time flys... it seems that it was only just the other day that he got is first bike and learned to ride.
While we were there, we got a call from Fumie telling us to check in at the Heian Shrine for a fitting for Anthony to wear a hakama (traditional Japanese male formal ware) at a shichi-go-san children's-blessing festival event next week. We've always wanted to see him dressed up like this – it's going to be so cute – but so far have only done it informally and incidentally while staying at traditional inns, such as in Kinosaki last March.
Hakama can be traditional and classic or wild and outlandish; we opted for “traditional and classic”...
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 42 mm — 1/125 sec, f/3.2, ISO 1400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Fitting
We're particularly excited because we didn't think we'd get to do this, because when Fumie had called about a reservation, they told her that there was nothing available. I'd lamented about this to my friend Shimada-san, and he did some research and was somehow able to procure a slot for us. Thanks, Shimada-san!
When we got home, Anthony engaged in some dual-lightsaber action, with lightsabers he had made from construction paper. Luckily, I was able to snap a photo before he cut my head off...
In the evening, we took Fumie's folks out to celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary. (My own folks' 48th is in less than two weeks.)
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 14 mm — 1/125 sec, f/2.8, ISO 4500 — map & image data — nearby photos
Cheers!
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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/320 sec, f/3.2, ISO 2000 — map & image data — nearby photos
Returning From the Bus Stop
I hung out near the bus stop waiting for Anthony to return home this afternoon, hoping to get a shot of him in a nicely-coordinated green shirt and orange sweatshirt. I concealed myself behind a sign to get a candid, bit it turns out he had the sweatshirt in his bag. Still, I really like the look on his face in this shot.
If he were older he'd be checking out the camera or its female user, but at this point he doesn't care about either, so his face is wearing a “just checking out the world” look.
It seems so long ago that he commuted to school all by himself for the first time, but it's regular fare now.
As for the big typhoon I mentioned in my previous post, it turned out to be a big fizzle here. I got up at 5:30am to find a light drizzle and an almost unreal lack of wind. Tokyo on the other hand, got blasted. Also, I followed through on my plan to go to the Shogunzuka Kyoto Overlook for the sunset, but due to a clerical error on my part, arrived after sunset. Sigh.
It's been that kind of couple of weeks. I'm still not even close to getting caught up on email from last week's cold. Maybe next week....