Soybeans are the building blocks of nature. Lower on the periodic table than even hydrogen, all matter in the universe is made from some form of soybeans. When roasted, they are not only useful for driving out demons, they can be ground into a fine, tasty flour called kinako. I've mentioned kinako in passing before (in Aburi-Mochi: Grilled Mochi on Skewers, and in Preschool Mochi Production).
Today, Anthony and Mommy made some kinako, just for fun.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/125 sec, f/2, ISO 500 — full exif
Mortar and Pestle
borrowed from Fumie's folks
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/100 sec, f/1.8, ISO 800 — full exif
You Just Know a 5-Year-Old Enjoys This
The roasted beans have a thin, brittle shell/husk/skin(?) that one normally eats with the beans, but which pops off when you grind them in the mortar. It made for a bit of a mess because they could sometimes fly fairly far.
You can sort of see them in the shot below, which I took of some chopstick holders that happened to be sitting on the table. There wasn't much light, so I was at f/2 or wider most of the time (f/1.6 in the shot below), resulting in very little depth of field....
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/125 sec, f/2, ISO 800 — full exif
Mommy Makes Quick Work of the Balance
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/125 sec, f/2, ISO 800 — full exif
Should Be Tasty With Strawberries
Indeed, it was. It's amazing how the ground up roasted beans tasted different than the roasted beans. We dipped the strawberries in, and it was good.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/180 sec, f/5, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lots Going On at the Kenrokuen Gardens
As I mentioned earlier, we made a short trip to Kanazawa the other day. Among the area's attractions are the Kenrokuen Gardens one of the so-called “three famous gardens” in Japan. It dates back to the 1600s, although its present state was formed later, in the mid 1800s.
It's famous for its beauty in the snow, and according to pictures I've seen it's pretty amazing in the spring, summer, and fall as well. Early march – with no snow and no flowers – is perhaps not the best time to visit, but we enjoyed it nevertheless.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 32 mm — 1/250 sec, f/7.1, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Throughout the gardens, as everywhere in Kanazawa, most pine trees (and many kinds of larger plant life, for that matter) are adorned with bamboo and twine in various configurations, ostensibly to protect the tree from damage due to heavy snow. The most common method is a tall central pole of bamboo, with ropes of twine running out to the branches. As the branches grow heavy with snow, the ropes and pole help support the weight.
Occasionally, one sees other things protected with layers of straw mats, along the lines of the freaky plant I once posted about:
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — 1/45 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Still Ready for the Snow
I suppose that's a stone lantern under cover. On either side of it, you can see two large posts supporting the large pine tree next to it. Oddly, we didn't see any of the tree snuggies that are so common in Kyoto.
Upon arrival in Kanazawa and seeing these kinds of things absolutely everywhere, it becomes clear that all these botanical accoutrements are often more for their form than their function. They've made quite an art out of it over the years, although the ones seen in the Kenrokuen Gardens are on the simple, subdued side of things.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 35 mm — 1/160 sec, f/3.2, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Anonymous Path #137
We had time to see only a small part of the gardens, so if we ever go back during a more “in season” season, I'd plan for a lot more time to explore and enjoy. Still, there were plenty of calm, serene areas to enjoy.
Still awaiting spring, most colors were rather bland. However, there was an especially rich area of green moss, which made a nice backdrop to the first deep pink plum blossoms that had appeared...
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — 1/60 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Hint of Spring
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 17 mm — 1/60 sec, f/3.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
House of Some Sort
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/750 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Sending a Photo to Anthony & Obaachan
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — 1/160 sec, f/5, ISO 160 — map & image data — nearby photos
Budding Attraction
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 35 mm — 1/90 sec, f/3.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Anonymous Path #021
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 18 mm — 1/320 sec, f/4, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Waterfall and Naked Stone Lantern
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 38 mm — 1/250 sec, f/4, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Extended Reach
The support for the branch above is likely required for the heavy burden of blossoms the tree will have in about a month.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/2000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Anthony Rides a Police Horse
Another day, another 826 pictures. Thank goodness that I decided to catch up a bit on email this morning rather than photograph the start of the Kyoto City Half Marathon, or I would have had even more photos to deal with.
As part of the festivities surrounding the half marathon, which starts and ends right here south of the Heian Shrine, the Kyoto Prefectural Mounted Police allowed kids between 4 and fourth grade to get a horse ride. Fumie's mom, who watched Anthony while Fumie and I were in Kanazawa took him over. Unbeknownst to him, I followed along with my long lens to capture the event. It was right in the park where Anthony likes to ride his bike, shown all snowy at the end of this post from two weeks ago.
He was excited about the prospect of a horse ride, but I knew that he'd be apprehensive. Indeed, you can see the consternation on his face as his turn approaches...
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 170 mm — 1/2000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
You're Next
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 95 mm — 1/2000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Mounting the Mount
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/2000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Still Apprehensive
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 98 mm — 1/2000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Officer's Reassuring Words
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 102 mm — 1/640 sec, f/4.5, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
All Smiles
From start to finish, his time on the horse lasted 60 seconds. Chatting with him later, he said that he wasn't scared of the horse, but of falling off the horse. I pointed out that the police officer had been holding on to him, to which he replied (rightly, I see, now that I review the photos) “yeah, but only a little bit.”
A moment after dismounting, he had to cross the path of the horse to get out, and being a police program, good traffic safety was being observed. I rarely see it any more, but all kids used to raise their hands as they crossed the street, to make themselves more visible. Seeing them have Anthony do this was a throwback to the days of old....
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 78 mm — 1/750 sec, f/4.5, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Traffic Safety
At this point I came out of stealth mode, and Obaachan saw me and pointed him my way, and when he saw me he broke into both a run and a smile...
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 105 mm — 1/1000 sec, f/4.5, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Daddy, Daddy!
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/4000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Guilty Pleasure
(the street was closed to traffic)
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/4000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
New Trick
(standing while coasting; still hasn't tried standing while pedaling)
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/3000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Marathon Runner
The little kid ran by as we watched Anthony ride his bike. I figured that I should show at least one picture of a runner, so there you go. All runners received a bottle of water and a banana at the finish, so the kid went to his dad to get his banana.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm — 1/4000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Awaiting his Banana
Finally, my obligatory shot-down-the-middle-of-the-road-with-a-shrine-in-the-background, essentially an identical shot to this Road to the Heian Shrine picture from two weeks ago, but with more zoom, less snow, and a lot more people:
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 155 mm — 1/640 sec, f/7.1, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Finish Line
– or –
Crowded Road to the Heian Shrine
Similar shots also appear on last fall's Anthony at the Kyoto Intercollegiate Festival post.
In the afternoon, I attended a ballet recital of a bunch of kids ranging from four years old through high school, including one of Anthony's classmates, Monet. It was adorable, and the resulting 584 photos accounts for the bulk of the day's images.
Then, for my third photo event of the day, I photographed some pages from Monet's great great great grandfather's bible that record the births, deaths, and marriages of several generations of her ancestors on her dad's side. After not getting satisfactory results on his own, Arthur (Monet's dad) asked me to give it a shot. We'll see how they came out....
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/45 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
50 Years Shy of their Golden Anniversary
some random couple that just got married
The cold that I've had for the last couple of weeks has finally started to subside, which is good timing (finally!) because it allowed us to make a trip we've been planning for a while, an overnight a few hours north by train to Kanazawa, to see Japanese pop singer Kousuke Atari (中孝介) in concert again. (We've also seen him in Miyajima, twice in Tokyo, in Osaka, and in Takamatsu.)
Anyway, earlier today I was killing time in the hotel lobby after we checked out when applause erupted from the hotel's “wedding chapel”, and the couple above emerged. Even at f/1.4 and ISO 800, the darkness called for a 1/45 sec exposure (much too slow for 85mm), but I like how it came out nevertheless. I have no idea who they are, but they certainly look happy.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/80 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Bridesmaid
The lady in the simple red kimono is the bridesmade in the most literal sense: she's hotel staff who walks the bride (figuratively, and often literally) through the events of the wedding, from the dressing through to the end of the formal reception. Except for when the bride is walking down the aisle, the bridesmade – hanayome kaizoenin 花嫁介添人 – is never more than a step or two away, thus (hopefully) ensuring a stress-free event for the bride.
To my knowledge, no such counterpart exists for a Japanese groom, who is expected to show up, smile, and keep quiet. 🙂
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/30 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Friends
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/20 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Hotel Staff and Wedding Guest
I was panning on the three friends shown above as they walked to the elevators that would take them to the formal reception, when I snapped a picture just as the pan moved over a bright sign in the background. I was already snapping the picture as I noticed the sign, so I didn't have time to adjust the exposure to ignore the background brightness. I thought for sure it'd be a throw-away shot, and I'm probably right, but somehow I like the effect, and the (fuzzy) detail on the back of the kimono:
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/125 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Underexposed
but still pretty, sort of
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 17 mm — 1/13 sec, f/2.8, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Lobby Center
corrected for perspective
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/45 sec, f/1.4, ISO 800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Make up your Mind
hotel gift shop
Since I'm showing pictures of random people I don't know, I'll include two that I took earlier in the day while sitting at a window in the hotel coffee shop, watching people go by. I was mostly fiddling with my camera, practicing focusing quickly, but as I was tracking this couple, I was struck by the man's nice smile, so I fired off a frame...
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/800 sec, f/2.5, ISO 400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Random Nice Smile in Kanazawa
She soon turned and joined him in looking at me with a big smile. I didn't realize that he'd been smiling at me (not having realized that they could even see me through the reflections that were certainly there). I wish I could send them a copy of the shot.
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — 1/800 sec, f/1.8, ISO 250 — map & image data — nearby photos
Random Youth in Kanazawa
I'm not real big on street photography, so in the future I'll leave this kind of stuff to Zak. His most recent post, though, of some toddlers in a communal buggy prompts me to post a shot I happen to have taken yesterday morning, before leaving for Kanazawa:
Nikon D200 + Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55 mm — 1/100 sec, f/8, ISO 160 — full exif
Random Youth in Kyoto 🙂
It's common to see kids – from infants to maybe two years old – being wheeled around in buggies like this, sometimes six or eight in the larger ones. It's a safe way for playcare teachers to get them out and about, and I find it absolutely adorable every time I see it. In the shot above, I love how the “bigger” kids (who can't yet be two years old) are “helping” the teacher push.
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 80 mm — 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200 — full exif
Plum Blossoms at the Zuishin'in Temple
March, 2006 — Photos by Katsunori Shimada
In the last week or two I've started to notice some early blossoms around town. As far as I know, plum are the earliest, so that's what I assume they are. They tend to have much deeper, richer colors than cherry blossoms, and so can be more striking in one sense, but also more concrete and mortal in another. (Cherry blossoms, on the other hand, when experienced first hand, definitely lean toward “intangible” and “ethereal”.)
Last year I posted my first blossom pictures on Valentine's day. It seems that this year I've had a cold pretty much straight since then, so no fresh blossom pictures yet. Since no one liked the ultra-puffy late-blooming cherry blossoms in last week's Kyoto Cherry-Blossom Preview, I'll try some plum blossoms from my archive.
The photos on today's post were taken by my friend Katsunori Shimada two years ago, on a visit we made together to the Zuishin-in Temple) near where he lives in the Yamashina ward of Kyoto. It seems that I neglected to geoencode his photos, but they're taken at the same locations as my pictures from the same trip that I posted at the time, which do have “map” links.
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 50 mm — 1/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200 — full exif
Temple Wall
Photo by Katsunori Shimada
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 80 mm — 1/500 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200 — full exif
Plum-Blossom Detail
Photo by Katsunori Shimada
It was an exceptionally bright day, so the shadow contrast was harsh. You can often make bright sunshine work to your advantage with fall foliage, but it's a bigger challenge for the more delicate nature of blossoms. Since posting my own shots two years ago, I've learned a bit how to compensate for strong contrast after the fact (in Lightroom, I lower the contrast, then raise the vibrancy to restore the color lost in the first step), so pictures on today's post may come out a bit more realistic.
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 28 mm — 1/250 sec, f/8, ISO 200 — full exif
Me, Showing my Good Side
Photo by Katsunori Shimada
The Zuishin'in temple's gardens are nicely laid out with layers of color. If I can get over this cold, I'd like to head back there with Shimada-san to see whether I couldn't do better than I did last time.
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 60 mm — 1/640 sec, f/6.3, ISO 200 — full exif
Various Pinks
Photo by Katsunori Shimada
Nikon D50 + Nikkor 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 @ 28 mm — 1/320 sec, f/9, ISO 200 — full exif
Camera-Phone Lady
Photo by Katsunori Shimada
Hah, he also took a picture of the lady trying to get a blossom picture with her camera phone. It's quite a common sight, but with the quality of phone cameras today, it's perhaps not as silly as it was two years ago.
Shimada-san is an excellent photographer with a natural, innate sense of composition, so it's unfortunate for us that he doesn't do it more. A collection of a few fall-foliage snapshots he took is one of the most popular posts on my blog, ever (see the “Hall of Fame” in the sidebar on my blog home page). Also on my blog are a dozen of his photos that I used for a calendar.