Life in Japan - Pictures galore !! Arcades, Temples, Rainy days, etc

Congrats on Photo of the Week, Martin.

 

Why would they just abandon that market? Looks like prime real estate to me! Maybe thar b ghostz!

 

Glad you lke the pictures, SuperGrafx. Yeah, I really wanted to get inside but al the doors were locked solid downstairs so I tried the upper entrance but that had the door blinds pulled down and locked so there was no chance of getting is. I didn't want to risk breaking them either as there seemed to be power still on in the building which may have triggered an alarm. Two of the many Exit car park signs were actually lit!. There was one entrance that looked to be open, the door right up on the wall however the stairs leading up to it were rotten as hell. No way would they have supported my weight

There's a derelict hospital near here too that I'm going to check out but I believe it has security so I'd need to make sure first.

Japan is really stupid. They keep building shit they don't need just to use up money just to get more the following year from the government. It's a screwed up system. Anyway, not far from that derelict store there's a brand new complex which was much bigger and newer so people started to go there. But wait, in the last year they've built another 2 shopping complexes in this city. All within 10 minutes drive from each other! WHY?? This isn't even a big city. In 5 years one of them is going to end up like the place in the photos above.

 

As someone on the outside looking in I really like Japan but the more I learn about it the more I just have to shake my head at the goofiness that goes on over there.
Tho I guess the same could be said of any country.

 

replace Japan with Poland, and I can vouch you it's the same.

 

The whole phenomenon of using up a budget to get more the next year is used everywhere. Japan really takes it to new levels though. It's fucking crazy how much construction goes on for no apparent reason. There's a saying amongst at least foreigners: Japan fixes problems that don't exist.

What's worse is buildings are not made to last. Homes are almost never renovated. They're torn down and rebuilt.

 

If that was in Baltimore MD it would be RAVE party central.

 

Thanks man, I didn't even spot it!

I forget to post in here, but all of these are from my blog, and flickr.

 

Great stuff, as per usual. I refrained from over-sakura-ing this year. I took a few rolls of 120, but that's about it. Waiting to have them developed.

 

Some medium format stuff.

 

Some good old fashioned 35mm

 

Very nice GP. I think I like the MF stuff better, but that could be down to little more than subject and framing. Not just the composition, but I like the square format of these. I only noticed this when I went to the 35mm stuff below and it felt a little cramped. Was the 35mm stuff with a 50mm lens?

 

That batch was all w/ 35mm. I've not shot 50mm in ages. I've got a few on a 40mm camera, and I've recently been trying 28mm but haven't really developed any yet. It might turn out to be "too wide". Having said that though, there are times on really cramped Tokyo streets where 35mm isn't wide enough if you can believe that. It is a challenge to frame 28mm properly though.

I like the squares too... don't have to worry about tiling shit! But, depends on my mood I suppose. Grain isn't nearly as big of an issue on MF either though.

You were at Meguro gawa I see. That "Tokyo is Yours" stuff is all over.
I like the flare in the first shot. Some people bitch and moan about them but I think they add character.

 

Yeah, I popped to meguro-river – I quite like lens flare too, tbh.

Nice shot in Metropolis, GP.

 

Thanks! Not everyone thinks so, apparently. There are quite some turds up there these days!

 

Sure is!

Flowers!

Tulips by martindesu, on Flickr

Divided by martindesu, on Flickr

Fresh as a daisy by martindesu, on Flickr

Sunburn by martindesu, on Flickr

 

A picture from my trip to Japan (End of Marc until start of April) with my wife.

Us two eating all you can eat oyster for 2000 Yen in Miyajima.

 

still trying to find godzilla in that image ^^
wonderful athmosphere

 

Martin, there's something about the colour balance in some of your images, it just looks so awesome. I realise that isn't very articulate, but that's the best I can do!

Loving the bold black and white shots GP - even the grain is tasteful and adds some great character to those shots. I'm learning more about film as well from watching/reading what you've been up to!

 

Thank you