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

Me too, but I assure you it was taken in February.

 

I think I will somehow save for the new Canon 5d Mark 3.. it might take a while but I think it might be worth it!

 

Tbh, I don't think the current retail on the Mark3 is really justified..

 

supposedly

Canon 5D Mark II intro price: 300,000 Yen
Canon 5D Mark III intro price: 270,000 Yen

however when viewing online the prices are 310,000円

http://www.premiershop.jp/17.html

This is without lens by the looks of it.

So probably looking at around Yen 400,000 ... ouch thats a lot of MAN actually..but its probably the only camera ill need for a long time provided i dont break it.

 

Intro price, fair enough. But the intro price for these cameras is always very high, which is why most people buy them after a certain amount of time. Not that many people really jump on new cameras right as they're launched, except for fanatics/pro's. If I look up the Mark II right now it's around 160,00Â¥ for the body. Cheapest I can find the mark III is 316,00Â¥.

And if you're starting from scratch with lenses as well, then you're gonna be spending a ton on that as well because, in all fairness, EF lenses are more expensive. I would rather start off with a slightly cheaper camera and invest in lenses and take it from there.. Like have a look at the xxD or xxxD series.

Anyway it's all a matter of money really. Ask any of those Chinese toting around a Mark II/Mark III with some ridiculous L lens, who ideally have it in automode and prefer to use liveview instead of the viewvinder..

EDIT: just looked at your link, that 7D 15-85 is a nice deal actually.

 

Yes, I dont think I can afford the Mark III for a good few months anyway (maybe Xmas bonus?!)
Though Canon are very good at controlling their prices...

here are some pics of Osaka SEGA arcade

http://www.japangameproducer.com/2012/04/05/osaka-arcade/

and Space Station Osaka game bar

http://www.japangameproducer.com/2012/04/05/game-bar-osak/

 

310,000 yen is the cheapest i've seen it... I think it's more at Amazon. I'll wait 'til it drops and sell my 5d2.

 

Here's a few shots i took on Sunday while people are partying under the cherry blossoms


Sakura tree by Yakum01975, on Flickr


Sakura for all by Yakum01975, on Flickr


Sakura View by Yakum01975, on Flickr


Someone isn't happy by Yakum01975, on Flickr


Someone is happy by Yakum01975, on Flickr


I don't want to play by Yakum01975, on Flickr

Yakumo

 

You know, there's something I've always wondered: what do the japanese do with all the cherries? Are there heaps of different cherry dishes/deserts, or is there a sort of cherry-picking mini-day kinda thing?

Beautiful though. Wow!

 

Those sakura cherry trees sadly don't bare fruit :-/

 

Yes, as alphgamer said, Sakura trees don't actually have cherries. Cherry Blossom was just a name made up for English. I don't even know why they called the Sakura tree a cherry blossom tree. The flowers are pink not red.

 

More white than pink though, actually. I've got about a million photos, of course-- wouldn't be sakura season otherwise!

 

Looked into it (thanks to the public library system) and they're the same genus as ordinary cherry trees (genus Prunus) hence the name. Virtually all are non-fruiting or aren't edible, and there's well over a hundred varieties.
The most prevalent blossoms are white to soft pink like GaijinPunch mentioned, but they can range anywhere from dark pink to yellow depending.

Great pictures, BTW. I always look forward to the pics in here, but in particular it's nice to see people actually enjoying the blossoms. All too often you see the same kinds of staged photos with empty fields of sakura in full bloom.

 

There's actually a darkish pink weeping willow in my neighborhood!

 

Yeah, I know the type of photos you mean. All of these are real people so no staged crap. Actually, that park is 5 minutes walk from my house. Just up a very steep hill. It's a shame though because we had some very heavy rain last night so all the sakura has gone now. Good job I went up there on Sunday.

 

That's one of the reasons I'd love to go to Japan!

 

Here's some sakura (and a couple of ume blossoms for good measure), followed by some hanami pictures.


Sakura 2012 (04) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (02) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (01) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Ume Blossom (1) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Ume Blossom (2) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (06) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (11) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (10) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (08) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (07) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura 2012 (09) by gaijin_punch, on Flickr

 

Super Heroes by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Obama Supporter by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Soldier Down by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Hanami Shoe War by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Sakura vs. Dango by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Hanami Prankster by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Hanami: Soon you will be mine... by gaijin_punch, on Flickr


Baby in the Sakura by gaijin_punch, on Flickr

 

^
What is he doing???

 

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