MY MOST INTERESTING SNAPSHOTS!
Zojoji Temple is located just a little south of central Tokyo, Nearby Daemon station exactly. This temple has not only great surrounding atmosphere, but also great view of Tokyo Tower. You can see a good view of Tokyo tower because it is just right behind this temple. You guys can see from the photo how near this temple is to Tokyo tower. I had stopped by this temple and bought some "omamori", which probably means lucky charm in english for good luck protection and good health :-))) In addition, I surely recommend for anyone to visit this temple around evening, just a little before the sunset. The view of the surrounding is wonderful :-)))
These couple days I have been curious about using the photomatix HDR software to blend different exposure shots, or most people call it HDR image, which stands for High Dynamic Range image. The reason I finally tried this software is because I have always wondered how I can blend different exposure shots in much easier way compared to what I usually do blending using GIMP using different layer and manually takes the darkest and brightest part of the photo in order to get good color balance that my camera couldn't do it with only single exposure shot. Well...It is quite interesting to play with photomatix, but honestly speaking sometimes the photo sort of become animated and losing the true image as seen with our eyes :-))) In conclusion, it is an interesting piece of software to play around with, you guys should try it and see how your photos will look like after HDR blend and have your own judgement :-)))
The Samba Festival that I had been long waiting for to watch finally was held this last saturday afternoon in Asakusa, Tokyo. Luckily, It was a fine day with a friendly weather (it was actually hot....but, it is better than raining ^__^). It was so crowded and quite hard to find good spot to take photograph unless you got the front rows...(I came sort of late, so I missed the good spots in the front...hehehe). Anyway, I could somehow find my way through these crowds and got my camera ready to take lots of shots toward the parade. It was an exciting moment and the atmosphere was just so alive...everyone was cheering up and enjoying interesting samba parade. The attractiveness of this festival was not only about the samba, but fabulous and colorful dress as well. It was quite an interesting experience for me to see the samba festival in Tokyo. For more complete photos of the samba festival please refer to my flickr, you guys will see plenty of photos! cheers! :-)))
Well, If we really want to show our friends or family that we have visited Tokyo, then a photo of Tokyo's "Rainbow Bridge" is a must. It is kind of a postcard to prove that we have been in Tokyo. Here I took some nightshots of the Rainbow Bridge (more complete photos on my flickr) with different kind of light setting from my Canon camera. It turns out to be nice with long exposure nightshot...luckily I brought my tripod with me :-)))
Korakuen is quite a well known spot in Tokyo for its Tokyo Giants Dome. It has quite an interesting amusement park as well where you can actually enjoy and have fun with your family and friends. Big shopping mall and plenty of restaurant to tryout ^__^. The best time to see this place is actually around evening to night time so that you can see the illumination. It is quite nice and beautiful. In addition, if you're a fan of baseball very much, then the Tokyo Dome would probably the place you want to go to watch any match between the Tokyo Giants and its opponents. :-)))
PS: just make sure you get the best ticket for the best seat :-))
As I walked through this Shinjuku shopping and office area, I took a quick shot to describe the view of the Shinjuku Tower. The area shown in the photo is actually quite recent remodelling development. Now it becomes more neat and well structural design :-))) Good for an evening walk on the way home ~_^
Well...this is what the Shibuya Crossing (スクランブル交差点) looks like on the weekend. No wonder they call it scramble kousaten, because it is always packed with people :-))) However, it is a good spot to take street photography though ^__^
It was actually yesterday that I went to Yoyogi park for an evening walk with a friend of mine. I didn't intentionally plan to take a flower shot; however, when you actually see something beautiful infront of your eyes it is kind of hard to resist. This butterfly as it landed on the surface of the flower shows how living beings as they blended together in harmony makes a perfect beauty. It also soothes your heart when you watch it :-)))
Today I decided to take a visit Meiji shrine for an afternoon walk. This shrine is a great place to walk and refresh our mind and soul ^__^ It is located just right next to the well-known Harajuku station. There are lots of nature and a great fresh air to breathe in....just a wonderful place and its surroundings. I had taken plenty of shots as well, so if you guys wanna check out what this shrine is all about, feel free to browse over my flickr photos. Cheers! :-)))
As I walked around my neighbourhood tonight, I had the chance to see a local omatsuri festival nearby. It was interesting although it was small, but everyone seemed to be happy enjoying the great taiko performance by the teenagers :-))). I was enjoying myself as well there, eating yakisoba, hotdog and hakigoori icecream...hehehe. Omatsuri festival during summer time in Japan has always been interesting and full of cheerfullness ^__^
One great thing about going out at night around Odaiba is that you can see wonderful lights of Tokyo's well known "Rainbow Bridge". There are also plenty of boats within this bay area, and you know what, these boats are actually very well known for its "Monzayaki". It is a Tokyo version of "Okonomiyaki", because the food is actually from Osaka (although some people claim also it is from Hiroshima). Well...these two cities are very well known for Okonomiyaki anyway...it doesn't matter :-))) As long as they are "Oishi", which means delicious ~_^
I finally had the chance to see real life Gundam prototype in Odaiba....Well, you guys can see how big it is in terms of size compared to the surrounded people :-))) It is really huge, just like a real robot structure. If you haven't seen it, then I suggest better pack your stuff and go straight to Odaiba to see it yourself...hehehe. It is awesome view!!!
Today after finishing my regular work, I stopped by Akihabara, a popular electric town in Tokyo, to buy some stuff for my PC and camera :-))) I am actually not a regular comer to this electric town; however, today seems to be a nice day to look around and enjoy the shopping there. For those of you who have not been to this electric town, well...I think you guys should come and see it for yourself and see what you can find there :-)))
Today I had the chance to watch "Hanabi", which means fireworks, in Itabashi just a little bit north of Tokyo close to Saitama. Although this was not my first experience to watch Hanabi, but every year has always been a wonderful time for me to go see the hanabi again and again :-))). I love to watch Hanabi in Itabashi compared to Asakusa because I know I can get good spot to sit and relax (like a picnic) and prepare my camera to take many shots! yay! ^__^ There are more Hanabi photos on my flickr if you guys wanna check out more how the fireworks are in Japan ~_^
I have been quite busy recently haven't had the chance to take any photograph at all...well, that is life but as soon as I get a hold of free time again I will grab my camera and take some new shots with new story :-))))
Meantime, I post this Oasis song which is one of my favourite songs! Cheers...
Since I had some freetime this saturday afternoon, I headed to the imperial palace area in Tokyo. This place has such a wonderful park and the palace itself is surrounded by this man-made river (I think). However, it is naturally beautiful. This place is one of hot spots for tourism actually, or if you wanna have a nice walk and exercise on saturday/sunday morning, this could be a great choice to breathe some fresh air ^__^.
There is always something that admires me about nature. Everyday as I have always found something amazing in nature, I have realized how important it is for us to respect and cherish our nature. After all, it is the only place we've got in order to live our lives. ^__^
Today I had traveled to Honjo, Waseda where my research lab is located. Although this facility is very advanced and well-developed, it is also very environment friendly facility surrounded by lots of trees. Indeed very balance between technology and nature ^__^. You guys can actually see this facility by using "google earth", just type Honjo, Waseda...You will be able to see the satellite shot of this environment friendly research facility. ^__^
Today I had a little chance to be off my work a little, so I went to take a walk at this nice little park just right nextdoor. I took some shots of different exposures and try to blend it together using GIMP. Well...Here is the result, not bad I think in terms of colour, it is stronger and more clear compared to single shot exposure. ^__^ Nice little experiment!
This is the great thing about photography actually, no matter which equipments that you carry around with you, everyone shares common interest. That is capturing moments! ^__^ I am having fun with photography because of moments I want to capture ^__^
As I walked through the office area in Marunouchi-Yurakucho, I was quite surprised today to see this extreme sunset sky. Luckily, I had brought my camera with me and ran over to the other side of the street to capture this interesting sky...^__^ 'cause honestly we never know when we can encounter interesting moments to capture in a daily photography. ^__^
I have always admired the traditional culture in Japan especially when it comes to traditional clothing. I was happy yesterday that I had the chance to take some shots when this two lovely couple had worn such a wonderful kimono together. They look very lovely indeed....^__^ Please see my flickr photostream if you would like to see more of their kimono photos.
The great thing about summer time (well...beside the very hot weather..hehehe) in Tokyo, Japan is that you will always find this flower "Ajisai" anywhere as you walk around the city. I love this flower 'cause the natural purple-blue color is very beautiful. It can sooth our eyes as we watch closely ^__^
Today after my regular work, I had a chance to take a little walk on my way home. I stopped by this food and shopping district where I usually grab something for my dinner ^__^. This area is pretty close to my home, so therefore I like to see the lights here when it started getting dark. ^__^ A typical light in Tokyo street, Japan...I love it!
I just bought a new lens for my camera about couple days ago. It wasn't high-end lens, as a matter of fact it was quite affordable (only about 30,000 Yen). It is a middle range Tamron XR Di II AF 18-200mm quite fit for my daily photography on the street. Quality wise, I think it is alright since the price was quite affordable as well (can't expect that much from that price...hehehe). I am quite happy with this camera for all purpose photography. ^__^ Here is one of the result taken just around where I live before night time.
Today as I was walking around Nishi-Shinjuku, Tokyo, I accidently saw this amazing taiko show in one of the shopping mall! I was lucky I guess to have seen it...I love the sound and the beat of Taiko drums. It sort of drives your adrenalin up! ^__^
Tokyo tower has always been my favourite spot to take snapshot! Night time has always been the best time for me to watch the tokyo tower. The yellow-orange lights just a great spark in the middle of the city. ^__^ We can also go to the top of the tokyo tower and see a great view of the city! and if you guys are lucky, sometimes you can watch a random artist playing some music there as well ^__^
It was actually yesterday that I finally found this cool book about musicians in the same era. The title of this book is "Alternative Music" or "オルタナティヴ・ミュージック" (original title is in japanese). Although I haven't quite read the detaisl of the book because it is all written in Japanese (it takes times for me to read in japanese), but the musicians photographs in this book are amazing. This book is written and photographed by a very professional japanese photographer, Ishida Masataka. A very cool book indeed! ^__^
Today has been raining all day long in Ikebukuro, the area I live in (not sure about other areas of Tokyo though, 'cause sometimes it can be just a local area rain). But it doesn't stop me for going to my favourite ramen shop...hahaha. I love this ramen shop...とてもおいしいです！^__^
This saturday night I had a surprised visit from an old friend of mine from Columbus, Ohio who happened to visit Tokyo. I was quite surprised how he ended up in Tokyo all of a sudden. However, he told me as well that he has moved to Orlando, Florida. I said "wow" that was another surprise. I guess I have missed alot of information here...hahaha. We ended up having dinner together and a nice talk around Roppingi Hills area that is quite nice for night live. I am happy as he told many stories about how Columbus has become quite developed now...well, 'cause I used to grow up there as well. It was nice to hear stories from an old friend ^__^. I also had a chance to take some shots of night time at Roppongi Hills.
Today I was planning to find a beautiful sunset in Tokyo after my regular activity, so I went around Odaiba area in the evening. I always enjoy going to this part of city around bay area. It is always a refreshing time enjoying the sunset there. These images were actually taken while I was inside Yurikamome monorail, therefore it was kind of hard to take good focus with my camera. 
This skycrapper photo was taken in Toyosu on my way to Odaiba since I got the chance to see beautiful reflection over the building window glass.
However, this photo I took just infront of Takadanobaba station which I thought it would be interesting. I didn't know what these people were doing until I actually asked a friend of mine what they are. He said it was chindongya. Though, I am still not sure what they actually do...^__^
These photos were actually taken yesterday when I was sort of walking around Tabatta, Tokyo in the evening. The sun was really hot, so I thought I wanted to try to take snapshots with diffent exposure (the first 2 shots). I am not yet an experienced photographer, so therefore trying different exposure shots was quite interesting for me to learn. So here are the results. However, for the last photo he is too cute to ignore so might as well take another shot for his cheerfulness...hehehe!
I finally had a chance to walk around my campus in the evening after a hard rain from the morning. The atmosphere of a campus life has always been a refreshing moment in my life knowing that I will soon leave this campus. However, it was a great opportunity for me to be back in campus again for a while. I am sure I am gonna miss a campus life again sometimes in the future ^__^.
Although Spring season has ended now in Japan, but this season has always been quite special in Japan because of Sakura. I love seeing sakura on every spring in Japan since I know this flower don't last very long (about1-2 weeks)....once in a year! O.0....I surely never wanna miss this moment of "breath taking" Sakura view. ^__^
Hongkong...well, what can I say about this city except great place for night entertainment and good place to have your dinner as well. I enjoy walking around in this city as much as i enjoy the food here since it is almost similar to Tokyo how the city is constructed (except smaller of course ^__^).
For those who has never been to Kamakura in Japan, once you have a chance to visit Japan please do visit this place. It is not only beautiful in nature, but it has a well-known Daibutsu with several interesting temples around this area as well. In addition, the Fujisan sunset view is extremely beautiful here. For those who love photography in real life, take you best shot here ^__^