Embarcadero

The problem of being a tourist is you can't wait for sunsets all the time. You have to visit as many places as possible. The problem with being a photographer is that you don't feel good shooting an undramatic scene. I guess I'm still more of a tourist rather than a photographer.

The place also has a nice view from the pier. I wish I could stay here a little longer but San Francisco has too many beautiful places that needs to be captured by my camera.

Iwakuni - Ropeway and Castle (Part 2)

If you missed part 1, here is the link of more cool pictures of Iwakuni - Iwakuni - A Must Side Trip from Hiroshima City.

After crossing the Kintai-kyo Bridge, I headed towards the Kikko Park to ride the Ropeway towards the Iwakuni Castle. This castle sits beautifully on top of the mountain and it's top most floor has a grand 360 view of the area.

Iwakuni Castle

A lot of cool Samurai swords on display inside the castle.

Samurai Swords

Here is the awesome view from the top. You can see the beautiful Kintai-kyo bridge below.

View From the Top

Chinatown in Yokohama

If you are tired of doing night shots at the Minato Mirai area, Yokohama's Chinatown, the largest Chinatown in Japan, is another good alternative for night photography. Chinatown is just a few meters away from the Yamashita Park. It offers good food, amazing architectures and a lot of seizure-inducing lights which makes makes it perfect for any type of photography.

Fastforward Chinatown

Ma Zhu Miao Temple. Ma Zhu meaning "Holy Mother of Heaven"  is one of two amazing temples in the area. It is usually packed with people during the day so it is best to go just a little after sun down when the temple is about to close. Not only you would get a clean shot of the structure, the sky would be pretty amazing as well.

Holy Mother of Heaven Temple

A nice small park can also be found at the back of the temple. It is a good place to rest after walking for hours in the area.

Chinatown Park

Kantei-byo is another amazing temple which is just a few meters away from the Ma Zhu Miao. Enshrined in this temple is the God of Business "Kanwu" which has become the symbol of the area.

The Symbol of Chinatown

Shizuoka's Sunpu Castle

Before my friends and I went to see the Gundam (checkout my previous post Visiting Gundam in Shizuoka) , we tried to see the local colors of the Shizuoka city. It was also too early and I wanted to shoot the robot during the golden hours so we checked the Sunpu Castle in the middle of the city.

There isn't much to see except the cool reflections of the castle wall from the outside.

The bridge was also pretty interesting, but that's about it. When we entered the gate, there was a wide park but there was nothing really worth shooting.

Seaside Walk and the Y2PC

A few weeks ago, it was my first time to join a meetup event of the Y2PC (Yoko-Yoko Photo Club). Meeting new people scares the shit out of me. Being an introvert, I always felt that it was really hard to connect with new people. During social gatherings, usually I would end up talking to the people I am most familiar with to avoid the humiliation of being a loner. In this event however, I came alone. No familiar friends to save me so the nerves were pretty high. What I didn't know that these people are genuinely nice and very friendly. At the end of they day I was happy meeting new people who share the same passion for photography as I do.

The group met at Kamakura station around 1:30 pm but I think we started shooting around 2pm which was really a terrible time for landscape photography. Most the people were doing street photography, a talent which I clearly lack. So, I tried my best to follow and imitate most of their shots.

Below are some of my shots that I think turned out ok.

Fisherman's Rest

Meditation Before Riding the Waves

Speeeeeeed!

I tried shooting the photographers as well. I also find people taking pictures very interesting. Here are some of the photographers of the Y2PC, all of them really nice people.

As the sun went down, I become more confident with my shots. I love shooting during the golden hour as it brings magic to your photos without you even trying hard. By this time, my nerves are all gone and I was just enjoying the company of photographers and the lovely scene.

Sunset Drama

Hopefully soon there would be another meetup event for Y2PC as I really enjoyed the Seaside Walk .

Iwakuni - A Must Side Trip from Hiroshima City

Many people come to Hiroshima to visit the breathtaking island of Miyajima for the giant Torii gate floating on the sea. But a lot of people don't know that just a few more stations from the Miyajimaguchi, there is another lovely area which can almost equal the beauty of the Miyajima Island.

Iwakuni is about an hour away from the city by train and bus. You can take the JR Sanyo main line from Hiroshima to Iwakuni station and from the Iwakuni station, take a bus to the Kintai-kyo. I suggest to get the combination ticket (Bridge + Ropeway + Bus) for a cheaper adventure in Iwakuni.

The bridge is just magnificent. No cloudy weather will stop me from capturing the beauty of this bridge. What's even amazing about it is that no angle is ugly. It took me a long time before I chose this shot because I got a tons that are as magnificent as this one.

Kintaikyo

Even under the bridge, you can still see its beautiful architecture.

Under the Bridge

And when crossing the bridge, the view is also amazing.

Across the Bridge