First Shoot for PR-y

This morning I went to Corners to photograph Koh-chan and the other artists. With hindsight, one thing that strikes me is the way they reacted to me. Of course some were quite shy with the new stranger, but that was it; I was just a stranger, not a gaijin stranger. I must admit that I did not feel so comfortable at first, mostly because I was the new guy. Being a relatively closed circle, that's quite understandable, and everyone made their best to make me feel at home.

Koh-chan was not in a great mood today, as others, probably because of the heat. Mami-chan encouraged him to draw some more, but he was very sleepy and at some point just laid on the floor. And as we got better acquainted, he even sang me the ABC song; that was very sweet. Mami-chan especially enjoyed serving us tea and snacks, and the homemade cookies were very nice indeed. I look forward to the next shoots as I know better what to expect and a little bit more about the routine and quirks of the artists.

The name of the project, PR-y, is meant to represent both PR and the word 'pry', as through their art, we hope the artist will enter society. I think art is a very good means, as it allows communication and self-expression, both essential in everyday life. Here are some shots, mostly untouched, of the morning. I can't show you their faces, you'll just have to wait for the book!

Koh-chan at work

His clock seems important somehow

Trains, train, and more trains; mind you, many
'normal' adults are obsessed with them, too...

I saw your picture in a magazine

Next to where Mami served us tea

Mami-chan's drawings

Better Busy Than Bored

Sorry for the lack of regular posts recently, but with my recent move and new w*rk, I've been pretty busy recently.

Today I met with Kasa to discuss the shoots at Corners, an art center for people with disabilities. We exchanged some good ideas, and apparently some of mine were very similar to one of the other photographers, Rob Walbers, who also happens to be gaijin like me; I don't know if there's any connection or not. Check out his blog, he has some really great night shots.

As I like to shoot for more than creating pretty pictures, this is a perfect match for all of us. I'll mostly work with Koh-chan, who copies - with his own twists - music scores. Apparently, while he was a baby, construction was made next to his house and the noise made him cry a lot. So his mother constantly played classical music for him. As he grew up, he started learning the piano and fell in love with the score sheets.

Because of the subject, especially Koh-chan's art, I'm thinking about editing my shots into B/W, and Kasa is fine with this. But I'm unsure yet as we will let the project evolve organically. The book will probably be published next January, as Kasa wants shots of the exhibition which will be held at this year's Candle Night in December. The first shoot is this Friday.

Well, although I've been busy recently, I have been firing some shots. Here are some random ones.

The Move

Last Friday we moved into our new house, on the other side of the tracks, although I'm not sure which side is the bad one, if any. Here are some snapshots, mostly taken with my cellphone, save for the first one; luckily I had already set my camera equipment, so I was able to grab my macro lens quickly.

I got there before the movers and someone
had come to greet us; how thoughtful.

Two 2-ton trucks were sufficient...

for 98% of our remaining stuff

They used a ladder (!) to bring up...

our dresser and fridge.

Nice light in the dinning-living area

And the kitchen ain't so bad either.

In the evening we went to the Kaguhashi shrine near our old place for their summer festival. Kaz was enthralled by the music and dance.

Fotografika Water; The Flyer

Click to enlarge

Panda Army

They're fast and effecient; all our stuff will be in our new place in 3 hours probably.

Typhoon

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, but we're moving soon, so you can imagine that I'm a bit busy. A typhoon is passing south of Osaka and here are some before and a during shot; note that it isn't raining during the last one, but the winds are howling!

Added bonus: the empty cicada shell

Ssshhhhhh...

I've been using Aperture 2 since I switched to Apple some time ago, and I keep discovering things in it. My latest finds are the Advanced Highlights and Shadows menu and the monochrome channel mixer and its color filters. They're very useful, especially before adding and adjusting a sepia toning. When I get my next iMac, I'll probably upgrade to Aperture 3.

Random Daily Shots

Whether it's with your medium format camera, your $10,000 or your cell phone, it's always fun to look around and take some random shots. Here are some from today, taken with my cellphone. No retouching, straight out of the memory card.