Osaka Central Market

I woke up at 3:00 a.m. this morning to assist and cover the tuna auction at the Osaka Central Market. Sakata-san was following me, filming for the aforementioned profile that will air next week. The action furious and the sights were not for the squeamish. Here's a quick view at what went on (Sorry about the messy layout, I was little time).

Ma, I'll be on TV!

Indeed, I met with a director from takeone.jp production company and they are doing a series of foreigner profiles of workers in Kansai, and how the current status of the economy is affecting them. Through Kansai Scene magazine, they got in touch with me and will follow me on two assignments to see what I do. This prompted me to update my portfolio on my website earlier than anticipated. You can get a bit more information here if you are interested.

If everything goes according to plan, the show will air next Tuesday on TV Osaka (channel 7) between 17:13 and 17:30. As they say, hope for the best, expect the worst!

Who Said Oil & Water Don't Mix?

My friend Sylvain, with whom I went river wading last week, asked me about some funky pictures I had taken, adding oil to water, to create some colorful designs (see some of the originals here). I took out my extension tubes again and had some fun this morning. Here are some of the pictures.

Yodogawa Fireworks

I shot pictures of the Yodogawa fireworks last night, and although shooting fireworks, when you know how to use a (D)SLR , is fairly easy, a company's billboard did prove challenging. For some shots I had to angle the camera just right to leave it out of the final result, in other cases I had to rely on post-production to remove the ghastly sign out of it. You can see the early results here, and I leave you with some shots as well, in case you're too lazy to click on the link!

Your Flash Is Not Only For Night Shots

One little trick that people don't realize is that the flash is not only for night shots, quite the opposite. Actually, when you shoot people and pets, you should almost always use, especially during the daytime in sunny days. Used this way, what photographers call fill flash, it with partly remove unsightly shadows in the face and brighten your subjects.

Now the tricky part is that in most compact cameras, you need to go in 'manual' mode (which isn't like a SLR manual mode, don't be afraid to venture) to be able to override the camera's decision-making as to when to fire the flash. Typically, Auto modes when only fire the flash when little light is around. Below is an example of using the flash when the camera wouldn't have do so by itself, using my Canon compact camera. I guess I should have shot one without to compare, but I wasn't thinking about this blog entry when I shot it.

By the way, my friend Sly and I walked up and swam down the river you see (the bridge behind is Hozukyo station in Kyoto). How did I keep my belonging dry? Well, for my camera and money, I put them a Pelican Micro Case (I have the yellow one, which would be easier to find should it actually fall out of my bag while hiking/ trail running/ snowboarding/ swim, etc.), while I ziplocked my weatherproof cell phone. Then, I put it all in a hermetic tupperware-type container that actually has rubber bands to seal it better (they also keep your food much better than regular plastic containers). After wadding in the water a bit, I realized that the container alone would have been enough as the contents were completely dry. But then again, better be safe than sorry, right?

Tuesday's Sunset

Pirate BBQ

The Pirates of the Dotombori were back onstage last night at Tins's Hall in Tennoji. The festivities started around 6pm with a delicious BBQ prepared by the establishment's chef. I had the lamb, which tender, juicy and delicious. I doubt I could have cooked better myself.

Then, around 8pm, the Pirates boarded the stage and amused the crowd with their antics. Forward-Reverse, Schoolyard Insult and Superheroes were some of the games they played, many of which I had never seen, even if it my third time seeing them. Again, a very fun evening, even if my head felt/feels like a ton due to a stupid summer cold (***ing hot to ***ing cold, ack to hot again, and so on). But no matter, it was great. Here's the final shot of the night.

Latest Fetus Picture

My wife went to the gynecologist this morning for a new echogram. The size is fine, but apparently the baby is a little low, and this could potentially complicate things a little, although we're not sure how. But I keep thinking that the baby will be fine.

Here's the latest picture, where the head, spine and ribcage are visible.

Ramada Hotel Beer Garden

Last night my wife and I were invited to the Ramada Osaka Beer Garden for an upcoming article for the Kansai Scene. A word of advice for those used to Japanese beer gardens, leave your preconception at the door! The usual cafeteria atmosphere is far away, especially in the special VIP sections which only add a small cost, especially if in a group. But book soon, as the whole place often gets sold out, and there are only a few remaining VIP sections seats available until the end of the season! Check out my article next month in the magazine and I leave you with a shot of succulent lamb chops and of the sunset, which was outstanding last night (good thing I brought my graduated ND filter)!

Honorable Mention

I just learned that the picture of Aya that I submitted for the June PPSOP.com photo contest, themed 'Shadows', had received and honorable mention. It's the first time this happens to me, and of course I'm very excited about it. Winning one of the top three prize would have been nicer, but this will only motivate me to take some even better ones in the following months. For July, the theme is 'Up', and I may already have my shot, one from my mom's trip here last April/May. Here's my winning shot, and all the winners can be seen here.