snow country

As the speeding train came rolling out of the long tunnel, I realized that I was now in the snow country. Like the famous opening line in Yasunari Kawabata's famous novel "snow country," I was in awe as the scenery outside had changed completely over a few minutes in the tunnel.

What's interesting is that, this was probably the same area that was described in the novel, so I got to experience it first hand.

Yesterday I headed out to the Oku-Aga area of Niigata prefecture , a rice growing area which I have photographed and written about in the past. You can't see anything but snow, but it's a wonderful experience to witness the changing four seasons in Japan. If it wasn't for the short business trip, I would've liked to have stayed in the area for some serious winter photography.

At the end of the day, I had a real treat at a local rice farmer's house with fresh rice and vegetables. Ummmm... that was great, and very healthy. It made me appreciate the simple delicacy of japanese food which I take for granted. This is healthy food for the body, mind, and soul.

DEDON

One of the things I enjoy in life is beautiful design, something that is lacking in Japan even though this country produces some of the greatest electronic consumer goods. Leave the good sense of design to the Europeans. They know what they're doing.DEDON is perhaps the king of outdoor furniture at the time. The design, form, and color are absolutely innovative and beautiful. I took this photo as a record of how one of the customers had set up, and realized this furniture really sings when it's placed in the right enviroment. DEDON is a celebrity furniture in its own right.

Die Zeit

Photos I took last week at Tokyo University are featured in this week's German newspaper DIE ZEIT. Always nice to see my pictures run on an international newspaper, and this time it's in color.

happy valentine's day

For those of you looking for that special chocolate, here's the BVLGARI St. Valentino chocolate for him and her @ 3,500yen photographed for Bvlgari by me.

I've been photographing chocolates for Bvlgari since they began selling them in Japan 3 years ago. A great deal of attention goes into making these chocolate look perfect, and I realized it's no different than photographing jewelry. They are indeed chocolate gems.