Men on a Tokyo street, in one of the glass boxes built so they can smoke without offending others.
Lake Kawaguchiko, with Fuji in autumn.
Near Kyoto’s Bamboo Forest, a young engaged woman getting her picture taken. We honed in.
In the Tokyo Metro.
Tokyo Metro.
Tokyo Metro.
At the Meiji Shrine, young children age 3, 5 and 7, come in their best clothes to give thanks, it is said, for having survived to reach this age.
In Akihabara, center of Tokyo’s anime studios and electronics stores.
Tokyo skyline with Fuji.
Approaching Shibuya, the busiest section of Tokyo, and some say, the busiest street crossing in the world.
Shibuya Crossing.
Shibuya Crossing.
Fuji through maple trees.
The Imperial Palace and gates.
Fuji and autumn leaves.
Young girls in their rented kimonos.
Food displays in a Ginza department store basement.
In Ueno Ameyoko, an open-air market.
In Shinjujku on a Saturday night.
Photo shoot with kimono and friend.
At Tokyo’s Kaminarimon Gate.
At Kyoto’s Nijo-jo Castle.
The Nijo-jo Castle.
At the Nijo-Jo Castle.
Kyoto.
From Kiyomizudera Temple.
At Kyoto’s Kiyomizudera Temple.
In Kyoto.
Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple.
Kyoto.
At the Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple.
Not the Bamboo Forest, actually, the forest behind the Adashino Nenbutsuiji Temple in Kyoto.
On the way to the Otagi Nenbutsuji temple.
From the interior of the Otago Nenbutsuji temple.
On Kyoto’s Western edge.
At Kyoto’s Imperial Palace.
The deer are everywhere in the ancient capital of Nara.
In the Kasuga Naishi in Nara.
In the Kasuga Taisha (Grand Shrine).
The largest Buddha in the world inside the largest wooden structure on the planet, the Grand Shrine in Nara.
Schoolchildren visiting Nara.
At the Fushimi Inari Shrine.
Tokyo and Kyoto in Autumn
In the early days of the Covid disruption, my wife and I planned a trip to Japan, not realizing it would take more than two years for the country to fully reopen. In November 2022, we spent eleven days split between Tokyo and Kyoto.
I have been deeply impressed by the Japanese black and white photographers, particularly those from the Provoke generation such as Daido Moriyama, whose images printed with such deep contrast are shocking and alluring at the same time, For this reason, this gallery, filled with color images of Fuji and Kyoto in full autumn colors, includes black and white street photography. To me, the monochrome images reflect an important side of Japan. Though as we were to learn, Japan is so much more than a harsh urban environment with giant cities.
The photographs are laid out in rough chronological order, from our first day at Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo to our glorious few days in and around Kyoto. We did the right thing going in November, when the leaves turn in a way that puts New England’s colors into, at best, Silver Medal contention.
We found Japan, and its citizens, admirable, polite, calm and gentle, amidst the bustle of a modern society. I hope these images, taken together, convey the delights of being in Tokyo and Kyoto during autumn.