“Joy comes from appreciation. Appreciation comes from paying attention. Paying attention is the practice of zen.”
-Japanese Proverb
-Japanese Proverb
Wise Old Pier. Japan, 2019.
23mm / f11 / 60s / ISO 100
It's always a daunting process sending new work out after a while, and so I'm extremely grateful for all of the kind comments and feedback to my first dispatch a few weeks ago. As promised, I will be sending more work out between now and year end and having written extensively last time about the basis of this new work and future plans, I will keep these emails much shorter going forwards.
I went to Japan at the end of 2019 and after a quick stop in Tokyo, found myself getting out of the hustle and bustle of the big cities and instead renting a car and driving up the north coast of Japan from Osaka to Tottori. Here lies a Japan so different to that which we often imagine in our heads. Sleepy coastal villages, undisturbed by tourism and modern life where traditions stretch back through time and families pass down their knowledge and values from generation to generation. Waking up early to catch the mist or morning light, as well as the calmer morning waters made for great shooting conditions. I'm always reminded when I shoot after a while just how much of a privilege it is to get up early, and be able to just observe nature as it wakes up. It's also always a favourite subject to shoot old wooden piers, and I'd say that the one above, rickety and old, is as full of character as any that I've ever come across. In Japan I also found a new favourite subject - fishing poles. My image "Sticks of Stillness" on this subject seems to have spoken to many of you, and I hope you enjoy other photos of this subject matter in the works to come.
Lone Tree. Japan, 2020.
64mm / f13 / 30s / ISO 100
Silent Structure. Japan, 2020
32mm / f18 / 50s / ISO 100
Tetrapod Study. Japan, 2019
36.9mm / f13 / 120s / ISO 100