Zach awry in Japan

18 January 2012 Family B&Ws

I’ve been wanting to take some close-ups of eyes for the next meeting of my photography group, and foolishly thought that maybe I could get my kids to cooperate. This first photo here happened basically by chance, but none of the others were what I was aiming for. So much for getting my kids to hold still. Still I took the opportunity to grab some nice photos of everybody. Here I used a plugin called Silver Effects Pro for the B&W conversion.

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24 December 2011 Whereupon I Post Way Too Many Pictures of My Family Eating Xmas Dinner

Today was Christmas Eve, and we enjoyed it eating a nice dinner together cooked by other people.

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Zoe got a new ballet leotard today, which she wanted to show off as soon as we got home.

Very composed
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Followed by a graceful bow that somehow went wrong…

or Not So Composed
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“Christmas cakes” are a big tradition in Japan. Do people do this in the States as well?

I have no idea what Genbo is doing or thinking
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5 December 2011 Zoe and Me

I don’t know why, but I like this shot of Zoe and me, taken by Genbo. Maybe because it does a good job of revealing Zoe at what I think is a sort of tipping point in her development. Up to now she has been the quintessential “little girl,” but now she is getting into ballet, learning how to read, learning how to write…All things that are taking her into the next stage of her life, which is poignant for me to watch and take part in.

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4 December 2011 Marathon Man

Japanese people call any running over about 30 seconds “marathon,” which is incredibly annoying to someone like me who prefers to assume that words mean actual things. I wouldn’t mind it if “marason” was simply a loanword from English to Japanese that came to mean “running” or something like that. But, Japanese people know that it’s supposed to mean a 42 km race; they just generally feel free to mangle meanings of words that come from English. It’s as though Americans knew the word “sushi” was supposed to mean vinnegared rice with raw fish, but felt perfectly justified using it to refer to hamburgers as well, because hey, that’s meat and starch too, and it’s just a foreign word, so who gives a shit.

Anway, Genbo and his class ran a “marason” the other day. They had been practicing for it for a long time, and he was pretty excited about it, so I went down and snapped some photos. This particular marathon was 1 km, and Genbo came in 14th place out of 59 boys in his class.

Home stretch
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Almost there!
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Here are some photos of him I snapped the other day…

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14 August 2011 Muir Woods, Pt. II

Here are shots of everybody at Muir Woods.

Dunno why giant trees inspire giggles…
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Into the woods…
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Waiting for their turn in the tree…
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Hanging out in the burned out bole of a tree
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This giant tree had fallen over the path. You can see where it fell from in the middle of the frame. Genbo is standing on about the midway point of the tree, and it continues way past the edge of the frame to the right.

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12 August 2011 Muir Woods, Pt. I

Today we went to Muir Woods, a grove of huge redwoods that I remember fondly from when I was a kid growing up in the area. It was great to be able to take my own kids there. Although they didn’t approach the trees with quite the same quiet, pensive reverence that I prefer (to put it mildly), they had their own fun take on the environment and pursued it with abandon. Pictures of G&Z will have to wait until next post, because this one concentrates on the trees.

These are all taken with HDR, or the technique of mixing a light, normal and dark exposure to mitigate the camera’s limited ability to record a wide range of luminosity at once. Using it is a big benefit in this environment, because the forest makes for a whole lot of shadows. This is the first time I’ve really experimented with HDR B&W, but I think it suits the subject.

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These last two were taken outside the park…

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23 July 2011 Minnesota, Pt. II

We’ve been spending more time at their cousin Linnea’s. Most of these shots are of them playing in her back yard. I’ll leave off the commentary; they’re just doing what kids do when we don’t make ‘em do something else.

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In these last few, Genbo is doing homework, Linnea is coloring while being irked she can’t understand Gen’s Japanese homework, and Zoe is reaping the rewards of pillaging Linnea’s closet.

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19 July 2011 Minnesota, Pt. I

Genbo, Zoe and I survived the 24 hour trip from Kyoto to Minneapolis. It was actually not nearly as bad as I had mentally prepared for; the kids are definitely getting easier. There was the hiccup at Osaka International when the check-in agent informed me we three wouldn’t be seated together, but that was resolved after I rationally (didn’t lose my cool at all; nope, not one bit) convinced them that it was in their own best interests not to seat us separately.

We’ve been playing with their cousin Linnea. Here we are at the pool, followed by Linnea’s house.

Genbo doesn’t really know how to swim, but he can snorkel.
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Linnea and Genbo
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A fetching Zoe…
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God I love the 85/1.4!
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27 June 2011 Whereupon I Post Way Too Many Photos of My Kids in the Park

I’ve been working a LOT lately, which has left precious little time for really quality family time, or photography, or shakuhachi. I was work-free this past Sunday, though, and sent Genbo and Zoe out to play in the next-door park with friends while Maki and I watched this program about a painter who had been commissioned by two elderly people to paint a portrait of their daughter who had been killed in an accident. By the end I had tears streaming out of my eyes while I grabbed my camera to go take pictures of the kids while Maki just laughed at me.

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I used a nifty program called Posterino to create this image, which I will be printing big just as soon as I get a chance.

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21 May 2011 Kids Growing Like Vines

Today was parents’ day at Zoe’s daycare. We got to go and watch them do daycare stuff. Genbo got to go and play with lots of friends he hasn’t seen since starting first grade. I got to go and take lots of photos of blooming wisteria vines with my 85/1.4. Maki got to get peeved at me for spending 90% of my time taking pictures of plants, and not our kids, specifically the one we were there to pay attention to.

Wisteria 1. I don’t usually go for high-key lighting, but this just happened and it kind of works
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Wisteria 2. This low-key is definitely much more my style
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Wisteria 3. Nice, if a little boring.
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Genbo playing soccer with old friends
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And, finally, Mommy and Zoe engaging in meaningful parent-child interaction
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21 May 2011 A rare post featuring…Me

For obvious reasons I don’t appear very often on this blog. I’m the one taking the photos, for one thing, and who needs more pictures of middle-age guys with expanding guts and greying hair?

On my recent trip to see a sword-smith, however, my friend Jeffrey snapped a few photos of me, most of which were of me playing shakuhachi. Partially because I was just so honored to be shot by his new magnificent 300/2 lens, I’m including some of those photos here.

Me playing shakuhachi for everybody
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Me sending a clear signal to the cameraman I’m sure he deserved at the time
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Here I am borrowing the 300/2 from Jeffrey to shoot some of the beautiful scenery around the area, but taking a break to text my lovely wife (Hi Maki!)

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And…Me playing the 3.0.
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6 May 2011 Whereupon I Post Way Too Many Pictures of Kids Eating Shaved Ice

A couple days ago Genbo’s friend Anthony came over with his dad Jeffrey, and we went to the nearby park to play.

Daunting (but undaunted)
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Genbo and Zoe on the slides
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Zoe looking particularly young and innocent here
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Genbo and Anthony went off to get some shaved ice, and it was fun watching (and taking way too many photos of) them all negotiating the two servings between the three of them.

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On the way home…
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19 April 2011 Genbo on his way home from school

Genbo’s been going to school for a week and a half now. He thinks it’s OK. Kinda fun sometimes, kinda boring sometimes. He recounted a disappointment in which his teacher told him they were going to go on an “adventure” (冒険) to explore the school, but it wasn’t a real adventure, because she just kept on talking the whole time. Get used to it, Genbo.

He and everybody else from the area meet in front of our building at the ungodly hour of 7:30 to walk to school. It’s almost a half-hour trip for them. And, on the way back all the Japanese moms (and I!) stand outside waiting for them. Eventually this will give way to them just coming all the way home on their own, but it’s nice to go and greet them while it’s still OK, savoring the last bits of innocence. Here he is coming walking with his best friend, Nao-kun.

Update: A comment reminded me to mention that, even though the area is safe anyway, there are volunteers (extremely nice elderly folks apparently without much else to do, for the most part) placed every 100-200 yards to make sure the little kiddies are safe.

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8 April 2011 First Day of School

Today was Genbo’s first day of school. Or, technically, his 入学式, or ceremony to start the beginning of school. First day of classes is on Monday. Everybody around him has been excited about it, but Genbo has not given any indication of caring one way or another. Unfortunately it was a gray day today, and shortly after I took these pictures it started raining.

Here he is at the school gate, wearing his uniform and a randoseru. The school technically has uniforms, but you don’t really have to wear them. Lots of kids do, but anything in relatively subdued colors is fine. Basically, anything that’s not gold lame or sequined is fine. The randoseru (taken from the Dutch, according to that Wikipedia link), is a weird Japanese phenomenon. Genbo’s cost upwards of $500, which is maybe a little pricier than average, but not by much. The cheapest they go for is about $350. It’s a highly-fetishized leather object in the culture that marks a child’s entry into school. They are used for the full six years (which is how long elementary school lasts in Japan), and they are built to last 60 if need be. Does that justify the price? Not in my opinion, but since when is that relevant?

Crossing the threshold
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Now getting a little excited
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School yard and gym, flanked by Mi’i-dera, a major temple in the area
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Checking out the board to see which class he’s in
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Notice everybody with their bright, shiny new randoseru, strictly color-coded according to gender, ’cause this is Japan
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Another shot of the cherries and the temple up on the hill. Not a bad view for a playground.
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I liked this rack of unicycles, which are popular in Japan for young children.
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Now we come to his classroom, 一年生2組, or the second class (out of four) of the first-graders. His yellow hat, which only first-graders wear on the way to school, and various text books await him in his assigned seat. (I recently learned that even college students have assigned seats!)

Waiting for use
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I love this next picture. He’s been in his chair less than 30 seconds and he’s ALREADY BORED! And, in grand Braverman tradition, not bothering to hide it. Notice the hook on the desk so the randoseru doesn’t get sullied by being put on the floor.

“When’s recess?”
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These two are already friends, and he’s feeling a little left-out
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His first teacher: Nagatani-sensei
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I had to leave a little early to do some work, but everyone else went to the gym for a series of long and I’m sure excruciatingly boring speeches. Here are Genbo and his new classmates filing out of their room together for the first time.

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The school abuts the canal (疎水) which brings water from Lake Biwa to Kyoto and then down to Osaka. Here is a shot of a cherry-lined section of the canal right near his school.

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