TOKYO REVISITED MY FAVORITE SHOTS FROM MY RECENT RE-VISIT

FOURTH TIME'S A CHARM!

This was my fourth trip to Tokyo and my best one yet! We took the whole family, kids and all (in fact, the reason we were there was because this is the kid's all-time favorite place – they are Tokyo super fans!), and we had a blast). We stayed in a great area – Shibuya – a place with literally music in the streets (piped in from speakers mounted on the street lights), and so much to do, with something fun and new around every corner. This would be my go-to area to stay in if I get to chance to go again.

A turning point for my photography in Tokyo was meeting Laurence Bouchard, a local photo guide, and one heck of a photographer. He led a photography tour called "Blade Runner Night Photography" which my wife found online, and as soon as I heard the name, I asked her to sign me up. It was awesome – he was awesome, and I wound up finding so many places I wouldn't have found on my own. Can't say enough about him.

Here's a look some of my favorite shots from the trip – and I added captions below many of them to give the location or some context.

Above: Inside the Tokyo International Expo center. I got to tour it a number of year back when we were looking at it as a possible location for hosting Photoshop World.

Above: Another shot from the same place – without the color toning I added in post. My favorite part of this one? The guy walking on the right.

I'm a huge fan of Spiral Staircases, though I'm not sure this rectangular version qualifies as "spiral", but I sure like it – especially its under-lit stairs.

Above: I think I like this one, taken with my iPhone, even better!

This one's taken from the Sky Shibuya rooftop observatory. You hae to buy tickets in advance, and it's sold out a lot. I could only grab one ticket, five days in advance. You can lean your camera on top of the glass window in some places to help you steady it for night shots like this. That Eiffel-looking tower is the "Tokyo Tower."

Another from Sky Shibuya, showing the famous Shibuya crossing at the bottom left.

Yup – it's Sky Shibuya again.

I've seen this spot before, but didn't realize it was Tokyo. Once I found that it was (thanks, Laurence), I took an Uber right there.

I usually don't like shots with a lot of tourists in the shot…but these aren't tourists. These are locals on a typical Shibuya street.

I'm always drawn to things that look more graphical with contrasting colors, and that's essentially what you're seeing here – my love affair with the Japanese letter form and color.

Yup – it's the famous Bamboo Forest in Kyoto (about a 2-hour bullet train from Tokyo).

Above: One of the other most famous scenes from Kyoto – the red gates of the Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine.

Here's another shot – some of the 1,000 gates at the shrine.

This is the scene right outside our hotel (Hotel Indigo) in Shibuya.

More of that graphical stuff I love.

That's Laurence acting as my model for this shoot.

Taken through a bus stop panel. I tapped on the window so she would turn around for the shot.

Another shot of one of Tokyo's many elevators. It only one person wide – it's the mirrors on both sides that make the shot.

Not a "pretty' shot for sure, but it sure is fascinating (well, to me anyway). This is the famous Shibuya Crossing where more than 2,000 people can cross at the same time as they stop traffic in all directions.

Thanks for letting me share my trip with you.

Thanks to Laurence for helping me find some great locations I wouldn't have found on my own, and thanks for my family for giving me the time to jump in a taxi to head out to some of these locations (and for all the times they tagged along with me, which was even better). It was a trip our whole family will never forget. I love Japan, the Japanese people, and their culture, and I hope to get the chance to visit this awesome country once again.

All photos taken on a Canon EOS R6 II with a 24-240mm f/4 - f/6.3 lens, or on an iPhone 16 Pro.