There are few good things that come out a natural disaster or other catastrophe, especially one that claimed many innocent lives. However, it would be far too dark a view to take and say that doom is all we see. Since all photographers are as much observers as they are human beings, by logic all photographers are observers of the human condition. So... 

We wish you a happy new year and all the best for 2012. As you have noticed, this site had been quiet for several months now. We appreciate the numerous emails and comments expressing the hope to see Japan Exposures going again. We want to make an effort to live up to that expectation. The events in Japan turned out to be only one of many in 2011:... 

Report from Camera and Photo Imaging Show 2011, Yokohama At the risk of stating an utterly obvious and absolutely not new realization: it has become extremely difficult, perhaps impossible, to take a bad photograph with contemporary cameras. At least technically speaking, there is very little that can still go wrong nowadays. Exposure metering is accurate,... 

Shiyo Takahashi, Manager at Leica Ginza Shop (Taken with Leica Noctilux-M 50/f1.0) The Leica and Japan — an association of which many legends are made of, but perhaps also a relationship that is often misunderstood or misinterpreted. Many people see the Japanese camera market solely populated by wealthy individuals that will put the precious machine... 

Is the untrained eye, the average viewer, able to objectively judge the quality of a photo depicting Japan? I believe therein lies great difficulty. Those unfamiliar with country, culture and people, and as an additional factor a lacking an ability to reflect on the perception of the world in front of them, these viewers will have no chance to withstand... 

I have missed it last year, for some reason, so wanted to make a special effort to see it this year: the Tokyo Photo Imaging Expo 2009, a consumer-oriented photo trade fair held in the Tokyo Big Sight complex on the Odaiba artificial island, a little off the centre of town. Here are some impressions and very personal subjective highlights: When you... 

Text and images by Barry Kawa for Japan Exposures Recently, a young Japanese woman brought in an old shiny camera to my office, a curious look on her face. It was her grandfather’s 1950s Konica IIA, a rangefinder. She said her grandmother had wanted her to have it, an old antique that her grandfather, who had passed away recently, had loved using. The... 

This is the first episode of what might be a genre-defining means of publishing and viewing photographs.  Inspired by the soundscape (音の風景) and optimised for viewing on a mobile device, such as an iPod, each episode of Photosonics contains one or more photographs paired with audio footage, often – but not always – taken at the same... 

I have been trying to figure out what to do with used fixer chemical other than pouring it down the drain. Some web research showed that the following is the proposed, most environmentally acceptable (silver thiosulfate is toxic in minute concentrations) method of disposal: Chemically, the key to the process is Na2O4S2 Sodium dithionite (aka sodium... 

Velvia 50 is back in production – in the UK at least. This is a surprise to many and we did not hear anything about it in Japan. We have some selected Velvia 50 films in stock, but do not plan to supply it in the long term, subject to Fujifilm future changes. We have added Provia 400X in 35mm and 120 format to our selection. Be sure to try out...