Before leaving Tokyo for a little while at the end of last year, the snow we were looking forward to seeing wasn’t exactly thick on the ground. By the time we got to our destination, however, it was a different story altogether, and on this particular day, fallen trees blocked the expressway, visibility was often minimal, and shooting was a challenge to say the very least. It was though a thoroughly enjoyable challenge, and when the scenery is as beautifully bleak as this, putting up with a bit of inclement weather is a price that’s well worth paying.
ellen says
I think they are simply beautiful. They make me think of a fairytale I don’t know. Thank you for a beautiful escape! 🙂
Lee says
Thanks, and you are very welcome. It was definitely an escape being out there taking them.
Dale says
Wow! One doesn’t even realize that these are monochrome! It’s like, “what is color?” You were probably praying for inclement weather!
Dale says
Forgot, where’s the onsen pictures?
Lee says
I know eh? Very little colour at all. And yes, I really was. Couldn’t have asked for better/worse conditions!
The onsen after being out in that was even better than usual, but a camera there would have got me in a lot of bother!
Günter says
These photographs are very atmospheric. I think #5 is my favorite.
Lee says
Thank you. Mine too. Took a few photos of him, but I like the movement in this one the best.
Bernadette Siobhan Loftus says
Oh, these are absolutely breathtaking! There’s so much I could say about each one! They show magnificent bleakness. OK, I kinda altered Buzz Aldrin’s famous description of his first view of the moon upon landing (“magnificent desolation”), but it fits. The images of the moonscape and your pictures of this snowed-in village both evoke natural beauty and loneliness. Beautiful!
As always, thank you.
Lee says
Thanks ever so much. It’s honestly fantastic to hear you got so much out of them. Words like that are both encouraging and rewarding. All I could hope for when pressing the shutter.
And also as always, you are very welcome. I had so much fun taking these. Compared to Tokyo, it was like being in a completely different country.
Richard says
Rarely realize how beautiful black and white photos can be! The onsen must have been heavenly after trudging through all of that snow. Thanks so much!
Lee says
Thank you. The decision was easy with these as there was very little colour anyway. And yeah, the onsen was especially nice to say the least!
Solveig says
Oof, I feel cold looking at them. Great photos, thanks for sharing!
Lee says
It was definitely a bit on the chilly side!
Thanks a lot, and you are most welcome.
cdilla says
An absolutely beautiful collection of photographs. Thick wet slow-fall snow is something I love and rarely see. As a kid there was a field I used to stand in the middle of in weather like this. It felt so isolating. Barely ever snows now I’m a few degrees further south and the climate is warming.
I saw a program about this, or a very similar, village from a fire risk perspective in the summer months. The villagers take turns to walk around the place clacking those hard wooden blocks to indicate all is well. And they have fire hose practices where they shoot them into the sky for all the world like watery fireworks (which are, of course forbidden).
I hope we get the chance to spend a longer time in Japan someday and add this to our itinerary.
Lee says
Thank you very much. I’m the same. We don’t get much snow in Tokyo, and even when we do it’s nothing like this, so I’d almost forgotten how beautiful and silent such landscapes are.
It looks so different in the summer eh? Very pretty and all that, but so glad I saw it like this.
Getting out to snow country isn’t difficult at all. Not an especially long journey either. So definitely something you can do even if you aren’t here that long.
Rod says
Thanks for this beautiful art, Lee. Coming from a place where it never snows (well, maybe twice every 100 years) I can’t imagine what it would be like to live with snow like that. But your photography shows how beautiful it can be.
Lee says
Thanks ever so much. That’s really good to hear.
You are welcome. It was a real treat for me to take the photos and be in such an environment. I experience a bit more snow than you, but nothing like this. It really was like being in another world. Not necessarily one I’d like to live in, but definitely one I enjoyed experiencing.
Giovanni says
As I told you already… great series. Apart from the composition, you did a great job with the really well-balanced black & white edit. I wish we could thank the snow guy for being our model 😉
Lee says
Thanks a lot Giovanni, that really is good to hear. And yeah, I know eh? The perfect person to pass by at just the right time. Well, several times!