26 September 2010

Darari no Obi, だらりの帯, Maiko at Takase river boat #festival

Darari no obi, だらりの帯 
Takase river, Kyoto 2010

 
Maiko Shinaju and Maiko Ichiraku kindly showed their beautiful obi to the crowd of photographers during Takase River boat festival, Kyoto Sept 23, 2010.



Maiko Shinaju, getting on the boat
Takase river, Kyoto 2010





Maiko Ichiraku and Maiko Shinaju, on the boat
Takase river, Kyoto 2010

23 September 2010

Takase river, boat festival, 高瀬川舟まつり

 #Maiko Shinaju and Maiko Ichiraku preparing Macha
Takasegawa, Kyoto 2010



Every year in September the "fune matsuri" -boat festival- takes place on Takase river. This place reminds us that until Meiji era water canals were the main mean of transportation to bring goods from Osaka to Kyoto. Several events take place that day on this historical site. But the main attraction is to drink Macha -tea- served by two Maiko of Pontocho and to take a timeless picture of them in the boat. This year (2010), Macha was served by Shinaju-san and Ichiraku-san.

Click here to see another picture of Shinaju-san without oshiroi (white make up) in one of my previous post.



 Maiko Shinaju serving Macha



Maiko Shinaju, 志奈壽 portrait





Maiko Ichiraku and Maiko Shinaju
On the boat on Takase river


These wonderful smiles were not for me but for my 3-year-old boy...  



 

 Maiko Ichiraku, 市楽, getting off the boat.
Maiko Shinaju on the background.
Kyoto 2010

20 September 2010

Manto Matsuri, Manto festival

Manto Matsuri, Taiko performer
Hirano Shrine, Kyoto 2010


 
Manto Matsuri is a festival that takes place at Hirano shrine in the evening in Mid-September. 800 lanterns are lit at this occasion and several performances such as dance or taiko are held. Not as crowded as Kyoto most famous festivals, it's a good chance to enjoy a local festival and to take time for some night photo shooting. For all people living in the neighborhood this is the event of the year and everyone has to participate either in the performance or the preparation.



 Manto Matsuri, lanterns
Hirano Shrine, Kyoto 2010




Manto Matsuri, flute 笛 & shamisen 三味線 performers
Hirano Shrine, Kyoto 2010

19 September 2010

Maiko Mamehana 豆はな Autumn

Maiko Mamehana, portrait
Kyoto 2010



What a crowd at Ihee to admire Maiko Mamehana. Of course, she is beautiful, so that could be the reason. Or was it because of her upcoming erikae? Anyway, it was great to see her again (view my previous portrait series of Mamehana san here). Taking pictures becomes easy with her.



Maiko Mamehana, Sensu 扇子
Kyoto 2010



On this one, I asked her which flower was represented on her Kanzashi (hair ornament). She said it was "Kikyou" Bellflower as it is common in September. Then, she took her sensu (fan) to show me that it was assorted to her hair. Lovely!



Maiko Mamehana, Ihee
Kyoto 2010


And she is also great when she doesn't look towards the camera.

Maiko Tanefumi 田ね文 Autumn

Maiko Tanefumi, Sensu 扇子 
Kyoto 2010



Lucky me to see Tanefumi san again in such a short time. She is now "used" to me. I thank her for giving me the privilege to shoot these timeless pictures.



 Tanefumi san, Darari no Obi だらりの帯
 Kyoto 2010



Tanefumi san, Portrait
Kyoto 2010

18 September 2010

Maiko Miharu 美晴

#Maiko Miharu, Laughing with Kanoyumi-san
Kyoto, 2010




Lovely Maiko Miharu from the Hanamachi of Gion Higashi. These are some of the last shots before her upcoming erikae, the ceremony where she will become a Geiko. I am grateful to her that despite of the crowd, I was able to shot a nice portrait series. These are some of them.



Maiko Miharu, portrait
 Kyoto 2010




 Maiko Miharu, portrait
 Kyoto 2010

 

12 September 2010

Hosen In Temple, 宝泉院

Hosen In, macha 
Ohara, Kyoto 2010




This place is definitely my cup of tea. I like the compo on this photo (28mm) so I decided to post it eventually.
Click here to view my other post about Hosen In temple.

Maiko Tanefumi 田ね文

#Maiko Tanefumi, portrait #50mm 
Kyoto 2010



Lovely Maiko Tanefumi. She has already changed in the last 3 months, it seems she gained confidence. I showed her the pictures I took 3 months ago (to view click here) 3 days before her misedashi. She laughed a lot...
I am grateful to her for this new portrait series. All the pictures were great  and it was actually very difficult to select my faves.


Maiko Tanefumi, dance on Gion-ko-uta
Kyoto 2010







Maiko Tanefumi, portrait 50mm
Kyoto 2010

11 September 2010

Hosen In Temple, 宝泉院

Hosen In, tatami room
Ohara, Kyoto 2010





I could spend the day in this temple. This is so beautiful, relaxing and refreshing. Hosen-in is located in Ohara in the Northern part of Kyoto, a few minutes walk from Ohara most famous temple Sanzen-in. Its main attraction is the view from the tatami room on the garden and its 700-years-old pine tree that looks like a painting.




Path to the garden, Hosen In
Ohara, Kyoto 2010




Tatami room, Hosen In
Ohara, Kyoto 2010



Fountain, Hosen In
Ohara, Kyoto 2010


Rice fields, 水田

Rice fields, near Uji
Kyoto summer 2010



Like anywhere in Asia, the landscape in the summer in Japan is green. After June rainy season, the rice fields have this photogenic light green color. In September / October, this changes to yellow (some Japanese would even say gold!) up to the harvest.
I took these pictures in the Southern part of Kyoto near Uji where the widest rice fields in this area can be seen.
And like often in Japan, this is about space optimization. Therefore, this major highway was built on the rice fields.



 Rice fields, near Uji
Kyoto summer 2010

 

 Rice fields, morning

7 September 2010

Maiko Tanewaka たね若

Maiko Tanewaka, portrait
Kyoto 2010



How Great to see Tanewaka san again. I showed her the pictures I took of her 2 months before that can be viewed here.
We had a pleasant talk about it until....she laughed at me that my face was red because I got sunburned on that day. Lovely ! I am grateful to her for another nice portrait series like the one above. On the below pictures she performed a dance on Gion-ko-uta where she was as always amazing!



 Maiko Tanewaka
Kyoto 2010



 
  Tanewaka-san dancing on Gion-ko-uta
 Kyoto 2010

4 September 2010

Maiko Mamehana 豆はな

Maiko Mamehana, portrait
Gion, Kyoto 2010



How great to see Maiko Mamehana for the first time. She is from the Hanamachi of Gion-Kobu. She was at Ihee, the famous handicraft shop in Gion for a photo session. People who entered the shop were quite surprised, wondering if she was real or not...that kind of event must probably be the least interesting part of being a Maiko. Anyway, I enjoyed seeing her and shooting some portraits with my 50mm. The place was not crowded at all and the conditions for the pictures were good. And of course Mamehana-san was beautiful and held such a great pose for this series.
Her Kanzashi (hair ornament) represents a purple morning glory (asagao, liseron) which is the other possible kanzashi in August with the suzuki grass.





Maiko Mamehana, portrait
Gion, Kyoto 2010


Hydrangea アジサイ

Hydrangea アジサイ, Kyoto 2010


Japanese people enjoy watching the nature through the different seasons. Cherry blossom and red maple leaves are certainly the most popular walks. But there is basically always a flower or a tree to observe at any time of the year. June is the right time to see Hydrangea that blooms during the rainy season in several parks and temples in Japan.


Hydrangea アジサイ, Kyoto 2010




Hydrangea アジサイ, Kyoto 2010