kyoto

The city of Kyoto wants to stop tourists taking photos of Geishas -- with tensions over the issue reaching boiling point.

Photographer Xavier Portela’s shots of Kyoto, Japan, at night give a newfound appreciation for the neon charm of the city. Propelled by his vision to articulate and illustrate the various sounds, temperatures, and pulsating electricity of bustling cities, Portela’s images stir the imagination and set stories of intrigue and possibility adrift.

The historic Gion neighborhood in Kyoto has enacted a photography ban near one of the area's most photographed streets. The law comes in response to rude tourists and street photographers who have been flocking to the neighborhood to capture photos of its narrow alleyways, picturesque tea houses, and the geishas who call Gion home.

I fell in love with Japan. Deeply. The culture, the clean streets, the friendly and respectful people and the full spectrum of experience that it offers. From high rise cities to quaint, beautiful gardens and temples. All within walking distance of each other.

Arriving in Kyoto, I am holding onto Fujifilm’s X-T20 pre-production unit #48. I’ve had it for 3 months now and, to be honest, it competes for attention with the other cameras in my dry-box, all of them waiting for their turns to come out and play.

Over in Japan, the electronics chain Yodobashi Camera places these creative ads on the sides of buses that turn the rear wheel into a lens for a giant camera. Kevin Warnecke spotted this one in Kyoto, Japan.

Collotype is a photo printing process that was invented by French photographer Alphonse Louis Poitevin back in 1856. Due to its ability to preserve fine detail in prints, the process was used to create fine art photo prints for many years before other processes arrived on the scene.

Any travel photographer, or traveller in general, will tell you how important it is that you respect the locations you are exploring. This applies as much for natural environments as it does for sacred manmade spaces, and it's the latter of these that are having to ban photography because of rude tourist photographers who are ignoring this fundamental rule.

This past March Leica announced the opening of a new flagship store. It sits on Hanamikoji Street in the Gion district of Kyoto, Japan.

Earlier this month, Panasonic unveiled the new Lumix GX7: a rangefinder-style Micro Four Thirds camera that the company packed full of Panasonic firsts. Since Panasonic is hoping the camera appeals to professionals and consumers alike, the folks over in advertising decided to put together a series of videos dubbed "Shooting Impressions" in which they get professionals to use the GX7 on assignment and talk about the features they liked best.

The video above features photographer Bernie DeChant and his recent trip to Kyoto, Japan where he photographed the "erikae" ceremony through which a "meiko" (an apprentice geisha) becomes a full-fledged geisha.