Ikebukaro, Tokyo (cont'd)

A few more images taken with the Optio WP, as I walked around Ikebukaro with a much needed cup of Starbucks in my other hand!

Ikebukaro, Tokyo

On my last day in Tokyo, I had the morning off. So, after getting a cup of coffee at the Starbucks near my hotel (310 Yen for a tall cup if you're interested), I walked around Ikebukaro with my Optio WP. Its primary appeal is being a waterproof point & shoot. However, I wanted to see if it could serve me on future business trips when I have to travel light - stuffed next to my iPod in one bag with the laptop.

Mind you, I'm primarily interested in keeping these pictures as a visual reference to where I've been, and I rarely print any of these photographs larger than 8x10. Other than downsampling the files for posting here, I performed no image editing.

Omakase

Omakase, loosely translated from Japanese, means "chef's tasting special" or "chef, I'm in your hands". Typically, the sushi chef will prepare for you a series or flight of 6 or more plates of beautifully prepared morsels. You're putting your palate in his hands, but if he's good it can be a wonderful evening. These are a few examples of Omakase photographs I did for Takahasi Abe's restaurant in Newport Beach. The Omakase was shot on location with a Canon 1D, 28-70mm lens, and two 550 Speedlites. I printed and framed 16 x 20" prints from the Epson 4000 so we could hang these images in his restaurant to serve as a gallery showing the beauty of Abe's Omakase.

Palladium Print

Elsa Walls, Farmington, CT 1972

John Kerry

In the past year, I've started to scan my Leica Tri-X images from the early '70s. This photograph of John Kerry is from his 1972 campaign for Congress in Middlesex County, MA. Great historical value? Probably not, but the photograph shows what he looked like "before botox".