Gakuranman.com – illuminating Japan

It was my first time visiting the southern Japanese islands of Okinawa. Rather than go to the main island with its legendary aquarium, we decided to head for a small little resort called Ishigakijima, renowned for its fantastic diving.

The day was drawing to a close and my haikyo partner and I could already hear the noisy mating gerrops of frogs. But one last thing had caught our eye. A shadowy hole cut into the upper regions of the cliff beckoned us in the fading light. A cave, perhaps..?

Gunkanjima – every urban explorer’s dream. A deserted island of concrete ruins slowly crumbling away off the West coast of Japan. Travellers have long been forbidden to land there and view the secrets within its walls. But with an awesome guide and a little luck, I was able to do just that. Here’s my story.

Continuing the haikyo White Stone Mine series (part 1, part 2), this time I’m presenting a starker look. I’ve been reluctant to play too much with the natural colours of my photos up until now, but think of these pictures more as conveying the emotional vision.

Previously I took you through one of my latest explores focussing on the beautiful colours of the once proud White Stone Mine. Today it is in shambles, slowly being re-claimed by nature. But that’s not to say there is nothing left…

Japan is littered with abandoned mines, factories and other industrial spots, but my haikyo travels to date had not led me to a place quite as grand as this. The White Stone Mine is a sprawling ruin of wood and metal packed to the brim with history.

Sakura Season is almost over and the final petals are falling gracefully to the floor. So before this ephemeral phenomenon has passed for another year, here’s a collection of 10 of the best pictures I shot in Okazaki, central Japan.

This past Sunday on 4th April, I was honoured to take part in a huge Japanese festival. Donning heavy metal armour coloured bright vermilion red, sitting atop a steely brown horse and grinning like a fruitcake while waving to the crowds. It’s safe to say my ‘Last Samurai’ aspirations have been fulfilled.

More respectfully known as the ‘Japanese Fertility Festival’, but let’s not beat around the bush here, this is a bizarre matsuri that is full of phallic shaped sweets, giant wooden penises and rice cakes as hard as canon balls.

Since coming to Japan and acquiring my Olympus E-P1 I’ve been getting into photography in a more serious way than ever before. I’ve been dabbling since I was 16, but more recently learning in leaps and bounds with the help of one professional photographer, Jason Collin.

A recent trip took me West of Kyushu to a small Korean island known as Jeju, famous for its three plentiful things – wind, women and rocks. What I wasn’t expecting to find was a stunning optical illusion and ghoulish graveyard ruin full of rotting totem poles!

Last week I took you through the bowels of a water-ridden, decomposing onsen hotel haikyo in the heart of the Japanese countryside. The ample time we had made it possible to try out some long exposure light photography. So here’s the artistic side of the hotel, as well as some background to the ghost story.