NikonGear'23

Travelogues => Travel Diaries => Topic started by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 14:09:04

Title: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 14:09:04
Today we three i.e. Dave (David Paterson, temporarily dgpno2), Mike (Mikes) and I had a meet up at Koishikawa Korakuen park located in the center of Tokyo.  We had a meet up two years ago at Sensoji shrine in Asakusa and had a great time.  So, we agreed on yet another meet up while Dave is staying here.

The weather forecast had said that it would be cloudy in the afternoon, but fortunately it turned out to be wrong.  So, we enjoyed a pleasant afternoon, a nice chat and nice autumn color.  We will post images taken during the meet up here.

As a starter, here is a 9-stitch pano of a part of the park.  The white dome on the left is Tokyo Dome having replaced Korakuen Baseball Stadium years ago.  Hope you enjoy other images to come.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 14:30:14
Kantoku-tei, a Japanese restaurant also used as assembly house.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Fons Baerken on November 24, 2015, 14:31:46
Still fall colours in Tokyo
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 18:31:07
Fons, yes, it is very warm in Tokyo this year.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 18:56:55
Kantoku-tei from another view angle.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Bjørn Rørslett on November 24, 2015, 19:00:23
NG gatherings at any scale are what we all want to experience and share :D Looking forward to seeing more pictures from the event.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Frank Fremerey on November 24, 2015, 19:15:12
Great fall colors. First snow here in Bonn...

looking forward to more pictures from Mike and Dave....
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 20:04:45
Bjørn and Frank, thanks for kind words.  Perhaps it would take a bit longer for Dave to post his images because he isn't in the optimal environment in terms of post-process and internet connection.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Andrea B. on November 24, 2015, 20:38:11
So pretty the plants around the Kantoku-tei !!

The pano is great. Reminds me of being in Central Park with the big city buildings in the background like that.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 24, 2015, 21:48:37
Thanks, Andrea.  I took my self-assembled panoramic head with a short monopod as a grip so that I can handhold the head with the camera attatced.  It worked very well.  Without the rig, I would have had to trim a lot more pixels and the pano would have been much smaller.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Erik Lund on November 25, 2015, 07:51:43
Great get together! I like the tight framing of the first pano, really intense!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 08:48:43
Some more to follow from our get together yesterday. Today, the temperature has dropped to 10º C and it is raining!

Plenty of autumn colours still. This is another take on the Kantoku-tei restaurant building.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 08:50:52
Taking in the colours
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 08:52:13
The very red bridge.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 08:54:56
Yesterday's lotus blooms
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 09:13:30
Great get together! I like the tight framing of the first pano, really intense!

Thanks, Erik.  The panorama head I assembled for handhold work seemed to work well.  The original TIFF is nearly 70MP.  :)

Mike, thanks for the follow-up.  Our images were literally bursts of colors!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: dgpno2 on November 25, 2015, 09:15:59
I've been either sleeping or travelling since we went our various ways yesterday, so I'm a little late with this (coming from cold, rainy Nagano Prefecture - just like Scotland   :-[ ).

Our second meet was very enjoyable, like the first, and the opportunity given by both NG and NG-Revival to meet other committed photographers from around the globe is - as nfoto says - one of the best things about these two special forums.

1. The Tokyo Dome Hotel from Koishikawa garden.
2. A young heron, just having been driven off by a parent bird.

Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 11:51:39
Dave, thanks for the follow-up.  The heron was fairly close to us (around 10m or so?).
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 11:57:17
Here are some bursts of colors.  Since almost everything is in prime colors and the leaves in the original images were highly saturated, the post process was quite tricky...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 12:19:55
...and this is a handheld 6-stitch pano...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 12:38:15
FWIW, all of my images were shot with no other than Olympus E-M5 MkII with 25/1.8.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: dgpno2 on November 25, 2015, 13:05:44
FWIW, all of my images were shot with no other than Olympus E-M5 MkII with 25/1.8.

In other words, all made with that most difficult of focal lengths (to have as your only lens), the 50mm or equivalent. I am not so disciplined and used two zooms to make the following images -

1. Nature in a glass cage.
2. Maple leaves.
3. Red tree, white bridge.
4. Dusk - back in the world.

Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 13:40:22
In other words, all made with that most difficult of focal lengths (to have as your only lens), the 50mm or equivalent. I am not so disciplined and used two zooms to make the following images -

Not really.  In this digital era, we can do a lot of different things in the post process.  Pano stitching is a good example.  We can use a prime lenses in various ways.

Love your closeup of maple leaves.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Jakov Minić on November 25, 2015, 13:51:38
I think it's great that you got together and that you are sharing your lovely images with us!
Any photos of you guys in action?
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 13:59:58
Jakov, thanks.  Here's Dave in action.  Sorry I failed to shoot Mike in action...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 14:08:50
There were still some flowers and berries.  It was a bit tricky to achieve decent shallow DOF with the 25/1.8 lens.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 14:44:41
I think it's great that you got together and that you are sharing your lovely images with us!
Any photos of you guys in action?

Here are a couple of us (plus others - we were never alone there):

1) Akira - aiming high

2) Dave and Akira - across the pond
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 14:55:07
A little patch of colour in a dark corner of the park...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 14:57:53
First shot with a brand new (early Christmas present) 200/4 macro lens. Now to figure out how to put it to good use......
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Jakov Minić on November 25, 2015, 15:07:55
I wish I was there with you guys with my Zenit :)
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Erik Lund on November 25, 2015, 15:12:12
Looks like super fun  ;D
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 15:13:15
Here are a couple of us (plus others - we were never alone there):

1) Dave and Akira - across the pond

2) Akira - still aiming high

I look so stupid!  Ouch!  :D

Mike, nice first shot of Micro 200/4.0D.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: armando_m on November 25, 2015, 15:22:01
Wonderful series

So great to see that you got together, it is an indescribable feeling when one meets someone that we have read for sometime on an internet community and finally meet them in person
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 15:23:04
Thanks, Armando.

So great to see that you got together, it is an indescribable feeling when one meets someone that we have read for sometime on an internet community and finally meet them in person

I fully agree with you.

And more colors...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: dgpno2 on November 25, 2015, 15:28:57
For Jakov and anyone else who likes bad portraits -

1) "Better smile, he's probably drunk"
2) "Beam me up Scottie, please"
3) "Just go jump in that pond, would you?"

With apologies to Mike and Akira.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 15:30:07
Looks like super fun  ;D

Indeed, yes!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 15:32:28
For Jakov and anyone else who likes bad portraits -

1) "Better smile, he's probably drunk"
2) "Beam me up Scottie, please"
3) "Just go jump in that pond, would you?"

With apologies to Mike and Akira.

Dave, no need to apologize.  I was too aware of your camera!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: golunvolo on November 25, 2015, 16:17:23
What a wonderful thread. Thank you for the experience, the place, images...!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 23:09:08
I look so stupid!  Ouch!  :D

Not at all. Your beautiful pink jacket was a standout that I couldn't resist. And your photographic results were worth the uncomfortable posture.

Mike, nice first shot of Micro 200/4.0D.

Thanks Akira - I think that I am going to enjoy the lens - just as soon as this cold, wet weather comes to an end.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 23:15:59
What a wonderful thread. Thank you for the experience, the place, images...!

Paco, glad you like the thread.

Not at all. Your beautiful pink jacket was a standout that I couldn't resist. And your photographic results were worth the uncomfortable posture.

I hope so, Mike.  I thought the color of my jacket would work as nice camouflage in there, but apparently I was wrong!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 23:21:07
Some closeups.  I didn't manipulate any of the subjects.  They were shot as they were.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 25, 2015, 23:22:51
For Jakov and anyone else who likes bad portraits -

1) "Better smile, he's probably drunk"
2) "Beam me up Scottie, please"
3) "Just go jump in that pond, would you?"

With apologies to Mike and Akira.

Nice and cheesy, Dave. I'm sure the fees for the closest model could be paid out of your loose change. Did you get model releases?
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 25, 2015, 23:23:58
Objet trouvé.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: dgpno2 on November 26, 2015, 01:18:46
My last contribution from an afternoon which was enjoyable in many ways and affirmed the value of friendship. Akira's poetic visions and Mike's clever observation - especially of people - are hard to compete with.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 26, 2015, 02:43:02
Akira's poetic visions and Mike's clever observation - especially of people - are hard to compete with.

...and Dave's way to leave a lot of spaces for various interpretations of individual viewers.

Here are a couple of images of "city dwellers".  The spider image was cropped very heavily.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 26, 2015, 02:45:13
And this is the last image from me for this thread.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Frank Fremerey on November 26, 2015, 09:27:53
Great advertizing for more in person meetups!!!!

Thank you all. Looking forward to meeting you.

of all the great shots I pick "Akira across the pond" in #26 as
my favourite. The picture has a wonderful feel of space calm
any dynamics and proportion. Exceptionelle
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 26, 2015, 10:03:19
Great advertizing for more in person meetups!!!!

Thank you all. Looking forward to meeting you.

of all the great shots I pick "Akira across the pond" in #26 as
my favourite. The picture has a wonderful feel of space calm
any dynamics and proportion. Exceptionelle

LOL!  Thanks, Frank, for kind words.  Yes, it was calm and joyous enough to play a fool!
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Mikes on November 26, 2015, 11:22:21
Great advertizing for more in person meetups!!!!

Thank you all. Looking forward to meeting you.

of all the great shots I pick "Akira across the pond" in #26 as
my favourite. The picture has a wonderful feel of space calm
any dynamics and proportion. Exceptionelle

Frank - thanks from me, too.

One last shot to sign off.

Mike.

Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on November 26, 2015, 11:25:41
Mike, this is a very appropriate image to close our postings: the thread has come to an end with the view into the future...
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Jørgen Ramskov on December 15, 2015, 15:45:59
Thanks for sharing all those nice images. It's been wonderful to follow you meet-up.
Title: Re: November 24 Tokyo Meet Up
Post by: Akira on December 15, 2015, 23:41:20
Thanks for sharing all those nice images. It's been wonderful to follow you meet-up.

Jørgen, thanks for kind words.  Glad you enjoy the thread.