Kyoto Prefecture in Japan is famous for many things, the city of Kyoto itself and the many historical temples, shrines and other sites as well. Arashiyama is one of the lesser known but very frequently photographed areas in Kyoto and can be found west of Kyoto city. I recently had the oportunity to visit and enjoyed taking some photos there that I will share! Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on you point of view, there were very few tourists. Japan is still being very restrictive of who can enter Japan from overseas. Any tourists here were of domestic origin. It also helped that it was a Tuesday, so no weekend visitors either.
Togetsukyo Bridge over the Hozu River.
When the water levels are low, you can wade across on the shallower points, just north or just south of the bridge. It's quite a refreshing thing to do in the summer. It was warm but not hot enough to risk my camera and phone this time!
Second only to the bridge as a popular photographic subject are the bamboo forest paths to the north of Arashiyama, these will 100% be in any guide book about Kyoto that mentions Arashiyama.
A bit of forced perspective is at play here, the bamboo is very tall, but not quite as tall as it seems here. If you look carefully you can compare the height of the bamboo to the person in the centre of the frame.
A tall fence lines both sides of the path, to keep visitors out of the bamboo thicket, where would countless people to walk, they would destroy the roots of the bamboo! The fences can make it difficult to photograph the thicket from eye level but the real attraction is just how tall and graceful the bamboo is. It also happens to be several degrees cooler walking in the shadows.
In some places the fence either damaged by a falling stalk does allow for an eye level glimpse into the thicket:
I'm very glad there is a well marked and maintained path, it would be so simple to get lost in a forest where all of the trees look exactly the same in any direction!
Bamboo is a great building material and can even be used for smaller items like cups or chopsticks. It's a great renewable resource!
To compliment the bamboo forest, recently the district has created a Kimono Forest:
Around and within the Arashiyama train station, kimono fabric has been placed in clear Acryllic columns.
It creates a bright and colourful effect. At night they are also illuminated, I very much would like to see that if I have the chance.
A gently curving wall:
Chrysanthemums are a popular motif:
They are also associated with death and funerals, so this is the one flower you must not give to your mother on Mother's day in Japan.
Midday sun is not the best light for taking photos. However, if that is the only time you've got, there are a few things you can keep in mind to help get photos that aren't a mix of black voids and over exposed highlights: use overhead shadows, put your subject in the shade of a tree or roof. The light bouncing off the ground will be enough to give a nice soft box like effect and get rid of the harsh shadows under the eyes and nose etc. This would be a great place for an example photo...maybe next time!
Another tip is to use that bright light to get shots that might not otherwise be possible. I spotted a great big red umbrella outside of a restaurant, shooting from the side would have been OK, but a bit boring.
But shooting up?
I really love the details of these kinds of umbrellas and parasols:
After trekking all over don't forget to treat yourself, Arashiyama also has a plethora of gelato and icecream shops:
Bluebery Yoghurt, it was very tasty.
I hope these pictures have sated and perhaps inspired your desire to travel, I know I'm very much looking forward to the time in the hopefully near future when travel restrictions are relaxed!
Where would you like to go, when we can finally get going to other places?
