Droves of hungry seagulls descend upon our cruiser in Matsushima Bay, Sendai, a beautiful stretch of islands surrounding the Miyagi coastline and purported one of the “Three Views of Japan” – unfortunately it was too gloomy and overcast a day for decent photography.
While it was exhilarating to watch the graceful birds perform their mid-air, acrobatic manoeuvres as they dived for crackers dished out by tourists I wonder if it is a good thing upsetting their natural ability to hunt for food.
(below) A quaint old shrine perched on one of the small islands dotting the coast, complete with the usual Omikuji post.
Visited any shrines when you were here in Japan ? My favourite is still the Jindaiji in Tokyo and a couple others I saw in Kyoto and Nara.
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Gunma/Nagano Trip 2012
Hachiman Shrine, Irumagawa, Saitama.
Hatsumode, Hachiman Jinja, Irumagawa.
Realm Of The Foxes, Fushimi-Inari Shrine, Kyoto
Futarasan Jinja, Nikko.
May 24th, 2009 at 7:04 am
It looks like a scene from that hitchcock film ‘The birds’!
how did you manage to keep the flying gulls in focus?
May 24th, 2009 at 7:16 am
Awesome shots, as always! My favorite is definitely the 3rd from the last; I love shots like that with lots of complexity and detail. Good uses of the lines in the scene. 🙂
2nd shot of the seagulls is nice too, with the gulls and the background balancing each other to fill out the frame nicely.
As for best shrine, while I do like Jindaiji I’m gonna have to stick with Fushimi Inari in Kyoto as a personal favorite.
May 24th, 2009 at 7:53 am
nice photos! wow… :O
i think i missed some really nice shrines when i go to tokio, like the one u mentioned…jindaiji, beatiful indeed. What i remember most of Tokio shrines is the Jizo figurines in zojo-gi, and the view of tokio by night from the main observatory of tokio tower.
But what really takes my breath away was Nara in Kioto, the budha in Todai-ji (… :O) and later that same day visited kasuga sanctuary, i remembered it was like a smooth rain falling in the umbrellas, that, with the sound of the steps in the floor make of small stones… great moment.
i also watched some beautiful shrines in sofia´s coppola film “lost in translation”.
Mutashima is great indeed.
🙂
May 24th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
impressive. the seagulls are frozen perfectly in midair. sugoi~
May 25th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Ah. :] I remember the seagulls from Matsushima Bay… I was there last summer and the way they descended upon us once the cruise started was kinda amusing, heh. I hope to visit again and hike up the hills so I can get a view of the entire place!
May 29th, 2009 at 2:34 pm
These photos are great. You’re photography skills are pretty, darn good!
May 29th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
tragic comedy – I knew someone was going to say that. :] For the shots, I was on a very high shutter speed.
orion – Thanks for the kind words. I missed Fushimi Inari when I was in Kyoto, but I’m definitely going next time. :]
rulascalaca – Visited some of the places you mentioned in Nara, they were amazing indeed !
gordon – Thank you. :]
Dev – Yep, pity it was a gloomy day when I visited !
Ryan – Thank you Ryan ! I think I’m just a regular photography enthusiast like many other folks out there. :]
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:24 am
I love the photos in this post
November 22nd, 2009 at 2:50 am
I am amazed at the talk of concern about “gloomy” days and not gooing while it rains. Dear gentle folk, you are missing the esthetics before you. People in Japan cherish the variation in the weather, and most especially in that bay. A slanted rain is breath taking. The “gloom” gives a new look to the colors. Mists are drama. All sun and no shadow is as dull as L.A. Take another step into the real world.
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:57 pm
Awesome picture! You took pictures very well!..You are a very good photographer. I like your photo shots. I love the 3rd picture from the last part..=) Keep up the good work! keep on posting nice pics=0