It’s said that Japan’s five ports that opened to the West in the late 19th century are the birthplaces of Japanese photography culture. They include Hakodate, Yokohama, Niigata, Kobe, and Nagasaki.
This past November 17th to the 19th, Hakodate City in Hokkaido held an exhibit and discussion session called Power of Photos.
More specifically, Power of Photos involved a display of two photographers’ precious photos together, while the discussion session presented the panelists’ unfiltered thoughts about the various photos. Attendees thus experienced a kind of authenticity.
The key point of this event was that it was held in Hakodate, the northernmost mecca of Japanese photography culture.
The discussion involved Akira Tanisugi, who has run a photo studio for many years and has made studies of kamuy (an Ainu deity) his lifework, and Herbie Yamaguchi, the best in the world at eliciting smiles from people.
What is a photographist?
Taking pictures=an interaction with the life of another. It is a professional who is resolute in the belief that a single photo transcends this world and holds sway, who seeks happiness, and who embraces the challenge of photography.