At the very end of the year, I posted an article “I went out to photograph the Christmas market along Marunouchi Naka-dori.” The very next week after that photo walk, I attended this workshop at LUMIX ACADEMY.
[Photography Technique Workshop] Enjoy Tokyo Illumination Snaps with Instructors Komuro and Ueda at the Year-End Party!
The venue was Hibiya/Marunouchi, so coincidentally, I ended up shooting in similar locations two weeks in a row. Of course, getting advice from professional instructors and learning from other participants’ techniques meant the photos I took turned out quite different (in a good way) compared to the previous week.
The instructors taught me many things, but two tips for shooting illuminations really stuck in my empty head:
(1) White balance drastically changes the impression of illumination photos
(2) Deliberately shooting out of focus creates interesting results
First point. Among various tests, I liked raising the color temperature during development to achieve “a warm color finish despite being a very cold winter night.”
Like this. It was also nice that a light rain made the road surface sparkle.
The patio in front of Mitsubishi 1st building. It pairs perfectly with the brick building.
Second one. This is a regular Christmas tree photo taken before sunset. It’s pretty, sure, but it’s just a photo of a tree, nothing special…
Shooting this with a deep out-of-focus effect after the sun has fully set makes for a photo with a bit of “intent.”
Of course, since it’s essentially a blurry photo, even when you aim for it, it doesn’t always turn out well. Based on my own subjective evaluation, ↑ this photo is a success, ↓ this photo is a failure.
Even things I’ve taken the trouble to learn seem like a long road until I’ve tried them to my satisfaction and they become second nature. Patience is a key.
Finally, after refocusing, here are two photos I took on my own, separate from the workshop.
One taken looking down in front of Hibiya Midtown.
Taken while looking up at the atrium of the KITTE building in Marunouchi.
Merry Christmas, two weeks late .
Thank you, Ms. Komuro and Mr. Ueda, for your guidance. I’m sorry for being such a poor student.
I regret that I couldn’t join the “year-end party” after the seminar due to other commitments.
