Since I went to Ura-Bandai for a summer vacation, I should have stayed in the cool highlands area, but I couldn’t resist and made a little expedition to the Tadami Line area during my stay.
It takes about an hour and a half by car from Ura-Bandai to the Tadami River valley. This is the only train photo I took this time.
It was late afternoon, the sun was strong and slightly backlit, and I used a PL filter. Although I used a PL filter to suppress reflections a little, the surface of the water was still a little wavy.
I had thought that a vertical composition would not be good because the overhead wires running in the middle of the sky would be in the frame as man-made objects. I learned that, unlike nature photography, I should not worry too much about the overhead wires in the sky.
There were not many other photos taken that day, but I stopped by Tohoku Electric Power Company’s Oku-Aizu Hydroelectric Museum “Miosato” in Kanayama Town during a break. I took a few pictures of it.
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This is a group of works called “Miniature Fantasy Architecture” by the artist Nobuo Takama, in which he actually draws floor plans and makes miniatures of fictional buildings and scenes that appear in anime and film works.
For example, “The day Satsuki and May moved into their new home”, “The Sengoku Self-Defense Forces attacking Kasuga-yama Castle,” “A full view of Suzuki Auto in “Always: Sunset on Third Street,” etc.” He makes elaborate miniatures.
I was particularly impressed by this work.
I was impressed not only by the detailed workmanship, the beautiful finish, and the reproduction of Jo Yabuki’s hairstyle, but above all, the idea of reproducing and presenting the “Tange Boxing Club” at the exhibition in 2023 was a real feat of ingenuity. I am realy impressed.
*I took this photo through an acrylic case in a brightly lit venue facing a terrace, so I apologize for picking up unnecessary reflected light and making it difficult to see.
This one was also sticky but awesome.
Blue address signs on wire mesh, posters for police recruiting…is this what you call “God is in the details”? I don’t mean “the workmanship is fine,” but the selection of “anything that should be there,” or the concentration of imagination, is amazing.
Compared to these, the big work, “The Bathhouse of ‘Spirited Away,'” does not move me so much. Although I think that the elaborate and gigantic architecture of the bathhouse has been faithfully reproduced as in the original work, I do not feel the “passion” that the artist has put into making the bathhouse appear here and now.
I don’t mean to be disrespectful. Even this bathhouse is amazing. I dared to take a picture of the “back side” instead of the gorgeous “front side” because I had an intention. The scene of Chihiro running down the exterior staircase that leads to the boiler room was created to express my sympathy that, yes, you understand one of the best scenes in the movie.
However, I would like to say that what really struck me at this exhibition was not the big “bathhouse” but the “boxing club” and the “recruiting poster” .
I am not able to introduce Mr. Takama Nobuo because I am not sure of his official website or SNS account, but I heard that he is from Fukui Prefecture and has a private museum and cafe called “Sakuranbo” in Maruoka-cho, where his works are permanently exhibited. For your reference.
The last photo was taken from the south terrace of Miori, showing the Tadami River and the Oshi community.
I have taken several shots of the Tadami Line from the Kaneyama Fureai Hiroba in the north direction, but this is the first time I have done it in the opposite direction. I thought, “I can’t take a picture of Tadami Line from here…” and I took it.
I found that there was a place where I could capture the Tadami Line running on the bridge just outside of the angle of view of this photo. Although I could not take advantage of it that day, the staff at Miori had made a notice board to announce the scheduled time of the line’s passage, and I was impressed.
Anyway, this is the end of my Ura-Bandai trip article. Thank you for reading to the end.
