NIKON Z 8 (26mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec, ISO360)
We went from late summer in Kyoto to winter in Kanazawa. Time for a warm drink before we move on.
The Higashi Chaya (or Geisha) district is a couple of streets with old wooden houses that you can also find in Kyoto. Inside those houses are either restaurants or shops for craft goods. It is all beautiful but it also feels a little off. This is a tourist hotspot in Kanazawa but since we just visited Kyoto it felt laid back. Kanazawa is still kind of off the beaten path if you will. I think it is more popular with Japanese tourists.
NIKON Z 8 (26mm, f/2.8, 1/250 sec, ISO1000)
NIKON Z 8 (73mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO560)
NIKON Z 8 (39mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO320)
NIKON Z 8 (71mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO800)
We were looking for a nice souvenir but honestly most items on offer were a little too upscale for our taste. Kanazawa is famous for its gold art. We appreciate craftsmanship and some of the goods looked amazing but we moved away from pure objects to items that have a purpose in our daily life. From art to household items. It is very satisfying to use tea cups picked up in Scotland or real pint glasses from a pub in Dublin on a daily base because those things remind you on your vacations.
But we found nothing for our daily life here and I still regret that I didn’t got at least one or two nice kitchen knives later in Tokyo. Too late – next time I will prepare a shopping list.
During this vacation I mostly shot with the 20mm or the 26mm lens but in Kanazawa I used the Z 24-120/4 S a lot. A tele lens is very useful to compress the scene in those narrow streets. My highlight was the pictures of the elderly couple who got their pictures taken from a professional photographer. I “stole” a couple of photos. My favourite is the one in which I included the photographer.
NIKON Z 8 (80mm, f/11, 1/250 sec, ISO900)
NIKON Z 8 (102mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO200)
NIKON Z 8 (120mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO250)
One our way back I saw this sign and of course I had to walk in. A very nice shop that sold hats, shirts and small items. I almost bought their branded camera strap for my Nikon but an orange camera strap with a “fucking rabbits” – logo isn’t exactly low key. I already stick out here because of my size, there is no need to wear a camera strap in signal color. Even at home I prefer to have a less attention grabbing camera strap but I was close to buy it anyway because I love the color orange.
We took a bus back to the center, went for lunch and walked all the way back to our hotel for a short rest.
NIKON Z 8 (24mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO2200)