I went for a short walk last tonight to explore Jiyugaoka and do a little shopping... I love how close and accessible everything is...loving my new home. Today’s Configuration: Leica M9 with a Summilux 21mm f/1.4 and a Leica SF 24-D and a Noctilux 50mm f/0.95 with ND64 with a 1.4x magnifier.

今日のカメラ：私のライカM９をつかいます。レンズはNoctilux 50mm f/0.95とND64とSummilux 21mm f/1.4とライカSF 24-Dをつかいました。

Jiyugaoka is filled with these little streets for shopping...

Everything Black and White...

Endless shopping...

Ah...found what I was looking for. I have been looking for a pair of Birkenstocks. I love wearing these for slow lazy walks on the weekend. It just isn't possible to walk fast in these. Great for a no need to rush stroll with my camera.

The issue for me in Japan is they never have my size... Birkenstock carries exactly 1 style in exactly 1 color in my size... luckly it happens to be the one that I want! chances....?

There is so much going on in Jiyugaoka...I don't think I will ever get bored shooting here.

Here is an interesting topic that comes up a lot....when is the best time to Photograph Neon. In my opinion it is the first few minutes past sunset as there is a nice balance between the neon and ambient light. I don't have a lot of neon near my house but I think this is still a good example.

Here is an example 1 hour after Sunset...so you can see the difference.

Light, rather Quality of Light, can impact a photograph more than just about anything else. I have been thinking about doing a little writing about this. Let me know if you think this is a good topic to cover and if there is enough interest I'll shoot some examples and get a write up this week.

The other thing I love is I have a Starbucks just a 3 minute walk away so I can run and grab one before starting to write my blog posts...coffee just tastes better when someone else makes it.