Cherry blossoms in Japan are as beautiful as they are fleeting. The flowers bloom in the spring for only a few short weeks before wind and rain steal them from the branches. It’s common for Japanese to celebrate the season with 花見（hanami, or flower-viewing parties). In light of the recent earthquake and tsunami, this year’s parties were subdued. But the ephemeral beauty of the blossoms seems appropriate during this time of mourning and reflection in Japan. Indifferent to humanity’s wishes, nature carries on.
Enough of that. Here are some pictures.
Picnics under cherry blossoms are popular in areas like Yoyogi Park in Tokyo. I visited the park with some friends to see the flowers. At the park I shot 12 pictures on a film TRL camera I bought recently.
I liked the discipline of shooting on medium format film. With my digital camera, I have thousands of potential pictures every time I shoot. With this film camera, I only had 12 clicks of the shutter.
I honestly have no idea what’s going on here.
If anyone is curious, I got the 120 (medium format) film developed, then I taped the negatives to a light in my room, shot them with my digital camera, inverted the negatives digitally, and color corrected them. I like a good challenge.
By now most of the cherry blossoms around Tokyo are gone. They were beautiful while they lasted.