Japan Photo of the Week: Fushimi Inari

Fushimi Inari Shrine is one of my favorite places in Kyoto. Most temples and shrines have “their season” when it is best to visit, but Fushimi Inari isn’t famous for it’s cherry blossoms or fall leaves, so it’s great anytime of the year. Why you ask? Well for one main reason: the torii gates.

Actually, I guess, there are thousands of reasons why Fushimi Inari Shrine is a great choice to visit anytime of the year, that is that there are thousands of torii gates at this shrine dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. They come in all sizes, and size is determined upon how large of a donation was made to get the gate built. It is really impressive to walk through what seems like an endless amount of gates. For more information about and photos of Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, check out the Japan Photo Guide.

This photograph was taken by Evan Pike. If you would like to see more or buy this photograph, check out the gallery.

the overthinker

Ummmm. Not sure if I like this one so much. Looks hellish: a distorted confused chaos of red and black. The radial blurring is perhaps a bit much: without it it might be better. A stark, almost monochrome array of red and black. Still, at least you avoided the clichéd foreshortened telephoto view down the corridor….
http://babibubebo.com Evan

haha, i aappreciate your honesty and understand what you are saying. actually, i have two shots like this, one that is just plain and this one. to get the effect, no after editing program was used, but instead, i used a slow shutter speed and zoomed in slowly. the regular one just looked, well, regular and this one, especially when printed, really feels like you are being sucked into the gates (of hell maybe??)… but beauty is in the eye or something like that.

oh and of course i have the “clichéd foreshortened telephoto view down the corridor” as well

the overthinker

Perhaps in that case a radial/zoom blur on a daylight scene looking down the corridor might be better for the ‘sucking in’ effect…. It’s the stark red and black, the blurring, and the lack of any sense of coherent organisation (the general chaos of the composition [which I am sure is deliberate of course]) that suggest to my mind at least visions of some hell (no, I do mean I see it in a religious sense, purely an artistic one). Would it be possible to put a link to the non-blurred version so we can compare?

Evan

Hey, sorry for the late response, missed this last comment of yours. Anyway, I actually have a copy online here (the crop is a little different bc I’m zooming in on the one above):

https://images.rovingeye.com/search_detail.cfm?photoID=19898

sorry for the big watermark :-/

the overthinker

Thanks. Yes, I think I prefer that one. Is it just the compression for the page, or is it a bit out of focus in some parts? I do like the starkness of the first image, so the second one, in full focus and with the contrast bumped up, could be a lovely abstract image….

http://www.rotsyourbrain.com Brendanger

Fushimi Inari is one of the most amazing sites in Japan. Creepy as hell at night time!

Brendanger.

Japan Photo of the Week: Fushimi Inari

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