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Roses Blooming in the Autumn Light - 7th Oct 2026

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It had been quite a while since I last visited Hibiya Park.  I was greeted by a stunning display of roses in full bloom. Roses of every color and variety filled the garden, but it was the pink roses, flourishing spectacularly in one corner of the park, that drew my attention the most. While quite different from cosmos, autumn roses have a quiet sophistication and mature beauty all their own. I photographed them with my Nikon D40x with AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G II, whose CCD sensor is renowned for its rich and deep color reproduction.  Thanks to that distinctive rendering, I was able to capture the luxurious elegance and depth that make autumn roses such a captivating subject. Nikon D40x / AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR /1/125s / F5.6 / ISO 100 / 0.0 Nikon D40x / AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR /1/250s / F5.6 / ISO 100 / 0.0 Nikon D40x / AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR /1/500s / F5.6 / ISO 100 / 0.0 Nikon D40x / AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR /1/...

Olympus Was Beautiful After All - 29th Sep and 14th Oct 2012

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Cosmos at Showa Memorial Park, Captured with the E-5 While organizing some old photographs recently, I came across a series of cosmos images I had taken at Showa Kinen Park on October 14, 2012.  The camera was an Olympus E-5 paired with the ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 50-200mm F2.8-3.5 SWD II. Looking back now, the E-5 would become Olympus's final DSLR. These photographs are now fourteen years old. Since then, I have spent much of my time shooting with Nikon cameras, and it has been quite a while since I parted with my Olympus equipment. Yet when I looked at these images again, I found myself thinking, "Olympus really was a wonderful camera system." The soft pink tones of the cosmos flowers appear natural and delicate, yet they leave a strong impression. The images are not flashy or overly dramatic. Instead, they seem to capture the gentle texture of the petals and even the atmosphere surrounding the flowers. Back then, the Four Thirds system was often criticized when compared with ...

Shooting in the rain - 19th Sep 2026

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Even though it's a long holiday, it has been raining, so without any specific plans, I took a gentle walk around the neighborhood. In the rain, on my way to the barbershop, I took photos of the lovely flowers I came across. I was surprised to learn that a flower resembling a rose and another resembling a hibiscus are actually the same species. Taking photos in the rain certainly has its own special charm, doesn't it? Double Rose of Sharon: ムクゲ(八重咲) Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/250s / ISO800 / 0.0 Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/250s / ISO800 / 0.0 Rose of Sharon: ムクゲ(一重咲) Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/125s / ISO800 / 0.0 Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/125s / ISO800 / 0.0 Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/250s / ISO800 / 0.0 Black-eyed Susan:  Nikon D5500 / AF-S 18-200mm F3.5-5.6G IF-ED II /  f5.6 / 1/200s / ISO800 /...