January 2024 Photos: Enter The Year of the Dragon!
Tokyo Kills Me
Introduction
Japan was the first country in East Asia to adopt the Gregorian calendar, in 1873 Source. Nevertheless, the animal zodiac signs of the traditional lunisolar calendar are still in use — especially for cultural events and fortune telling.
If you don’t know already,
2024 is the year of Dragon based on Chinese zodiac… Dragon is the fifth in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac signs. The Years of the Dragon include 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024…
Chinese Dragon is de facto an imaginary animal, also the only fictitious creature in the 12 zodiac animals, which is composed of 9 animals, including the body of a snake, the horns of a deer, the head of an ox, the mouth of a crocodile, the claws of an eagle, and the scales of a fish. The Dragon enjoys a very high reputation in Chinese culture and it represents auspiciousness and imperial power since ancient times.
Chinese people regard themselves as descendants of the Chinese dragon and emperors entitled themselves exclusively as the ‘dragon’. It is the token of authority, dignity, honor, success, luck, and capacity — Source
Here’s hoping that 2024, the year of the dragon, is an auspicious one for me — and for you, dear reader :-)
In terms of photography, it’s certainly off to a good start…
I took this photo at night and used the silvertone monochrome filter to accentuate the lines and the crontrast between dark and light in this image, further emphasizing the resemblance to tattoo art.
Tokyo’s biggest blue-light district* is not exactly the kind of place you would look for a park, and Kabukicho Park is very small, and tucked away among bars and love hotels. What it lacks in grace and greenery it makes up for in aptness, as this dragon wall art by Higashi Manabu ’illustrates. Is it a coincidence that, in a district of the city known for its large yakuza presence, this piece of street resembles the kind of full-body tattoo worn by gang members?
A shuttered storefront shot at night on an iPhone X, with a bump in the midtones to help bring out the colours.
A dragon head water spout at a Buddhist shrine in Tokyo. By tradition, dragons are associated with water in Japan and serve as guardians and protectors of both the imperial family and ordinary people.
After brightening the midtones in this image, I applied the new Lens Blur function in Lightroom to take the background out of focus and some 3D “pop” to the dragon’s head.
*A so-called “blue light district” is essentially a red light district that also includes family-friendly venues such as restaurants and movie theatres.