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Photography in Nagoya (Japan)


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I will be spending 6 weeks in Nagoya this summer. My family will

also be with me there. I posted a while ago about the possibility of

teaching US students in Japan a course on quality control and a

course on Japanese culture and Photography. This is where I would

benefit from your input. I will be teaching 5 students a basic

course on using photography to capture images that illustrate

aspects of the Japanese culture. I have the following questions:

1. What type of equipment should I require of my students? Does it

matter if all students [and myself] use film based or digital

cameras? What about rangefinder vs. SLR? It may be difficult to

require students to buy rangefinder cameras at this stage.

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2. If a film based camera is used, should I require B&W film, color

or both? I am thinking of having a weekly critique session of their

work.

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3. Is a textbook necessary for such a course? I could easily teach

them the basics of photography and have then write photo essays

(journalistic style) on what they see.

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4. Is a 50mm lens sufficient? Is a tripod needed? Is there any

particular equipment that you would suggest?

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5. To save students some money, should they all buy Fuji film here

or in Nagoya? Xray is a possible problem in airports.

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6. Do you know about certain aspects of Japanes life that "must" be

captured? Any useful information will certainly be appreciated.

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A nice point and shoot with a fixed lens would be more than adequate, unless they want to invest more money. Should use C-41 film because of developing ease - anywhere. Buy film in the US and place in xray pouch for protection, then refill at will. Pouch may be needed for return trip as well. 1 lens should be in the 35mm focal length range for newbees. Go to Barnes & Noble for a "textbook" - a simple text on how to photograph - there are many inexpensive goods ones. Try to choose one of travel size. Aloha
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And you suppose to teach other people about photography, an art form that looks like you have no idea about it! What a joke! But no problem, you can always ask for help on photo.net and next day impress them again with your knowledge and vast cultural education. Do they pay you, too?
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Man there are some snarky people on this forum.

 

Raid, this is for a college 6 week study abroad thing right? I'm assuming that you know which students will be participating. Why not contact them, and ask them what they have in terms of equipment? I'd think an slr with manual controls available and a 50 or a short zoom would be a pretty reasonable base line. Maybe make a recomendation about where to get a cheap (used) one for those on a budget. As for film, I think it's been established that 400 speed film travels pretty safe. Tell them all to go out and buy a couple of 4 packs of fuji 400. Skip the black and white unless you want to do c41 stuff. Skip the text book.

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Raid,

 

Some folks have already commented about the equipment. Your project to capture "certain aspects of Japanese life" or "Japanese culture" would be a different matter, more akin to travel photography. "Spirit of Place" by Bob Krist would make for a good reading suggestion. Susan McCartney's "Travel Photography" is a good one, as well. You may also want to post at the Travel Photography forum. People familiar with Japan, especially locals, would be able to give you good advice regarding places to shoot, buying and processing film, and the like. Most of the people in that forum, I find, are genuinely helpful, and usually post replies only when they have something to actually contribute.

 

Good luck!

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T o some of you:Take it easy. I have plenty of knowledge and experience on teaching photography. If I want to get the "best information" from photographers who hopefully live around Nagoya, there is no need to be sarcastic about it. This is a website to learn from. As a university professor I never give up the wish to learn "even more".

Maybe I should not have asked individuals who don't want to share their experiences. Maybe you have none?

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Paul: I haven't yet been informed who will be enrolled in my class, but I will make your suggested choice a possible option if it is "impossible" for any student to come up with an SLR.

 

 

"A nice point and shoot with a fixed lens would be more than adequate, unless they want to invest more money. Should use C-41 film because of developing ease - anywhere. Buy film in the US and place in xray pouch for protection, then refill at will. Pouch may be needed for return trip as well. 1 lens should be in the 35mm focal length range for newbees. Go to Barnes & Noble for a "textbook" - a simple text on how to photograph - there are many inexpensive goods ones. Try to choose one of travel size. Aloha"

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Mihaela: I have over 25 years experience in photography and in being an educator. Your conclusion : "And you suppose to teach other people about photography, an art form that looks like you have no idea about it!" is rather misplaced. If you want to contribute in a constructive manner, post your suggestions to my questions.
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Matt: I appreciate seeing a reply from a "mature minded" person here.

 

"Man there are some snarky people on this forum. "

==> Yes, I have noted so. That's OK. I don't need their arrogance.

 

I agree with you that most likely C-41 film is the way to go. Since most labs in Japan provide a faster turn around for Fuji film, I may as well require Fuji. I still don't know who is enrolled since this is a special exchange program that is being handled by a center that handles programs with Japan. If I knew, I would have required us to meet several times to work out issues related to the course.

 

 

"Raid, this is for a college 6 week study abroad thing right? I'm assuming that you know which students will be participating. Why not contact them, and ask them what they have in terms of equipment? I'd think an slr with manual controls available and a 50 or a short zoom would be a pretty reasonable base line. Maybe make a recomendation about where to get a cheap (used) one for those on a budget. As for film, I think it's been established that 400 speed film travels pretty safe. Tell them all to go out and buy a couple of 4 packs of fuji 400. Skip the black and white unless you want to do c41 stuff. Skip the text book."

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Frank: I am by no means "lost" and would not survive without answers to my questions. I asked the simplest questions to get some feedback. As a distinguished researcher and a photographer with published photo essays and many award winning exhbits, I am quite confident about my ability to deliver a first class course when asked to do so.

 

"A little snarky perhaps, but the questions asked suggest Raid does not have a very good handle on things, certainly not enough to be a qualified teacher on the topic."

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Re the snarky comments near the beginning of the post, anybody who's been around academia know that you don't have to be from a certain culture in order to teach a course on it. If you have the most academic knowledge, you are the 'expert.' Perhaps Raid has, e.g., a good grasp on Japanese culture pre-Kyoto-Edo power transition that many students could learn from. Regards
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You might have handled a camera or two for this 25 years but this doesn't make a photographer. Nor if you bought 2 Leica bodies for $10000. And if you are as good college or high school teacher as you are a photographer you are teaching some idiots full of self esteem and empty headed. Lost time and energy. IT"S ALL ABOUT THE LIGHT!!! It?s not about lenses, cameras, films or processing. I attached few images shot with Ricoh GR1 and Olympus Infinity Stylus. Critiques are welcome.
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Some of your questions are a bit odd. Why on earth would you restrict students to rangefinder/slr or tlr cameras? If you are teaching technical aspects of photography just make sure shutter and aperture can be manually set. If you are just teaching people to see creatively any camera is fine.

 

Nagoya's a great place. I got all my stuff developed at Marmo in Irinaka- it's a couple blocks up from the subway station towards Nanzan. You can find cheap Fuji consumer film anywhere- check out the photo shops under Nagoya station for some very cheap prices.

B&W is expensive to develop commercially. Will you be somewhere where you can develop it yourself, like at a school?

 

You need a tripod for night shots. Nagoya's safe so if you are going to teach people low-light or night shots encourage them to get tripods.

 

#6 is a question that students should answer with their pictures. It's up to them.

 

Have fun at Aichi Expo 2005, too.

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Hi Raid, I also use a Fujica G690BL. If I were a student on your course I would prefer to use the Fujica for quality control, given the format and price. A digicam would be useful as a lightmeter.... The chance to shoot in Japan seems wonderful too. I think the Japanese culture is seen differently by the west than in Japan. Perhaps the students will prefer digital capture because of it's popularity in the west. Perhaps the west prefers film to capture the ancient spirit of the East. I think the basic principles learned when using a rangefinder and light meter are valuable and lasting memories. However, I do sympathise that some students will only have digital point and shoots so really there is much to span in your shoes, good luck. Perhaps giving the students the choice of using what tools they want to shoot will be easiest for them, but not for you! Maybe the students will learn from each other too, if they are all using slightly different tools. Of course your own choice of photographic tools will be interesting for the students too, so if you can cram all that into a basic course, then great!

 

Here is what I would do given the chance:

 

Work out what the students want to shoot, and what I want to shoot.

Then work out what I can teach them about doing that. I would use my Fujica G690BL with all the lenses and extras I am still saving for! I would use tripod and non-tripod techniques. I would shoot my own style and let them shoot theirs simultaneously, but instructing as to the similarities and differences between our tools and objectives consitently. Perhaps most importantly I would encourage the students to participate with each other as much as possible and not to simply copy what I do. I would aim for a goal on the last day, perhaps making a large print of a subject we had all shot. So as a group of like minded people we could then appraise each others efforts objectively.

 

 

I am a beginner and as such I appreciate the chance to learn from experienced folks like you, cheers.

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Raid W. Amin , mar 30, 2005; 01:10 p.m.

Frank: I am by no means "lost" and would not survive without answers to my questions. I asked the simplest questions to get some feedback. As a distinguished researcher and a photographer with published photo essays and many award winning exhbits, I am quite confident about my ability to deliver a first class course when asked to do so.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Read this response carefully.

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