Akiba Shopping Day With Friends (Japan – Autumn 2018 Day 14)
It was a productive day. I woke early and did work all morning long… managing the amount of photos that I take can be a daunting task if I let things slide for a few days and do not edit, sort and organize it all.
… that’s exactly what I did for the last few days and it was weighing on me. It took me 5 hours to get it all done but oh that was satisfying to see it all finished! It then felt as if I could get on with my day, so I took a shower and left the house to join my Swedish friends in Akihabara.
First order of business was to help Joy find a new battery for his phone… this was not a fruitful mission, we think because the phone model was so old and no one carried batteries for it any longer. That mission abandoned, we moved on to Donki to look for a few small essentials… we all spent more time there than we expected and ended up in the arcade there for DDR, of course. I only played one round, since I didn’t have on the proper clothing to get all sweaty in.
I was most interested in going to the One-up store to look for more limited edition gasha and was hoping to get another Morris figure. The building that One-up is located in has several stores contained within… 1st and 2nd floors have one store each, the 3rd floor has One-up and I think 4 other stores, and then the next 3 floors are all singer The group wanted to take a look at anime figurines so I suggested the 1st floor of that building but before I went up to the 3rd floor, I stopped on the first floor with the rest of the group, who was most interested in anime figurines… this store was pretty amazing I must say, not only for the sheer amount of figures that they stocked but also because:
The prices were fair. Compared to a large number of other stores in Akihabara that also carry the same or similar products, the average prices of things was lower.
Used goods. They had a large selection of used goods that were CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP – always in good condition, sometimes in damaged original boxes and sometimes not in a box at all.
I picked up two figures – both from Persona 5 – the cheap prices on these were too good to pass up!
I spent more time in this store than I expected to – I am not into Anime but I really do appreciate the art and talent behind it all plus the details on these figures were so incredible that I wanted to take my time browsing. There were a few that I really wanted to take home with me, but I passed.
Eventually I made my way up to the 3rd floor and the VAG gasha machines – in case you hadn’t read in previous blog posts, VAG is an acronym for Vinyl Artist Gacha… popular vinyl artists release mini versions of their work for sale in gachapon machines – you can read more here: http://sofvi.tokyo/tag/vag/
A Konatsu Kappa! It was from an older fun of VAG series, so I was really surprised to see this here – I thought that I had missed out!
Creepy mechanical monkeys – I could not resist!
Walking up to the VAG gasha machines, the Morris figures were sold out! I did find two that I wanted… one from Konatsu, a Kappa and another from KikkaeToy, which is a scary looking mechanical monkey. It’s difficult to walk away from these machines because I want one of each color variety, but you don’t know which one will come out so it’s a bit of a risk! But alas, I do have good self control so I walked away after getting just these two.
My blue faced mechanical monkey and a very innocent looking Kappa
We spent so much time at these stores that it was quite late and many places were shutting down for the night so we headed home. I had a quick and cheap Lawson conbini dinner before collapsing into my bedroll and passing out.
Day #55 – A Photo A Day 2013
Okay okay – today is MONDAY and this pic should have been posted YESTERDAY but forces beyond my control were preventing me from updating my blog – i.e.: my website was down.
Neither Chris nor I had time to look into why it was down yesterday so that happened this morning. Needless to say it’s up and running, since I am at my desk currently typing away in this post.
So, today will have TWO yes TWO separate posts – one for yesterday (Day #55) and one for today (Day #56)
Because of an article on San Francisco Fun Cheap that I read a few weeks ago I learned of the Treasure Island Flea Market and of course I immediately wanted to go look at all of the junk or treasures that I could possibly want to see.
It seemed like every weekend I had something planned already, so last weekend I decided that I would go this weekend.
Then last Monday, Treasure Island Flea’s Facebook page posted about a contest to win a $100.00 shopping spree by sharing their post – well of course I would share that post! I really wanted to visit the flea, and how much more awesome would that be with $100.00 given to me to spend?!?!
Friday I got the word that I won! WOW! I was thrilled! I had SO MUCH FUN looking at everything there was to see and I met so many sweet people there! One of the owners of the event met me at the gate to give me my $100.00 worth of vouchers – a genuinely nice person, and I am not just saying that because she handed me free money! Thank you so much! What a nice welcome to San Francisco!
I ended up buying a hand-made skirt overlay to pair with my costume corsets and a chain mail bracelet – both vendors were so sweet and likable and I can’t wait to wear these things. Perhaps a pic later when I’m in the mood to play dress up.
It was around 3:30 when I left the flea and explored the waterfront a bit. The sun was glaring so it made the view of San Francisco a bit hazy – I intend to go back to take pictures at sunset one of these days soon. I snapped some pics strictly for the memories but they aren’t anything spectacular. (oh, that sun glare!)
I happened upon a HUGE wire statue of a woman dancing – the Bliss Dancer – so beautiful! I started taking pictures right away and I had a lot of fun getting shots with the sun in various positions in relation to the statue. I liked her so much that I decided to edit one of the photos right there on the spot, and here is the result –
Bliss Dancer Wire Sculpture – Treasure Island
In browsing the website I learned that she lights up at night – I’m planning a trip over to the island for sure!
Day #31 – A Photo A Day 2013
The first day of MacWorld was TODAY and OH! I am so so SO inspired and encouraged!
iPhoneography is THE next big thing – I’ve been saying this for about a year now, and have been ridiculed by a few, and gently dissuaded by others seeking to keep me from finding rejection of my photos taken with my iPhone.
Interestingly, all of the speakers at these Tech Talks say the same thing – iPhones won’t replace SLRs (big cameras) but rather are finding their own niche of an art expression. iPhone apps offer mobility and ease of use that you just don’t find with editing software for your computer (such as Photoshop).
Photoshop isn’t bad, but it takes a long time to edit your photos. On your iPhone or iPad, I find it easy to find what I want in each app that will make what is in my head translate into the photo or photos that I am merging on my iDevice.
I have been “layering apps” for quite some time now in order to get the results from pics that I am trying to achieve. Most of that work I have not published at all, just a few on Instagram here and there, but I was afraid of rejection.
Not so after my first round of classes today! All of these people giving the talks were either already artists or professional photographers or both, and all of them have found an unusual creative outlet in their iPhones that is very different from their professional (big camera) photography.
Are my edits good enough to show people? I think so, and that’s not an over-inflated view either. Each one of my photos is agonized over to the point where I probably obsess too much over this light level or that color in that exact spot – I am my own worst critic, and THAT is what has been keeping me from moving forward and making my art known.
Starting today, I am not holding back. I will allow my creativity to flow and I’m putting it out there for everyone to see. Will any of this go anywhere? Maybe! I made a few connections today with local photographers, and they have put me in touch with a few other contacts that I think will be great to network with.
Oddly, in one of the classes today, I was reminded that I had entered a contest on Instagram for Mobile Masters, a chance to have your work featured in the Mobile Masters book to debut today at the conference.
Long story short, I checked Instagram (which I had not done in a week), and found this message, which I snapped a pic of on my phone…
Mobile Masters Winning Entry Notification
I almost let out a squeal of delight in the middle of the lecture! MY picture made it? REALLY!?!?!?! It DID!
This was my winning entry – the Matterhorn Edit I originally posted here in December when I was talking about Filtermania 2.
Disneyland’s Matterhorn Heavily Modified
DEFINTELY a validation moment for me! You can purchase the ebook here at iTunes: Mobile Masters Book for your iPad. I am so honored to be a part of this – my first published photo!
Now comes today’s photo, since this IS supposed to be a picture of the day entry, and so far all I have done is gush a bit about my day at MacWorld.
I give you a photo that I edited during one of the talks today, originally posted here on Day #16
Here is the edit:
Edit of 4th Street Bridge at Mission Bay
I edited this one in three different iPhone apps, but right now I don’t remember which ones – I was editing this as I was listening to the lecture because I was so inspired at that moment to do something creative that I just went with the flow! Funny though… the speaker was talking about her use of color in her art and I was totally in a black and white and gritty sort of mood.
Two words to sum up day 1 of MacWorld iPhoneography Tech Talks? SUPER INSPIRED!
Day #3 – A Photo A Day 2013
Since I moved to San Francisco I could not help but notice the plethora of art sculptures scattered near my neighborhood… I suspect that I have barely scratched the surface of just how many public works of art there are, and I am very excited to discover and document as many as I can.
One of my favorites that I pass often is Seasons of the Sea ‘Adrift by John Roloff. There is a plaque near the structure that reads, “This glass ship is an art work that refers to the natural and geological history of California. Sediment gathered from the ocean floor four miles off the coast of San Francisco was placed inside in 1993. This sediment contains diverse mineral and organic matter extracted from the landscape by the rivers that flow to the sea through the Golden Gate. The greenhouse environment of the ship interacts subtly with these materials producing ongoing natural cycles of growth, decay and rebirth.”
I visit Yerba Buena Gardens quite a bit, and I always make sure that I stop to admire the sculpture and nearby fountain.
At night, it is lit up with green light, which is a nice contrast to the purplish blue lighting of a building that is just to the SE.
Seasons of the Sea ‘Adrift at night.
Unfortunately my iPhone did not pick up the intensity of the color of the clouds that were prevalent that night. Lights from the city were reflecting off of the low clouds, and the sky looked textured with orange and black.
During the day, “Seasons” is quite impressive as well, it’s bow jutting out from the concrete, living plants contained within. (perhaps a daytime photo for another post!) It’s a piece that I find to be quite contrasting with the area it’s been placed in, and perhaps it’s all the more at home there rather than bayside where it might have blended into the landscape more instead of surprising you.