A Bit of Wide Angle in Shinjuku

A couple of weeks ago, a Twitter contact (@FloatingCamera) asked if I wanted to meet up for some wide angle shooting. He’s new to photography and had just bought a Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 and had seen some of my Tokina wide angle shots on Flickr, so he knew I had the same lens. Along with a friend of his (@Rathermakeart), he met me in Shinjuku and we all went for a stroll on Thursday night.

I lived near Shinjuku for close to five years, so it was a bit of a return to my old stomping grounds. I realized that I had not actually been in Shinjuku more than once or twice in the past two to three years (aside from passing through the station to change trains on the odd occasion, that is). Quite a few things have changed; most apparent at first glance was the disappearance of some pretty big stores and the new stores that have replaced them.

More than the physical, however, was the feeling that the whole atmosphere had changed: Kabukicho felt very different to me…sadder somehow – the tough economy having taken its toll. The streets, although still crowded, seem a bit more desperate. Obviously, of course, a big part of feeling changes is the fact that I have changed how I feel about Shinjuku – I am less interested in being there than I was, say, 5 or 6 years ago. Despite these feelings, if you want to take in a few different shooting scenarios, Shinjuku is still a good place for a walk around with a camera.

We started in Nishi-Shinjuku to do some of the buildings and, if one can have such a thing, my favourite intersection in Tokyo:

circular traffic signal overhead at Nishi-Shinjuku intersection

What I love about this is probably apparent: the circular structure looping around the entire intersection – it reminds me of something seen on The Jetsons, and it is probably contemporaneous with the future vision of Hanna-Barbera.

car speeding through a Nishi-Shinjuku intersection

We then did a quick dip down into the courtyard of Shinjuku i-Land (which was, just for clarity, named long before the whole Apple iPhone/iPad/iEverything) to see how it would look with the wide angle. This is my favourite shot from that brief stop:

i-Land courtyard in Nishi-Shinjuku

Continuing the circular theme, the large stone floor design leads to a beautiful centre graphic. It was designed by Italian artist, painter, and sculptor, Giulio Paolini (who also designed the astronomical clock above the courtyard).

After leaving i-Land, we headed over to the Shinjuku Government buildings. Despite having lived in the area for so many years, I had never been up top after sunset. It turned out not to be the best choice because it is lit up like an amusement park inside the viewing lounge area, so, unless you have a large, dark, blanket to cover yourself, it is almost impossible to get a shot of the city at night that doesn’t include reflections.

I did say “almost”…here is one:

I actually quite like the idea of reflected “ghosts” looming over the city, so I spent a few minutes getting a few shots. Here’s one:

people reflected in glass over the Shinjuku skyline

After a very brief visit (it’s great that there’s no admission fee to ride up to the top), we left and headed over to the other side of Shinjuku station, with Kabukicho as our final destination for the evening.

En route, I took a few shots near the west exit of the station:

I’m not sure why the police had stopped the guy at the end of the alley (but it is always possible to be stopped just based on the mere fact that you’re a gaijin):

And, finally, a few shots from Kabukicho:

I decided to switch lenses for the last few shots of the evening, so I pulled out my 135L f/2 – it had been a while and it was calling my name: