I fell in love with film photography on a recent trip to Japan, and this is the building that brought me there. The tower is currently under threat of demolition so I set out to document it in the event of its loss. But the very day I was to gain access was March 11, 2011. I was nearby touring Hamarikyu Onshi Teien when the 8.9 quake hit, after which I walked to the building through panicked streets to see how it fared. This particular shot was taken as the 7.2 aftershock began, after which I ran to a safer location, never again to return.

My trip to Japan represents a total change in thinking in my life - how I see the world, what I value, etc. - and this photo sums up this turning point in one of in one palpable *snap*

Perhaps this new analog apotheosis in my life makes sense. Before living through the disaster in Japan I saw life with a certain clarity, if not banality. Effectively, I was living a digital ideology. Now post-quake the way I see things loose their certainty. Definition becomes grainy, reality seems skewed; but the colors, oh, the colors! Imperfection certainly holds a beauty insurmountable, and there's never a bad time to realize it, even in a disaster.

Photographer:
amyswift
Uploaded:
2011-06-24
Tags:
capsule hotel nakagin
Camera:
Holga 135 (available in our shop)
Film:
Lomography XPro 200 ISO 35mm
City:
Tokyo
Country/region:
Japan
Year:
2011
Time:
afternoon
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