Focus on what's right in front of us.

When did you start taking photos? What made you start?

I started taking photos in 2017. At the time, I was struggling with worries about my work and future, and I wanted to broaden my horizons. In the midst of it, as if I were searching for an 'answer,' as I was reading various blogs online, I came across an article. It said, "If you want to broaden your horizons, you should start taking photos and using Instagram." I thought this would be easy to do even on an iPhone and began taking photos and posting on Instagram.

From the following day, on my commute home, I took street snaps using my phone. I made a rule for myself to post at least one photo on Instagram every day, and I kept shooting as if it were a strict regime.

Why did you shift your focus from street photography to your family?

In 2020, I discovered Shin Noguchi, a world-renowned Japanese photographer. My first experience of his work was through Yellow Skirt, which happened to appear in my Instagram recommendations. I became interested in him, and when I visited his website and looked at his photos, I found myself feeling inexplicably positive. It was the first time in my life I'd had that kind of experience, and I was immediately captivated. A few months later, I was able to connect with Shin on Instagram, and during our first exchange in DMs, the words he sent me changed me. He said, "Let's focus on what's right in front of us."

At that time, I felt a sense of discomfort about the street photography I was doing. It felt as if I were merely imitating someone else's photos. I went out into the city and looked through the viewfinder and images of 'someone else's photos' would cross my mind, making it difficult to capture the moments I truly wished to. However, Shin's words made me realise something important. When I asked myself, 'What do I want to see on the film negatives?' The answer was clear – my family. With my three young children running freely around the house, I realised that home itself could be a street, even without stepping outside.

After you started photographing your family, was it long before you were able to take the kind of photos you truly wanted?

It was about a year before I felt certain. In December 2021, I bought a film camera, the KONICA C35 EF, and the first photo I took with it confirmed something for me. It was a shot of my daughter, taken on the very first frame of the roll (see above). When I captured that photo, I felt a clear sense of what I truly wanted to take. Even now, I use a digital camera, the X100F, or my iPhone. But that photo was the starting point of how my colour tones and style gradually developed. To this day, I have yet to take a photo that surpasses it.

“When I asked myself, ‘What do I want to see on the film negatives?’ The answer was clear – my family. With my three young children running freely around the house, I realised that home itself could be a street, even without stepping outside.”

You capture moments that feel familiar, yet unique. What kinds of moments or compositions are you drawn to?

I press the shutter only when I intuitively feel the urge to take a photo. It's difficult to put this feeling into words, but I think it's a sense I developed while photographing on the street. Following my intuition means I take very few photos, and there are even days when I don't take any at all. When I'm out, I always carry my camera with me, but at home, I leave it on the table.

I value keeping a comfortable distance with my subjects, neither too close nor too far, and I feel that the 35mm lens suits that distance perfectly.

Have you noticed any expressions or changes in your family that you might not have seen if you weren't taking photos?

I still shoot with the same 35mm lens as before, but recently my children no longer fit entirely in the frame. It makes me a little sad to see their childhood gradually coming to an end. I also feel a bit sad when I imagine them growing up and no longer making the playful, funny movements unique to childhood.

When you are taking photos, is there anything in particular that you pay attention to?

I have no desire to 'show off' my photos to anyone; rather, I see it as being allowed to 'share' them with others. As Shin often says, I think of photos as a kind of reading material. Their beauty lies in allowing the viewer to imagine and interpret meaning for themselves, so I try not to impose any unnecessary interpretation on my images.

I believe photos play a special role, like a device that can instantly take us back to the very day they were taken. I can't help but look forward to the day when my future grandchildren discover the negatives tucked away in a closet and find images of their father or mother as a child and perhaps even images of me, who may no longer be in this world but quietly exchanging a Konnichiwa as if meeting for the first time.