I’ve lived in Tokyo for almost 10 years, and I’ve always liked taking photos of the city. I have been busy and not able to do anything for a long time. Finally now I have some free time to shoot, but alot of the popular places I used to shoot, have lost their luster to me. Does anybody know of off the beaten path photogenic areas around the city?
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1) odaiba to the right of diver City (towards big site) can give nice skyline views with Tokyo Tower.
2) Arakawa River Bank can give nice Sky Tree photos
3) sakuragicho has a pier which can give nice views of the ferris wheel etc
Look for open air beer gardens in train stations you normally don’t go to, sky bars. I have some really killer photos and found a ton of new buildings and ideas this way
Find apartment buildings that have open escalators and also use that to scout for ideas
Wake up at a very weird hour that you normally wouldn’t go to and visit your favorite places
As for locations:
– Google for lists of abandoned stations, there’s quite a few of them, some with official open hours for tourism. The former Mansei Bashi station is dope, etc
– Kanda-gawa river warehouse area
– Old towns: Kawagoe, Kosoan, Asakusa, Yanaka, Shimabata. You’re probably sick of photographing Golden Gai but look for other yokochos
– Get a JR Rail pass! You can teleport to vastly different areas in under 2 hours
* Have you ever used the walkway across the Rainbow Bridge?
* There are a number of rooftop restaurants along the river in Nakameguro with a nice view of the surrounding city. There are relatively few tall buildings in the surrounding area, while Nakameguro itself is a valley, so the view from a rooftop is much more wide open.
* Area around Yanaka.
Without context of what kind of shots you like taking, it’s hard to narrow it down. I’m a photography hobbyist and have been shooting around Japan/Tokyo area since 2017. So I can recommend quite a few spots, but it would be easier if I knew what kind of photos you’re into taking so I could recommend something more specific (cityscapes/abstract architecture/street photography/nature).
I’m personally a big fan of the Yamanote Line during the morning rush hour. Best spot is close to the exit.
Areas under the Shutoko, back alleys around Monzen-Nakacho and Shinsen Station, Kanda area (Nishi-Kanda, Kanda Nishikicho, Kanda Tacho).
Not knowing what popular places you’re tired of or what kind of things you’re looking to shoot more of leaves me very little to base any recommendations on…
Definitely get a rail pass or even get on a bike and ride in an unfamiliar direction at an unfamiliar time of day for a change. Putting aside some time to make a habit of going out to shoot and exploring will build up a mental database of places.
Being aware of events going on can help too. Koenji gets pretty exciting during Awa Odori.
Kichijoji (吉祥寺), about 20 mins or so west from Shinjuku. Just outside the north exit is the “ハモニカ横丁”, one of those labyrinthine alleyways that’s packed with little drinking bars and eateries. It’s endlessly photogenic.
Aside from that, one thing I like to do is deliberately miss the last train home, have a rough idea of my destination that will be my first train back home in the morning (eg. Ikebukuro to Shibuya) but between those two I just go wherever my feet take me. I’ve discovered a lot of cool little spots and seen a side of Tokyo at night I wouldn’t normally see, because when we think of Tokyo at night we think neon and noise, but those cramped little suburbs between the main hubs were fascinating and bore some great pictures.