Kyu-Furukawa Gardens Rose Festival 2022

Ingrid Berman rose
The movie star - an Ingrid Berman rose.

Kyu-Furukawa Rose Festival 2022 was returned in October.  I went with my Fujifilm X-T3 camera, a couple of lenses, and a flash.  This time, I would do flower photos a little differently. I was looking forward to it.

It was a Friday, but many people were there. Tokyoites love their flower festivals. But for me, I can find the crowds frustrating. You have to wait for shots. There’s nothing you can do, though. If you want those photos, deal with the situation. In the end, it’s worth it.

People looking at Kyu-Furukawa Gardens roses
The Kyu-Furukawa Gardens mansion.

The first half of my Kyu-Furukawa Gardens Rose Festival 2022 visit was overcast. That was good because the light was soft and diffused. Conditions were good for flower photography. I still used my flash, though. That was something I wanted to practice.

New Ave Maria rose
A New Ave Maria rose.

Do you remember my Jindai Botanical Gardens article? For that, I used HSS flash to darken backgrounds. This time I didn’t. I wanted something new.

The flash was a key light. I kept the shutter speed at 1/250 second or slower. The backgrounds wouldn’t be dark. Everything would be more natural. Half of my photos used this technique. The rest were handheld composites. It worked.

Pink Peace rose
A Pink Peace rose.

Once I was home, I processed everything in Lightroom. I edited the photos minimally. It didn’t take too long. Each one took about five minutes maximum.

The results look better, don’t you agree? I hope you do. If you do, let me know with a comment below. And if you don’t, let me know that, too. 

Anyway, Kyu-Furukawa Garden Rose Festival 2022 was like many other years. The presentation of the garden was good. But there was one problem.

Harmonie rose
A Harmonie rose.

I planned to use my extension tube, but it was impossible. Why? Many flowers were crushed. Far too many people handled them. It was a sad situation. 

The park management made many announcements over the PA system. Many times they said, “Please don’t touch the flowers.” But some people ignored them. The lesson is simple. Go to these events as early as possible while the flowers are in good condition.

In the end, I needed to walk the garden many times, looking for undamaged flowers. I was frustrated, but it happens to every photographer. It doesn’t happen at every event, but it happens enough.

Aromatherapy rose
An Aromatherapy rose.

Still, it was good to see Josiah Conder’s mansion and the garden again. They are both beautiful and reminders of years gone. You can read about them here. If you enjoy Japanese history or flowers, they are worthy of a visit.

Anyway, I left feeling I had achieved my goals. There’ll be no more rose photos for me in 2022. Other events are going to happen, and they have priority. These flowers they will return here in 2023.

White Christmas rose
White Christmas rose.

Kyu-Furukawa Gardens Rose Festival 2022 lenses:

What flash did I use?  

  1. Godox V860II

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External related websites:

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