Ever-Changing Tokyo: A City of Night and Rain

"I'm Going to Photograph the City, at Night"

It was a random encounter that led Watanabe to take up photography. During his first year working, he was assigned to Niigata Prefecture, some 250 kilometers northwest of Tokyo. Drawn to its rich nature, he spent weekends visiting picturesque locations. One day, he met an elderly photographer who showed him some photos.

"The scenery in front of me was, of course, wonderful, but the images I saw on the screen were stunningly beautiful. It was the moment I discovered the joy of creating a cutout of the scenery with a camera to keep."

Watanabe immediately bought a DSLR camera and began taking photos. However, he was ordered back to Tokyo after a while. He moved to the center of the metropolis, far removed from nature.

"It may have been nice traveling to places full of nature while living in Tokyo, but if given the choice, I wanted to photograph the best moments of the city I was living in. And if I was going to photograph Tokyo, I wanted to do it at night. That was my line of thought."

From then on, Watanabe began to walk around the city every night, exploring areas like Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Nihonbashi and Akihabara. He became particularly absorbed in Akihabara, an area famous for its electronic and subculture stores, close to where he lived.

"In my opinion, Akihabara is a neighborhood that changes rapidly, even by Tokyo standards. I've been photographing the area for five years already, but I feel like there's still so much more to take. It's a very deep and complex part of the city. I may not even be able to photograph it all in my lifetime. That makes me feel all the more excited every time I look into the viewfinder."

A Unique Experience on a Night of Heavy Rain

Around a year after Watanabe started photographing Akihabara, he had a unique experience on a night of heavy rain, in a place he had shot many times before.

"The rain that night was unique. It was pouring, but the raindrops were scattered and so fine they almost looked like lines. Although I was drenched, I took photos fervently all night long and was able to capture an indescribably surreal shot. It both looked like Akihabara and felt like an alternate universe. I've continued taking photographs for four years since then, but I don't think I've ever captured a shot that surpasses that piece."

The otherworldly mood that is common throughout Watanabe's works is in some ways reminiscent of the movie Blade Runner.

"I like that movie. I also often play games and watch anime that have grown famous worldwide, like AKIRA and Ghost in the Shell, so I may be partially influenced by those visuals."

The Back Streets Supporting the City

A shrine stands quietly in a narrow alleyway between multi-purpose buildings just a little bit inside from one of Akihabara's boulevards. The shrine is said to have been established in the Edo Period (1603-1868) and rebuilt in the 20th century.

"Akihabara's Chuo Dori (Main Street) is crowded with tourists. But the moment you take a road to the side and enter the back streets, the mood changes instantly. It's very quiet in contrast to the lively and bustling main street. You'll find small factories and companies that have been there for a long time. The Akihabara that we see on the surface may, in actuality, be supported by these companies on the inside. The true colors of this neighborhood are perhaps here, in the back streets as opposed to the main boulevards. That is what I want to convey in my works and I hope viewers are able to feel it."

When Watanabe travels abroad, he often visits well-known streets. "But then I walk down a side street a little and I'm able to see a different side of the city. I hope people visiting Japan from overseas also take a moment to explore the back streets here."

Dedication to Reflections

In many of Watanabe's works, rainwater creates a puddle of light on the road, and the buildings reflected on the surface bring out an ethereal mood.

"I pay particular attention to making sure the buildings don't appear distorted. The beauty of the rain also stands out more. I find even greater beauty in the image reflected on the water surface than the actual building I see with my eyes."

As a street photographer, Watanabe single-mindedly walks the city—and captures the moment it shines the brightest.

"I took this piece several years ago and the billboard is now different. I think photography is also important in the sense of leaving records."

Watanabe recently compiled his five years of work into a photography book, which also acts as a record of Akihabara. It is titled ROAM AROUND NIGHT CITY #1 Akihabara. Going forward, he intends to make it into a series and publish books for Shibuya and Shinjuku as well.

#1 Akihabara can be found at Shosen Book Tower in Akihabara.

Junya Watanabe

Photographer. Born in 1992 in Shiga Prefecture.
Began photographing Tokyo in earnest in around 2017.
His creed is to photograph the moments when Tokyo shines the brightest.
He continues his photography career with particular dedication to night and rain.
In addition to his own production, he also works for various corporate clients.
(Photo was taken on the emergency staircase of a nine-story building that looks down on Akihabara, taken with cooperation from Shosen Book Tower; by Akiyoshi Yoko)