Artifact #189: Sky On Fire

The Chureito Pagoda (忠霊塔, Chūreitō) is a five storied pagoda on the mountainside overlooking Fujiyoshida City and Mount Fuji off in the distance. The pagoda is part of the Arakura Sengen Shrine and was built as a peace memorial in 1963. It takes enormous effort to climb nearly 400 steps up the mountain from the shrine's main buildings to the pagoda location.

I arrived at the location just before sunset and had taken my time to check out the neighboring sights. However, this photo was taken right before dusk, due to the sheer effort in getting to the top of the mountain where the pagoda lies. I had under estimated the time it will take to climb around 400 steps to the pagoda itself and just had enough light to photograph the iconic scene.

I did not have enough time to reshoot or plan the shot so I immediately mounted my tripod, set my camera and clicked. Although is has been photographed many times, in different seasons, my personal take on the pagoda (overlooking Mt. Fuji) is something very memorable to me, and something that has really taught me the value of planning and time.

This image is part of a larger body of work titled "Miyazaki," a compilation of my sojourns to Japan and a meditative journey of self-discovery.

Image Information: Camera: Sony A7R II Lens: Sony FE 24-105mm f4 G OSS Shutter: 1/13 Aperture: f22 ISO: 100

Location: Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan