Martin Irwin

Come with me on my photographic journey, where I aim to improve my photography with each shot, and my view of the world therein

Martin Irwin

Come with me on my photographic journey, where I aim to improve my photography with each shot, and my view of the world therein

Blog Archive

Recent posts:

Hiroshima in Focus

6 minute read

Before 1945, Hiroshima was a thriving castle town, a key economic hub, and a centre of samurai culture under the Asano clan. Today, it is best known as the s...

Miyajima Part II – hike up Mt. Misen

1 minute read

Scaling Mount Misen via the Daisho-in Route was an adventure—3km, 2,000 stone steps, and a race against the setting sun. Dressed more for a city stroll than ...

A Pre-Spring Update

4 minute read

As March 2025 rolls in, I find myself reflecting on the passage of time, especially when resurrecting old electronics like my original iPod (miPod) and scrol...

Miyajima, Part I

2 minute read

Visiting Miyajima (Itsukushima), the famous “shrine island” near Hiroshima, is like stepping into a piece of Japan’s spiritual and scenic history. Home to th...

My Tottori, My Dune

1 minute read

Explore the unique Tottori Sand Dunes, a hidden gem just 300km from Hiroshima City. Discover Japan’s least populated prefectural capital, featuring impressiv...

Kiyomizu Temple, Yasugi

3 minute read

Staying within the serene grounds of Kiyomizu Temple in Yasugi was an experience unlike any other. The paper-thin walls and wooden architecture offered just ...

When sharpness matters

4 minute read

In the world of high-resolution photography, sharpness and megapixels often take centre stage. However, as I reflect on my experience with Sony’s powerful A7...

Around Zug

less than 1 minute read

A weekend digital detox with a visiting friend meant hiking, sightseeing, and minimal screen time—just enough to view and share some photos. Letting the im...

Updates to the Site

8 minute read

After years of using Squarespace, I finally made the switch to Jekyll and GitHub Pages. The reasons? Clunky editing, restrictive workflows, poor mobile apps,...

Izushi

1 minute read

“Our random drive through the back roads of central Japan took us to Izushi, Hyogo prefecture.”

Salzburg

2 minute read

A few photos from walking around Salzburg.

Tōjinbō II

10 minute read

A few photos from this familiar rock formation at the Sea of Japan, and some notes on the new website.

Okinawa - Ishigaki to Taketomi

less than 1 minute read

It’s been exactly 10 years since I was last in Okinawa. Not a whole lot has changed.

N700 Bullet Train

less than 1 minute read

This was my favourite bullet train for years, since I first came to Japan, in fact.

Tokyo to Sapporo

less than 1 minute read

Eighteen years after my first trip to Japan, this marks my first time on the island of Hokkaido in the north. The area is a winter tourist spot due to the ex...

大阪城

less than 1 minute read

Luzern

less than 1 minute read

Brunnen

less than 1 minute read

Winter Moments

1 minute read

It’s been rather a busy end to the year, but that’s no surprise. The short daylight hours and other priorities have left photography as a distant thought in ...

UK trip

1 minute read

// LONDON CALLING //

The Great Outdoors

1 minute read

The site is back up and running, but the import tool has only imported text, and not the images, from the last few months of 2021. Not a big deal, but a litt...

WEEK31

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WEEK 28

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WEEK 22

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WEEK21

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WEEK 20

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Week 19

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WEEK 18

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WEEK 17

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Week 16

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WEEK15

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WEEK14

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WEEK12

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WEEK 11

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WEEK10

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WEEK 9

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WEEK 7

3 minute read

WEEK 6

3 minute read

WEEK 1

3 minute read

Sony MZ-R37 Review - Minidisc Recorder

6 minute read

There are others on the internet doing a better job of objectively reviewing… everything, but I’m going to stick to my subjective review style. I do apprecia...

Napoli

3 minute read

Amalfi

3 minute read

Naples

3 minute read

Triumph Speed Triple CAFE RACER

9 minute read

It’s all the rage at the moment, the cafe racer scene, thanks largely in part to Instagram and other social media channels. For those of you not on Instagram...

My favourite computer is…

5 minute read

Weirdly, my iPad Pro. I would like the newer version, for the smaller bezels, FaceID, and the USB-C port. The new pencil has a couple of nice refinements, al...

Baden Baden

4 minute read

I haven’t used my new camera enough yet, as life has been in the way. I do notice the pixel difference to the A7R (36 vs 24), but of course, none to the RX1....

Alpine Tour - Day 1

3 minute read

Taking the back roads, avoiding Autobahns, we left early on Saturday morning in the direction of the Alps. Warming up the tyres on the bikes on some well tro...

Makro

1 minute read

Rheinfall

less than 1 minute read

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End of 2017

less than 1 minute read

Bring on 2018!

Hedgehog

1 minute read

Finally, I used my camera again! In fairness, I have been using my camera on-and-off all summer, but either haven’t had the time to publish things to the web...

Guest Post - Cricket on the beach

2 minute read

Not everyone wants to have a blog, though many people do and simply don’t have time, energy, or the knowhow to get up and running. For readers who’d like to ...

Autumn

1 minute read

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October

1 minute read

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Late Summer

2 minute read

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Luzern

2 minute read

With a Whisky #7

2 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt (Laphroaig, this time), “With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prom...

With a Whisky #6

3 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt (Talisker, today), ”With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prominent...

Orchid

less than 1 minute read

With A Whisky #5

2 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt, ”With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prominent prose, or impress...

With a Whisky #3

4 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt Lemsip, “With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prominent prose, or ...

Voigtländer Nokton Classic 35mm F1.4 Review

10 minute read

I do not own any test charts, and will be giving my subjective commentary on the usage of this lens, which I have owned and enjoyed using for over 3 years. ...

Introducing: Prints

2 minute read

This is something I’ve been working on for many weeks, so it’s about time I gave it a little plug; I’m now selling ultra-high resolution prints (300 ppi)__.

With a Whisky #2

3 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt, ”With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prominent prose, or impress...

With a Whisky #1

3 minute read

Written whilst enjoying a single malt, ”With a Whisky” brings you the latest ramblings from my side of the world. I can’t promise prominent prose, or impress...

Limbo

3 minute read

Sakurajosui - 桜上水 - Part 1

2 minute read

We’ve lived here, in Setagaya ward’s Sakurajosui, for over three years now. And for a few weeks each year, its name’s been very apt. As predicted, Sunday was...

RX1 Review

6 minute read

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Shooting in the rain

1 minute read

When it’s raining like this in central Tokyo, I can’t help but think of Blade Runner…

A Sunday Stroll

3 minute read

Well, it’s stopped snowing (for now). Very strong winds persisted all night through to this morning, leaving very clear skies, and very cold vegetables.

Roses are Red

less than 1 minute read

Violets are blue, and Tokyo is white.

Prints

1 minute read

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Snow in Tokyo

less than 1 minute read

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Coasting to the coast

2 minute read

This is Part II of my two-part photo-journal related to a fieldwork trip in Fukui (Part I).

Uptown

2 minute read

Ascension

less than 1 minute read

Pipe

less than 1 minute read

Asakusa

1 minute read

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Sonnar 2/35

less than 1 minute read

It’s raining a lot here in Tokyo (and Kyoto, apparently - you know who you are!), and so I decided to take a quick macro shot of my DSC-RX1.

Ginza

less than 1 minute read

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The Pilot

less than 1 minute read

Keeping the autumn spirit alive

less than 1 minute read

The autumn colours have all but disappeared from central Tokyo, though some remains aloft. Most leaves have long since fallen, and the weather’s turned much ...

Layered

less than 1 minute read

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Tokyo Motor Show [2013]

1 minute read

I like cars very much, and jumped at the chance to attend the “special preview night” of the Tokyo Motor Show before it opened this weekend. Tickets were lim...

Turning

less than 1 minute read

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Aroma

less than 1 minute read

Spiralled

less than 1 minute read

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Hibiscus

less than 1 minute read

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Tocho

1 minute read

Weaved

less than 1 minute read

On growth

less than 1 minute read

No bikes

less than 1 minute read

Golden rayed lily of Japan

1 minute read

This isn’t the first time I’ve taken pictures of lilies, and it won’t be the last. Usually, if I post photos of lilies, they’ll be ones I’ve bought for Charl...

Graffiti

less than 1 minute read

Pollen

1 minute read

Mantis

less than 1 minute read

In line

less than 1 minute read

Closer

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Van Go

less than 1 minute read

OJ

1 minute read

Bubbles

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Waffles

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Purple

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Pollen

less than 1 minute read

Itsukushima Shrine/Miyajima [Hiroshima Pt. 3]

3 minute read

There’s more to Hiroshima than the Atomic Bomb Dome, and its fantastic cuisine. Hiroshima’s home to one of the three Nihon-sankei (日本三景 - meaning literally “...

Last One

less than 1 minute read

Bag

1 minute read

Power

1 minute read

Hanami

2 minute read

Ume

1 minute read

Sensoji

less than 1 minute read

Old House

less than 1 minute read

Yakitori

less than 1 minute read

The Wordpress /page/2 error 404

less than 1 minute read

Everything’s easy when you know how. I had found that clicking links at the end of my blog, to get to page 2 or 3, was landing users with an error 404, “page...

Bamboo

less than 1 minute read

Rose

less than 1 minute read

Coffee

1 minute read

Kumo

2 minute read

Kosagi

1 minute read

Rust

2 minute read

Day off

1 minute read

Sunset

less than 1 minute read

Chef

less than 1 minute read

Lens: Voigtländer Nokton Classic 35mm F1.4 Camera: NEX-C3, ISO 250, f/1.4, -3.0, 1/60, RAW

Spotlight

less than 1 minute read