 The stock photography agency "Photo Japan" came into existence in 1985 while its founder, Kenneth Hamm, was living and working in Japan. During the three years he made Kyoto his home, he recorded on film, almost daily, the people, places and events that made up his fascinating surroundings. Little by little Ken amassed a large and varied collection of color and black & white images that chronicled an outsider’s unique view of Japanese society. On a lead from a friend, Ken submitted a group of his photographs to the publishers of the Japan Airlines in-flight magazine for an article they were doing on the city of Kyoto. The move landed him a spot on the cover and numerous editorial images inside. This important account served as a catalyst for getting the business off the ground. As well, it provided the funds to expand his photo collection and, more importantly, supported Ken’s hunch that there might exist a niche market for quality stock photos of Japan. After establishing a presence on the Internet in July of 1997, Photo Japan began to reach clients on a worldwide basis. Now, about half of our business comes from companies outside the United States.
The unique attraction of Photo Japan is its specialty. We have chosen to focus our energy and resources on taking and distributing photos that deal strictly with the country of Japan. This not only assures our clients that they are dealing with experts in the field, but also allows us to delve deep into our subject matter providing imagery not readily found at mainstream stock houses. Our on-line photo gallery is organized into fifty-seven categories covering just about every traditional as well as contemporary aspect of Japanese culture. Topics range from festivals, historical architecture and geisha to business, fashion and today’s youth. Each category offers twenty sample photos with thousands of additional images accessible through our search engine feature. All together we offer more than 45,000 photos dealing specifically with the country of Japan. To broaden our scope, we also represent photographers from around the world who share our interest in creating outstanding images of Japan. The work by these contributing photographers is displayed in our "Photographer’s Showcase." Some Showcase members make their living as photographers, while others share their talent as avid photo enthusiasts. The Showcase offers a diverse collection of photographic styles and cultural interests having Japan as the common bond. Photo Japan images are available for use through rights-protected licensing. Our staff is ready to research requests of up to twenty free comp and layout images and deliver digital samples by e-mail within 24 hours. Several times a year a photo exhibition is made to Japan to refresh our stock. The result of these trips is several thousand new, up-to-date images available for immediate use. Clients with wish lists can contact Photo Japan and add their requests to our shooting itinerary at no extra charge. Such assignments are handled on a speculative basis with the resulting images being licensed at stock photo rates. Stop by photojapan.com and have a look around. As specialists in our field, we can help you choose just the right images of Japan to meet your budget and your photo illustration needs.
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