Aflo Images

Pictures of the Week (Jan. 30 – Feb. 3)

2012-02-06T18:58:00.003+09:00

Tokyo, Japan – Japanese model Nanao appears at a press conference for the film “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” at Tokyo International Forum on January 30, 2012. The film will be released from February 10th in Japan. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Actress Rooney Mara attends the Japan premiere for the film "The girl with the Dragon Tattoo" in Tokyo, Japan on January 30, 2012. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan – Movie directer Peter Berg, Taylor Kitsch, and Japanese actor Tadanobu Asano appear at a press conference for the film “BATTLESHIP” by Peter Berg in the Grand Hyatt Tokyo, January 31, 2012. The film will be released from April 2012 in Japan. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Docomo image charactors Maki Horikita attends at a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. NTT Docomo and Walt Disney have jointly announces they will introduce new smartphone the 'Disney Mobile on docomo'. The smartphone offers exclusive benefits, services and content that allow users to have a unique Disney experience. (Photo by Koichi Mitsui/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Japans Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka, left, speaks during a Diet lower house Budget Committee meeting in Tokyo on Thursday, February 2, 2012. Deputy Premier Katsuya Okada, right, and Finance Minister Jun Azumi are in background. Tanaka, who was appointed in January, was caught in a cross fire as a senior Defense Ministry official came under suspicion of tampering with the upcoming mayoral election in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, where U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is located. Tanaka now has no choice but to sack Ro Manabe, his Okinawa bureau chief, according to the media reports. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Fumio Otsubo, President of Panasonic Corporation speaks during a press conference at its head office in downtown Tokyo on February 3, 2012. Panasonic expects its worst-ever net loss of 780 billion yen (approximately $10.2 billion US dollars) compared to the previous forecast of a loss of 420.0 billion yen, due to the 2011 flooding in Thailand and acquisition prices. (Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

The End to a New Beginning

2012-01-25T20:47:00.002+09:00

I still remember the day I officially left California to begin a new life of the uncertainty and unknown in Japan...this was back in July of 2005. Some people may think I'm nuts for leaving the U.S., especially Southern California where it's always warm nearly all year around, and have all my family and friends there in a tight close circle. Don't get me wrong though, California is a great place and it's where I'll eventually end up when the time comes.

Last Monday night a couple of the guys and girls over at the photo agency went out for a little farewell dinner for Tomoko who has been with the company for some time, playing a key roll for a staff of 100. She made her dream fly after what it seemed took a lot of hard work, persistence and patience. She'll be moving to New York. How awesome is that especially during these recent times the world is facing.

Congrats to Tomoko! We'll see you in New York.

Best of 2011 in Pictures

2011-12-27T15:32:00.002+09:00

January 9, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Clad in nothing more than narrow strips of loincloths, Japanese men of all ages and a few women in thin white robes, brave frigid temperatures during a performance ritual of purification at a Shinto shrine in the heart of downtown Tokyo. The intrepid group of 90 individuals submerged in a pool of near freezing water in their prayers to the gods for good health and safety of their families. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

January 10, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Girls all dressed in kimonos ride a roller coaster at a amusement park during a Japanese holiday known as "Coming of Age Day."

February 4, 2011 - Takahara Township, Japan - A puff of smoke rises from Shinmoe-dake, a volcano on the border of Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures in southwestern Japan. (Photo by AFLO)

March 11, 2011, Natori (Miyagi Prefecture), Japan - A tsunami hits land just after the massive 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck the northeast region part of Japan. (Photo by Mainichi/Nippon News)

March 11, 2011, Miyako (Iwate Prefecture), Japan - Black waves overwhelm a levee, swallowing a seaside village near the mouth of the Hei River. (Photo by Mainichi Newspaper/Aflo)

March 12, 2011, Iwanuma (Miyagi Prefecture), Japan - University Workers are rescued by boat just a day after the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

March 16, 2011 - Tokyo, Japan - A woman hitch hikes on the side of the road following the recent earthquake and tsunami devastations which triggered dangerous nuclear explosions at the quake-hit nuclear power plant in Fukushima causing radiation levels to spike in Tokyo. Many people are fleeing Tokyo as the level of radiation is known to affect human health...(Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

March 22, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Shibuya, known as a brightly-lit fun town, now is darkened to save energy to prevent unexpected power outages. (Photo by AFLO)

March 15, 2011, Koriyama, Japan - Medical staff in protective gear check radiation levels on local residents in Koriyama, Fukushima prefecture. A nuclear power plant, located along the Pacific coast some 35km southeast of Koriyama, has had a series of trouble in its reactors since a magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit northeastern Japan on March 11. (Photo by AFLO)

April 29, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - The Dalai Lama offers a prayer for victims on the customary 49th day of those died in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami during a public prayer service at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

May 6, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - An ambiance shot during the JBV Tour 2011 Phiten Beach Volleyball Tokyo Open at Odaiba Beach. (Photo by Jun Tsukida/AFLO SPORT)

June 3, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister looking weary and worn out, attends an upper house budget committee meeting in the Diet in Tokyo, the day after he has survived a no-confidence motion brought against him by opposition parties. (Photo by AFLO)

July 17, 2011, Tokyo, Japan -Homare Sawa (JPN) (center) of Japan celebrates with the trophy after winning the FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011 Final match between Japan 2(3 PK 1)2 United States at Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt, Germany. (Photo by Maurizio Borsari/AFLO)

July 2, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Asuka Teramoto (JPN), performs during the Artistic Gymnastics Japan Cup 2011 Women's Team All-Around Balance Beam at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Tokyo. (Photo by AZUL/AFLO)

August 6, 2011, Hiroshima, Japan - Colorful paper lanterns are released on to the river running through the City of Hiroshima, offering prayers for those who died during the atomic bombing of the city. The skeletal A-bomb Dome lit up in the background as Japan observed the 66th anniversary of the atomic bombing with a moment of silence and the release of doves in a memorial ceremony. The world's first A-bomb destroyed most of this western industrial city, killing as many as 140,000 people in the summer of 1945. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

September 17, 2011, Yokohama, Japan - Children will also be able to play in an interactive Cup Noodle Park, which follows the noodle-making process from their creation in the kitchen to finding their way into stores during the grand opening of the Nissin Cup Noodles Museum. Visitors can learn about the history of the Cup Noodles product and partake in a session to make their own homemade instant ramen noodles at the museum's "Chikin Noodle Factory". The museum's art director, Kashiwa Sato, is also in charge of graphic design for the massive Japanese clothes retailer Uniqlo. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

October 6, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Japanese pay tribute to Steve Jobs at the demise of the Apple co-founder in front of its store at Tokyo's bustling Ginza district. Jobs, who invented and masterfully marketed ever-sleeker gadgets that transformed everyday technology, from the personal computer to the iPod and iPhone, has died peacefully surrounded by family according to Apple. He was 56. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

October 20, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - A model walks down the catwalk wearing SOMARTA during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo 2012 Spring/Summer. (Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

November 17, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Against the backdrop of Tokyo Sky Tree, Alistair Richards, right, Chief Operating Officer of the Guinness World Records, and Michiaki Suzuki, President of Tokyo Sky Tree, poses with an official certificate during a recognition ceremony at a downtown Tokyo hotel. Tokyo Sky Tree, a 634-meter terrestrial digital broadcasting tower in Tokyo's Sumida Ward, is now officially recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world's tallest free-standing structure. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

November 9, 2011, Tokyo, Japan – Robot artworks by CRAFT FACTORY SHOVEL HEAD are displayed during International Robot Exhibition 2011. This show is held to showcase new robots and high technology equipments at the Tokyo International Exhibit Center. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

(File Photo) Hiratsuka, Japan - In the file photo released on November 25, 2011 shows Shoji Tanaka, 66, Chief Executive Officer of Cosmo Power Co., Ltd., standing between two Noah's Ark safety capsules in his company factory in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, October 20, 2011. Shoji came up with the idea to make Noah's Ark after watching the torrential rain that hit Kyushu approximately 4 years ago. His primary vision for the company is to make products that can save as many people in the future from large natural disasters. The construction process to fully complete a single capsule takes one day but the company aims to make 20 per day. There are currently two models of the safety capsules that can fit up to 4 people (1,200mm) (priced at 315,000 Japanese Yen) and 6 people (1,500mm) (priced at 471,450 Japanese Yen). There has been a demand of buyers for Noah's Ark from countries such as the United States, Brazil, China, Thailand, Bangladesh and New Zealand, however, the company is not ready to sell overseas at present. Shoji mentioned that he plans to make a more advanced model of Noah's Ark in the near future. (Photo by: Christopher Jue/AFLO)

December 4, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - An electric vehicle made by a Japanese housing material maker is shown as more than 110, 000 visitors attended the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

December 22, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Singer Lady Gaga walks out from the Louis Vuitton Matsuya Ginza store in Tokyo. Gaga was in Tokyo to perform on a Japanese TV show on December 23, 2011. (Photo by AFLO)

Wishing You a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year!

2011-12-26T22:16:00.002+09:00

We folks over at Aflo/Nippon News always work hard to provide you with the best editorial/creative content and production services to those who need it most. We hope that our services have satisfied your needs and that we can continue to work together in the long run. If there is something that you have not been happy with, please don't hesitate to let us know as we're always looking to make improvements.

Rather than posting the regular daily content today, I thought it would be great to write this personal post just to let you folks know that everyone working with and at Aflo/Nippon News wishes all of you out there a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Pictures of the Week (Dec. 12 - Dec. 16)

2011-12-17T23:17:00.002+09:00

Kyoto, Japan - Seihan Mori, chief abbot at Kiyomizu Buddhist Temple writes on a wooden platform a Chinese character, "Kizuna" meaning "Bond," during a ceremony at Kiyomizu Buddhist Temple in Kyoto on December 12, 2011. The character was chosen from 49,6997 applications submitted for consideration to best symbolize Japanese mind after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in March. (Photo by Akihiro Sugimoto/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - AI, Tito Jackson, Marlon Jackson and Jackie Jackson attend Amway Japan's charity event on December 12, 2011. The Jacksons visited to Japan to perform at the "Michael Jackson Tribute Live" on December 13 and 14. (Photo by AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Housing and building material manufacturer Lixil Corp. showcases the company's Inax brand toilet "Statis" covered in 72,000 Swarovski crystals valued approximately at $128,000 USD on December 14, 2011. Lixil showroom manager Kazuo Sumimiya said he hopes this heavily decorated one of a kind toilet will draw more tourists to Japan. The toilet will remain on display at Lixil's company showroom in Tokyo until December 28. (Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

Chiba, Japan - US actor Zac Efron arrives at Narita Airport in Chiba, Japan on December 13, 2011. Zac visited Tokyo to promote his film "New Year's Eve." (Photo by AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - A large scale figure of Optimus Prime from the movie, "Transformers Dark Side of the Moon" is displayed at a electronics store in downtown Tokyo, December 15, 2011. The "Transformers Dark Side of the Moon" DVD was released in Japan on December 16. (Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

Yokohama, Japan - Lionel Messi (Barcelona) kicks the ball in style during the FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2011, Semi-Final match between FC Barcelona 4-0 Al-Sadd Sports Club at the Yokohama International Stadium in Kanagawa, Japan. (Photo by Daiju Kitamura/AFLO SPORT)

Pictures of the Week (Dec. 5 - Dec. 9)

2011-12-10T21:40:00.001+09:00

Nozomi Okuhara attempts to hit the birdie during the 65th All Japan Badminton Championships Women's Singles at Yoyogi 2nd Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan, December 8, 2011. (Photo by Jun Tsukida/AFLO SPORT)

President Shuichi Takayama of the scandal-hit Olympus Corp. closes his eyes during a news conference at a Tokyo hotel on December 7, 2011, a day after an independent panel set up by the Japanese optical equipment company released the results of its investigation into the company's cover-up of investment losses. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

A Japanese cosplayer poses for a online movie during the "TOKYO NICONICO COSPLLECTION" at the nicofarre, in the Roppongi district of Tokyo, December 4, 2011. This event introduces Japanese cosplay culture through the unprecedented show which showcases a virtual world of Japanese anime, games and Vocaloids. More than 100 famous cosplayers dressed up as popular characters. (Photo by Tomoyuki Kaya/AFLO)

Kunihiro Shimizu (JPN) reacts during the FIVB Men's Volleyball World Cup 2011,4th Round Tokyo (A) during the match between Japan 0-3 Brazil at 1st Yoyogi Gymnasium, Tokyo, Japan, December 4, 2011. (Photo by Jun Tsukida/AFLO SPORT)

Kashiwa Reysol Team Group (Reysol) cheer with excitement during the 2011 J.LEAGUE Division 1, 34th Sec match between Urawa Red Diamonds 1-3 Kashiwa Reysol at Saitama Stadium 2002, Kanagawa, Japan, December 3, 2011. (Photo by Daiju Kitamura/AFLO SPORT)

Pictures of the Week (Nov. 28 – Dec. 2)

2011-12-07T11:22:00.003+09:00

Just catching up with last week's Pictures of the Week!

Tokyo, Japan - Hideki Matsuyama (JPN) during the 48th Japan Golf Tour Nippon Series JT Cup 1st Round at Tokyo Yomiuri Country Club, December 1, 2011. (Photo by YUTAKA/AFLO SPORT)

Tokyo, Japan - Japanese actress Yuki Amami on stage during the "Real Steel" Japan premiere, November 29, 2011.

Tokyo, Japan - Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Co., presents its concept car "PIV 3" during a press preview of the Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, November 30, 2011. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - US Actor Tom Cruise arrives at Haneda International Airport in, November 30, 2011.

Tokyo, Japan - Takanobu Ito, President of Honda, is waited on with a cup of tea by Asimo, a human-shaped robot developed by the automaker, during a press preview of the Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, November 30, 2011. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) with Real Bloodshed

2011-11-29T22:16:00.004+09:00

This is just incredible. Never seen something like this until recently. It's literally like the real Bloodsport.

(L-R) Ryuji Ito, Abdullah Kobayashi, DECEMBER 19, 2010 - Pro Wrestling: Fluorescent Light Tubes Deathmatch during the Big Japan Pro-Wrestling "BJW" event at Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium in Kanagawa, Japan. (Photo by Yukio Hiraku/AFLO)

(T-B) Ryuji Ito, Abdullah Kobayashi, DECEMBER 19, 2010 - Pro Wrestling: Fluorescent Light Tubes Deathmatch during the Big Japan Pro-Wrestling "BJW" event at Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium in Kanagawa, Japan. (Photo by Yukio Hiraku/AFLO)

Pictures of the Week (Nov. 15 – Nov. 18)

2011-11-19T12:20:00.001+09:00

Tokyo, Japan - Saori Kimura (JPN) during the FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup 2011, 4th Round Tokyo (A) during match between Japan 3-2 Germany at the 1st Yoyogi Gymnasium on November 17, 2011. (Photo by Jun Tsukida/AFLO SPORT)

Tokyo, Japan - Against the backdrop of Tokyo Sky Tree, Alistair Richards (R), Chief Operating Officer of Guinness World Records, and Michiaki Suzuki (L), President of Tokyo Sky Tree, poses with an official certificate during a recognition ceremony at a downtown Tokyo hotel on November 17, 2011. Tokyo Sky Tree, a 634-meter terrestrial digital broadcasting tower in Tokyos Sumida Ward, is now officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's tallest free-standing structure. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Bhutan's Queen Jetsun Pema (L) and King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck visit the Kodokan Judo Hall on November 17, 2011. The royal couple watched a judo demonstration during their six-day visit in Japan. (Photo by Yutaka/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - The Amphibian Bus Sky Duck is shown during the press conference of “Tokyo’s First Amphibian Bus Sky Duck” at Wakasu Kaihin Park on November 14, 2011. Hinomaru Limousine Inc. announced Tokyo’s new way of sightseeing Sky Duck bus tour. Tokyo is one of the greatest tourism places in the world, and they would like to emphasis Tokyo as a city of waterways for the next step. In addition, this bus would be used as a delivery car when any national disaster happens. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Chiba, Japan - Megumi Ishikawa tries to pin her opponent down during the Kodokan Cup 2011, Women's -57kg, at the Chiba Port Arena on November 13, 2011. (Photo by YUTAKA/AFLO SPORT)

Pictures of the Week (Nov. 7 - Nov. 11)

2011-11-11T21:24:00.003+09:00

Tokyo, Japan – The dried cuttlefish lights by AKITOSHI IMAFUKU + supermania Inc. is displayed during 2011 Tokyo Designers Week. It was held at Meiji Jingu Gaien, from November 1st to 6th. The theme of this year is “Love/ARIGATO”. Designers, artists, and organizations express their ideas and their creative works such as contemporary art, music, unique goods and workshops during this show. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Shanghai, China - Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN) performs on ice during the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2011/2012 Cup of China 2011 Men's Practice for Free Skating at the Shanghai Oriental Sport Center in Shanghai, China. (Photo by YUTAKA/AFLO SPORT)

Tokyo, Japan - US actor Brad Pitt (center) and Japanese baseball players from different areas in the disaster hit Tohoku region attend the Japan red carpet premiere for the film 'Moneyball'. The film will be released in Japanese theaters from November 11. (Photo by Christopher Jue/Nippon News)

Tokyo, Japan - Brad Pitt (L) and Angelina Jolie (R) attend the Japan premiere for the film "Moneyball" in Tokyo, Japan.

Tokyo, Japan - "Jukusui-kun, " a healthcar robot developed by Waseda University for sleep apnea syndrome is demonstrated during the International Robot Exhibition 2011 opened in Tokyo on Wednesday, November 9, 2011. The three-day trade show, sponsored by the Japan Robot Association, was designed promote new products and develop new business through contributing the promotion of new technology. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Wako, Japan - Asimo, Honda's revamped human-shaped robot, demonstrates its ability to walk without falling over padded bumps on the floor during a demonstration of its significant y improved intelligence and physical ability at its research facility in Wako City, outside Tokyo. Asimo also demonstrated its ability to run smoother and faster at 9 kilometers per hour instead of the earlier 6 kph, and even distinguish the voices of three people spoken at once to figure out that one woman wanted hot coffee, another orange juice, and still another milk tea. With its improved hands, Asimo is capable of opening a thermos bottle and pour a into a paper cup. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan – Rieko Otake's artworks are displayed during 2011 Tokyo Designers Week. It was held at Meiji Jingu Gaien from November 1st to 6th. The theme of this year is “Love/ARIGATO”. Designers, artists, and organizations express their ideas and their creative works such as contemporary art, music, unique goods and workshops during this show. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan – Kyushu Sangyo University's artwork made of newspapers is displayed during 2011 Tokyo Designers Week. It was held at Meiji Jingu Gaien from November 1st to 6th. The theme of this year is “Love/ARIGATO”. Designers, artists, and organizations express their ideas and their creative works such as contemporary art, music, unique goods and workshops during this show. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Pictures of the Week (Oct. 31 – Nov. 4)

2011-11-05T15:04:00.002+09:00

October 30, 2011, Kawasaki, Japan – People wear unique costumes during one of the biggest Halloween celebration events in Japan. Hundreds of people participated in a Halloween march around the main street of Kawasaki Station, south of Tokyo. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

October 30, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - Members of the media take a look at breath-taking views of Tokyo from the main observation deck of Tokyo Sky Tree. The main observation deck of the terrestrial digital broadcasting tower was for the first time, opened to the media. The three-story structure at 350 meters above the ground houses a restaurant, souvenir shop and an observation deck on the top floor. The tower begins its operation on May 22, 2012. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

November 1, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - An intelligent machine with padded arms capable of helping healthcare workers lifts an acting disabled patient during a demonstration for the media as Toyota unveiled experimental robots for nursing and healthcare aimed for commercialization from 2013 at its facility in Tokyo. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

November 3, 2011, Tokyo, Japan - A musketeer fires his match lock musket at a Martial Arts demonstration held at Meiji shrine to celebrate Japan's National Culture Day. (Photo by Bruce Meyer-Kenny/AFLO)

November 4, 2011, Shanghai, China - Kanako Murakami (JPN) poses on ice during the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2011/2012 Cup of China 2011 Women's Short Program at the Shanghai Oriental Sport Center. (Photo by YUTAKA/AFLO SPORT)

Pictures of the Week (Oct. 24 – Oct. 28)

2011-10-28T14:29:00.005+09:00

Oct 22, 2011 - Fans of the 14 year old Australian singer, Cody Simpson, pose for a photograph during Cody's mini live showcase at Koshigaya Laketown in Saitama, Japan. (Photo by Kenya Chiba/AFLO)

October 22, 2011 - Junko Koshino looks about during the 24th Tokyo International Film Festival, Opening Event Green Carpet at Roppongi Hills Arena in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Daiju Kitamura/AFLO SPORT)

October 25, 2011 - A model smiles at the camera during the JIL SANDER Japan Premiere of I AM LOVE / Jil Sander Fashion Show Spring/Summer 2012 at the National Art Center Tokyo. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

October 24, 2011 - Akira Yaegashi of Japan celebrates with his wife during the WBA Minimum weight title bout at Korakuen, Tokyo, Japan. Akira Yaegashi won by TKO against Pornsawan Porpramook (THA) after the fight was stopped in the tenth round. (Photo by Yusuke Nakanishi/AFLO SPORT)

October 22, 2011 - A model poses on the catwalk wearing the fashion brand called "plumpynuts" during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo 2012 Spring/Summer. The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo was held from October 16-22. (Photo by Christopher Jue/AFLO)

October 21st, 2011 - A model poses on the catwalk wearing the brand called "KEITA MARUYAMA TOKYO PARIS" during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo 2012 Spring/Summer. (Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO)

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo...Is a Wrap.

2011-10-27T16:08:00.003+09:00

Whew. What a week it was for some of us last week. It was only myself and another photographer covering Tokyo Fashion Week and we managed to hit well over 15+ shows total. Not to mention in between those days, there were other fashion-related shoots I had to do. Makes me thankful that I get to shoot all kinds of things and not just strictly fashion.

Anyhow, I'll be posting some "best of fashion week" images tomorrow so check back then!

Pictures of the Week (Oct. 10 – Oct. 14)

2011-10-14T13:49:00.003+09:00

Yokohama, Japan - Mitsuoka Motors' Himiko, a nostalgic-looking car converted into an electric vehicle, is exhibited during the Electric Vehicle Development Technology Exhibition 2011 (EVEX) in Yokohama on Wednesday, October 12, 2011. EVEX covers all EV-related processes from materials and design to completion. The trade show also provides rare opportunities to see and experience a trial ride the latest EVs. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Tokyo, Japan - Koji Tanaka, president of KDDI, smiles during the release event of the Apple iPhone 4S at its design studio in Tokyo's Harajuku district on Friday, October 14, 2011. KDDI went head-on with SoftBank, trying to overtake SoftBank's highly profitable reign as the sole provider in Japan. Apple stores in the country also started selling the iPhone 4S on a first-come, first-serve basis without accepting pre-orders. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Koko Tsurumi (JPN) performs on the balance beam during the 2011 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, Women's Qualification at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan, October 8, 2011. (Photo by Daiju Kitamura/AFLO SPORT)

Misaki Doi (JPN) strikes the tennis ball during the HP Japan Women's Open Tennis 2011, Women's singles first round match at the Utsubo Tennis Center in Osaka, Japan, October 10, 2011. (Photo by Akihiro Sugimoto/AFLO SPORT)

Thank You So Much Steve Jobs

2011-10-08T12:11:00.005+09:00

Photo by: Natsuki Sakai/AFLO

Steve Jobs was the man who not only made media professionals jobs' easier, but everyone else's lives more efficient.

Thank you so much for your contribution to the world.

All of us at Aflo Images/Nippon News in Tokyo will miss you very much.

On behalf of all the photographers, filmmakers, producers, journalists, writers, editors and artists around the world that have used Aperture, Final Cut Pro or any Apple product to move the media industry forward.

Thanks Steve, The Mac and its features has made my life as a photographer much easier.

Steve Jobs
1955-2011

The World's First ANA 787 Dreamliner

2011-09-29T11:32:00.005+09:00

(Photo by AFLO)

Yesterday Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner ANA airplane made it's first landing debut at Haneda Airport, coming in from Everett, Washington. This one of a kind in the world carbon-composite passenger jetliner will service commercial flights between Narita Airport and Hong Kong. Pretty cool if you ask me...

Just a Photo of the Day

2011-09-20T17:17:00.004+09:00

Photo by Yumeto Yamazaki/AFLO

This past weekend our photographer shot this stunning picture of an illuminated nebuta float being pushed through on wheels by Japanese traditional dancers in Shibuya's main shopping alley in downtown Tokyo.

Weekend Style Guide: Original Rights Managed Model Released Images

2011-09-08T16:20:00.004+09:00

Check out our lovely exclusive rights managed models here!

Naoto Kan to Resign as Early as Aug. 26

2011-08-26T12:25:00.005+09:00

According to a news source, Japan's current Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, has conditions set to possibly resign as early as today, August 26th. Japan's Yomiuri newspaper stated that Kan would announce his resignation at a 2:00pm meeting of ruling party lawmakers. Stay tuned...

What a March It's Been...

2011-04-01T15:19:00.010+09:00

Not for just us people living in Japan, but for everyone out there in the world that has been affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit the northern part of Japan.

We've been working around the clock since the March 11th disaster to provide you with the best coverage possible for all of your image-related needs. Even some of our staff at the Tokyo head office relocated to our Osaka branch temporarily just in case things were to get too dangerous being in Tokyo.

While things are not quite back to normal just yet, today, I finally have some time to sit down and write this post on a nice, clear and sunny day in Tokyo.

Here are some pictures I've selected that I want to share with all of you out there:

Photo by: Christopher Jue/Nippon News/Aflo

Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO

Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO

Photo by AFLO

Photo by: Christopher Jue/Nippon News/Aflo

Photo by AFLO

Photo by Toshihiro Kitagawa/AFLO

Tokyo Marathon 2011

2011-02-27T14:45:00.003+09:00

Photo: Christopher Jue/Nippon News

Christopher Jue here. I'm the photographer with Nippon News, a division of Aflo Co., Ltd., which is the largest (and one of the oldest) independent photo agencies here in Japan. Glad to be a part of the team and working the good folks over there more. More about what's going on at the agency in another post later...

Today, the 2011 Tokyo Marathon was held on the streets of Tokyo so I covered it along with 3 other staff photographers. The weather was just amazing earlier today; nice sunny weather with clear blue skies.

The winner of the marathon goes to Hailu Nekonnen of Ethiopia (second runner behind the first) (photo above) as he is seen passing through the Ginza district of Tokyo. There was approximately 36,000 runners who participated in this fifth edition of the Tokyo Marathon.

Congratulations Hailu!

AFC Soccer

2011-01-19T17:39:00.003+09:00

We currently have a lucky(?) photographer over in Qatar shooting the Asian Cup soccer tournament.

Japan are one of the favourites and face Qatar in the Quarter Finals. South Korea and Australia also have strong teams.

Its amazing to see the empty stadiums in the middle of the desert there and hard to imagine what the World Cup will be like in 2022. It certainly looks very different though.

Photo by AFLO

Park Ji Sung of South Korea and Manchester United is pictured here taking on the Australian defence.

JAL Restructuring Enters Next Stage

2010-12-02T17:04:00.003+09:00

Japan Airlines passenger planes taxi on the tarmac at Tokyo's Haneda International Airport on Tuesday, November 30, 2010.

(Photo by AFLO)

JAL won court approval Tuesday for its rehabilitation plan and entered a new phase toward its rebirth. The plan includes a 521.5 billion Yen debt waiver from its creditors, a reduction of about 16,000 jobs, or some 30 percent of the JAL group’s combined workforce, termination of 45 unprofitable domestic and international routes, and retirement of 103 aircraft.

The Social Network Comes to Japan

2010-10-26T14:36:00.002+09:00

Photo by Christopher Jue / AFLO

The Social Network Press Conference came through Tokyo yesterday (Oct. 25, 2010). Aaron Sorkin (L) and Jesse Eisenberg (R) are over to promote the movie although the actual film won't be shown here until January, 2011.

More pictures in our daily editorial feed...

Figure Skating Grand Prix Series 2010

2010-10-04T16:25:00.006+09:00

We covered the Japan Open 2010 event on Saturday up at the Saitama Super Arena and are preparing for the 2010/11 winter season.

As with last year Asada Mao, Ando Miki and Takahashi Daisuke are the ones to watch but there's also a crop of younger skaters on the circuit.

The above graphic links to our Japanese website where you can see the skaters and competition.

You can also find images here on our English site or email us for help if there's something in particular that your looking for.

We will send photographers to each event in the Grand Prix series and the climax in Beijing in December.

Mainichi Newspaper

2010-09-24T15:36:00.005+09:00

Aflo represents several Japanese archive collections including that of the Mainichi Newpaper. We're able to search their archives and license images dating back to the start of the 20th century.

If you have projects related to war in the pacific, or Japanese post war regeneration, or the Bubble of the 80s then let us know and we'll do our best to help.

As well as hosting some material in our own site we can source images from the Mainichi Photobank website although this is only in Japanese.

Cycling in Japan

2010-09-24T09:41:00.003+09:00

We had two national holidays this week in Japan and yesterday a few of us from the office went up to Gunma for a cycle trip.

We had the worst weather we've had in two months but managed to have fun in the rain riding 60km and climbing 1000m in total. Mikey had 3 blowouts and even had to run the last 10km back after we'd run out of tubes.

Still we rounded things off at a great onsen　（hot spring).

Mark & Nate pictured at the top of the pass between Gunma and Nagano

Sadness

2010-09-17T11:15:00.003+09:00

(Photo by Hideki Yoshihara / AFLO)

Its not so often we shoot "sad" pictures. Even in tougher times things tend to be very happy and smiley and bright and colourful here in Japan.

We did however do a shoot yesterday with a (deliberate) negative vibe. The images are being polished and not on our site just yet but if you need this kind of thing then just get in touch (support@aflo.com) and we'll be glad/sad to help.

Humanoid Robot

2010-09-16T15:43:00.003+09:00

This new robot was unveiled yesterday here in Japan. We had brain massaging robots on Monday and clergy robots earlier this year.

Check out more Japanese robots on our site.

(Photo by Natsuki Sakai / AFLO)

Pictured above; humanoid robot HRP-4 demonstrates its capabilities to pose in response to voice commands and move its head in recognizing the position of a human face. It was unveiled in Tsukuba, northeast of Tokyo, on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 and is jointly developed by Kawada Industries Inc. and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology. This model stands 1.5 meter tall and weighs just 39 kilos.

Tokyo Sky Tree

2010-09-16T12:54:00.001+09:00

Need to get some new pictures as it keeps getting bigger! Over 430m now I believe. It was the first time I'd recognised it from Ginza yesterday.

Click here to see how it's growing.

World Judo Championships 2010

2010-09-15T18:33:00.002+09:00

The World Judo Championships are currently taking place here in Tokyo. Our photographer YUTAKA is pretty much camped out at the event shooting the main bouts (?) and medalists.

Pictured below are Tedy Riner (FRA) and Daiki Kamikawa (JPN), who won a tense final on a judges decision after neither judoka could take any points from the other.

(Photo by YUTAKA/AFLO)

Japan Doesn't Change Prime Minister

2010-09-15T10:23:00.002+09:00

(Photo by AFLO)

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, left, and Ichiro Ozawa, former secretary-general of the Democratic Party of Japan, bow to each other after Kan’s being re-election in the ruling party's leadership vote in Tokyo on Tuesday, September 14, 2010. Kan won just over half of the votes cast by DPJ parliamentarians, but trounced former party secretary-general Ichiro Ozawa in voting among the party rank-and-file.

See more images on our Editorial site.

Brain Massaging with Oil

2010-09-15T10:00:00.001+09:00

A robot demonstrates brain massaging with oil during the Diet & Beauty Fair Asia 2010 in Tokyo on Monday, September 13, 2010. The fair is the only exhibition in Japan that attracts buyers from both the beauty and esthetic salon industry as well as from the rapidly growing spa sector. As such, it provides the ideal platform for promoting new products to the Japanese market.

(Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Golf Images

2010-09-14T17:23:00.004+09:00

Aflo was originally founded by a fanatic golf photographer and we have managed to build up a comprehensive collection of golf related images from all over the world. We have the most beautiful courses, the deepest bunkers, the slickest greens and also cover the major tournaments editorially.

We stock both Royalty Free and Rights Managed (Model Released) images of golf shot by our own photographers. Here are a few links to sets of golf related content in the site:

Course Images
Putting Images
Golf Swing
Golf Flag
Golf Fairway
Golf Tee

We also have an editorial library of professional golfers and cover international and Japanese tournaments.

We’re also pretty good at other sports and are the Official Japanese Olympic Committee Photo Team. When not shooting the big tournaments we travel the world scouting for the best locations and athletes for our Model Released Rights Managed sports collection.

Hokusai's 250th Birthday

2010-08-10T18:49:00.002+09:00

We're not quite sure when exactly the celebrated Japanese artist Hokusai was born but it was 250 years ago this autumn.

We have some great Ukiyoe paintings including the 36 Views of Mt Fuji which I'll post more on soon...

Japan - 1930-2000 Fashion

2010-05-28T12:02:00.004+09:00

Our researchers have just put together an excellent set of images on the changing fashion in Japan from the 1930s through to the end of the 1990s.

At the moment all the images are in our Japanese website and can be seen here or via the banner below.

They are also mostly available for international use and we can usually research and provide more Archive material from Japan.

Bus Guide

2010-04-23T13:48:00.003+09:00

We just got back from our annual company trip. This time we took all the staff up to Yamagata in northern Japan.

As is the norm here we hired two buses complete with drivers and bus guides to take us around the local sites.

We even managed a shoot with one Mutsumi donning the bus guide costume and our photo team performing their magic.

Photo by Yousuke Tanaka/AFLO

Figure Skating 2009-2010

2010-04-20T19:33:00.005+09:00

Figure Skating is hugely popular here in Japan and our photographers covered all of the Grand Prix events and Winter Olympics and finally the World Championships in Turin in March. Mao-chan (Asada Mao) and Takahashi Daisuke both won gold and we couldn't resist putting together a photo book to celebrate.

The book is hot of the press and available from today. I need to get more details as to how to get them but email support@aflo.com for more information.

Update: Here's a link to a cool gallery of figure skating pictures

Soccer Promotion

2010-04-16T14:46:00.005+09:00

We're just getting ready to do a big soccer promotion on the site. We have lots of great Model Released sports images and the football/soccer collections are our largest. You can even find me and Mikey in a few of the shots and also players from teams in Asia, Europe and America.

Hopefully we'll do better than Diana Ross in 1994...

Video from LLLLEWSEYBOB on YouTube

More New Material - Spring in Japan

2010-04-13T13:35:00.004+09:00

Our photographers and production team are busy at the moment grabbing as much time as they can with the cherry blossoms and clear blue spring skies. Here's a sample of the topics they were shooting last week. The images need to be processed and loaded properly onto our system now whilst the production team looks for new models and locations to create even more.

Asian Family - New RM Images

2010-04-09T13:11:00.005+09:00

We've just uploaded a new set of rights managed family images to our Japanese website. These should be live on the English page soon but if anyone needs similar content now please check our site or email us at support@aflo.com

Photos: Hideki Yoshihara/AFLO
Concept: Family Life

Vacouver Gallery

2010-04-08T14:17:00.006+09:00

Some great shots from Vancouver in our gallery here:

We published a photo book with the support of the Japan Olympic Committee which you can get here or by emailing book@aflo.com There are all of the Japanese athletes and some of the best of the rest.

Winter Sports

2010-04-07T17:56:00.007+09:00

We've just put through a couple of new shoots by three of our younger photographers (Atsu, Chiba-san and Yoshizawa-san). Moguls are a pretty popular event over here in Japan and the whole country was hoping that freestyle skier Aiko Uemura would get a medal at the Vancouver Olympics. She ended up 4th but there are plenty of skiers out there practicing to go one better.

Photo by AFLO

All of the images are model released and we will no doubt end up giving them a push later in the year before the next winter season. If anyone wants to use them before they go out then get in touch...

Natural Relax

2010-04-05T14:49:00.003+09:00

More new production. This time a Rights Managed set shot by Yosuke Tanaka.

Photos: Yosuke Tanaka/AFLO

Some beautiful vivid colours and plenty of green. We'll be putting these images in to our site and through our distribution partners very soon. Contact us at support@aflo.com if you can't wait...

Godzilla in Tokyo

2010-04-02T10:00:00.006+09:00

A teaser "news" video here about giant footprints found in Tokyo.

Baseball star Hideki Matsui is nicknamed Godzilla and is staring in a new commercial for Kirin's Fire brand canned coffee.

Our photographers went down to Shinjuku Station to see if they could find the giant. Will post some pictures when they get back...

....

And here he is:

Photo by AFLO

New Production

2010-04-01T09:32:00.004+09:00

We've been out and about shooting new Model Released sets around Tokyo over the past few weeks. Spring is almost here and there are blossoms on the cherry trees.

We have a few projects that we're working on for stock and also coordinate models, locations, photographers and post production and even design for assignment work. (Models can sign up here).

The above are a few shots from Yoshizawa Cameraman who was on location earlier this week. We'll get them beautified and loaded to our website but for those of you who can't wait or would like to arrange a shoot specifically please contact us.

The New Tallest Building in Japan

2010-03-31T18:35:00.003+09:00

The Tokyo Sky Tree, a terrestrial digital broadcasting tower, is under construction in Sumida Ward, Tokyo. On Monday, March 29, 2010. Japan's new skyscraper surpassed the height of Tokyo Tower today, becoming the tallest building in Japan at 338 meters. Tokyo Sky Tree has already become a major tourist attraction and is scheduled to be 634 meters high when it is completed at the end of 2011.

Photo by Daiju Kitamura/AFLO

Congratulations to Japan's Skaters

2010-03-29T12:18:00.005+09:00

Congratulations to Mao Asada and Daisuke Takahashi for their gold medals at the World Figure Skating Championships this past weekend. Figure skating here in Japan is pretty popular especially since Arakawa Shizuka won the gold medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. We cover all the main tournaments and have an archive of images and suppliers for specific requests.

Pictured (L-R) Patrick Chan (CAN), Daisuke Takahashi (JPN), Brian Joubert (FRA), MARCH 25, 2010 - Men's Podium at World Figure Skating Championship 2010, Torino, Italy. (Photo by Enrico Calderoni/AFLO SPORT) [0391]

Tokyo Buildings

2010-03-25T10:12:00.004+09:00

Our photographers have been out and about shooting some of Japan's corporate headquarters and Tokyo's main buildings.

Tokyo must be one of the sunniest cities in Autumn and Winter with beautiful blue skies and regular clear views as far as Mt Fuji.

For more images or requests please visit our site or email us at support@aflo.com and we'll be glad to help.

Big in Madrid

2010-03-24T14:42:00.003+09:00

One of our staff just came back from a holiday to Spain where she found this betting shop in Madrid. The soccer picture is one of ours shot in the studio here and the model happens to be my colleague Mikey.

I remember having one of my own soccer pictures sell in Italy (home of Serie A) but its pretty cool to think that in the city where Ronaldo, Kaka, and Guti all play that the guy sitting here in Tokyo next to me is the face of sports betting.

Photo by Mutsumi. Model by Mikey.

New York Times

2010-03-08T15:16:00.007+09:00

We managed to get in to the New York Times today which doesn't happen everyday.

It's particularly pleasing as the shot is an archive one and was researched internally here. As well as all of the new material that we shoot we now have some great archive suppliers and even work with some photographers that have been shooting for half a century.

The story is about Roberto Barbon an early international import to Japan's professional baseball league and how he is still working in baseball here after 55 years.

Cherry Blossom Season

2010-02-22T14:00:00.004+09:00

It's not quite cherry blossom season here yet in Tokyo but we're probably less than a month away.

We've prepared for this by getting together some of our best shots of the cherry blossoms from all over Japan. You can see our galleries here in our Japanese website.

Hello Jude Law

2010-02-19T09:48:00.003+09:00

Aflo managed to grab a quick interview with Jude Law last night when he was on the red carpet to promote the new Sherlock Holmes movie in Tokyo.

We always shoot stills and video where possible and this time the star man was kind enough to tell us a little about traveling in Japan with his family. Apparently he'd just spent a few days in Kyoto before coming up to Tokyo for the premiere.

Video by Mikey Anthony/AFLO

We're still working on getting video into www.afloimages.com but we have some great pictures uploaded already shot by Daiju Kitamura.

Please contact us for licensing!

Rihanna Drops By

2010-02-10T09:51:00.002+09:00

We were lucky enough to get some exclusive shots of global star Rihanna in Tokyo for a flying visit yesterday.

Our photographers, Atsu and Yosuke, caught her coming out of a nail salon in trendy Daikanyama.

This shot (by Atsu) even made the top page of People.com which we don't do everyday!

We still have much more creative content (temples, shrines, festivals, matsuri...) in our site but we try to cover the stars when they're in town.

2010

2010-01-13T14:28:00.003+09:00

It's been a while now since we last posted and things are good and bad with our new website.

Here in Japan the New Year is a much bigger holiday than Christmas and we send out New Year's cards like the one below.

Invariably these are "team" shots from our annual company trip. Last May we all traveled up to Matsushima and we're now planning the next trip for April 2010.

As well as our company trips we have annual meeting with the whole company invloved and all of us present various new projects and products that we want to push in the new year. We had the 2010 version last weekend and our new website (www.afloimages.com) was one of our main goals.

Model Released Winter Sports

2009-11-26T17:24:00.009+09:00

I wanted to write about our sports images as that's always been one of the strengths of Aflo. We are the Official Photo Team for the JOC (Japanese Olympic Committee) and as well as covering the Olympic Games and other major sporting events we put together many model released shoots for commercial uses. Some of these are on assignment for clients and other times we shoot for our Royalty Free sports collection , Score, or our Rights Managed collection, Aflo Sport.

With the Winter Olympics in Vancouver approaching I am posting a couple of links to sets of fully released images ready for commercial use within our website. We shoot pretty much where we can find the best locations and athletes so the images have a global appeal.

Below are a few links to sets but please visit our new site or contact us if you would like to see more:

Giant Slalom Images
Figure Skating Images
Freestyle Skiing Images
Halfpipe Images

Tokyo Has More (3) Stars Than Paris!

2009-11-20T18:02:00.005+09:00

The famous Michelin Restaurant Guide only started to include Tokyo in 2008. This year they have just brought out a new edition and Tokyo now has more prestigious 3-star restaurants than Paris.

The Guide certainly has drawn plenty of attention to itself since launching in Japan.

Jean-Luc Naret, director of Michelin Guides, shows the latest edition of the "Tokyo 2010 " during a news conference at the Foreign Corespondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009. The latest edition of the "Michelin Red Guide to Tokyo," issued on Nov.17, brought 11 three-star restaurants against 10 for Paris. (Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO)

Contact support@aflo.com for coverage of the guide or the featured restaurants.

Figure Skating Medal Hopefuls

2009-11-19T15:58:00.005+09:00

We love Figure Skating and volleyball.

Japan have four or five medal hopefuls for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic and throughout the winter months the local media closely follows the ISU Grand Prix Series.

Local favourites in the ladies singles ice skating are Mao Asada, Miki Ando, Fumie Suguri and Yukari Nakano. Mao Asada is considered the strongest challenge to Korean star Kim Yuna.

Miki Ando (centre) of Japan celebrates winning victory on the podium during ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2009/2010, NHK Trophy Women's victory ceremony at Nagano Big Hat, Nagano Japan, November 7, 2009. (Photo by Yusuke Nakanishi/AFLO SPORT)

Aflo Sport sends photographers around the world to cover these events and we do of course shoot other international skate stars.

In men's skating Nobunari Oda, Daisuke Takahashi, Takahiko Kozuka and Takahito Mura are the local hopefuls. Oda is actually directly descended from Nobunaga Oda lord of one of Japan's leading feudal families that controlled much of the nation in the 16th century.

Evan Lysacek (USA), Nobunari Oda (JPN), Sergei Voronov (RUS) pictured at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2009/2010, 2009 Skate China Men's Medal Ceremony at Capital Indoor Stadium, Beijing, China, October 31, 2009. (Photo by Akihiro Sugimoto/AFLO SPORT)

Hideki Matsui - World Series MVP!

2009-11-12T11:31:00.004+09:00

Congratulations to Hideki Matsui who won the baseball World Series last week with the New York Yankees.

World Series MVP Hideki Matsui of the New York Yankees waves to the crowd during the Yankees World Series Victory Parade on November 6, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by AFLO).

We have hundreds of pictures of Matsui in our website including some of his high school tournaments.

Aflo Images Open

2009-10-05T11:55:00.004+09:00

We've managed to open up our new English site (www.afloimages.com) and are currently adding images and features and testing the functionality.

The main change compared with our previous English language site is that we can now load editorial content very simply. We have images of hope and disappointment from the Tokyo 2016 Olympics bid and golf and tennis from the weekend. We'll be doing our best to make the most of this although of course we need to make sure that potential users know about it.

Another improvement is the online checkout which allows users to purchase and download data directly. For RF content this is pretty simple but for RM material we are trying to make use of the PLUS (Picture Licensing Universal System) price calculator which is a little more complex than we would have hoped! For the moment we're asking users who have trouble with the calculator to contact us at support@aflo.com

There is still plenty to do in terms of organising the site but we're off to a good start.

We aim to provide a comprehensive resource on Japan and also add some of the best images from our worldwide collections.

Mark

Yu Darvish

2009-09-08T12:42:00.006+09:00

Yu Darvish is one of the big stars here in Japanese baseball. He plays with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters and is their star pitcher.

He also played as relief during the World Baseball Classic earlier this year and managed to hang on to secure Japan's second consecutive tournament title.

Pitcher Yu Darvish celebrates during the World Baseball Classic Final vs Korea. Photo by AFLO.

As we build up our new website for launch we're enjoying digging through our own archives and those of suppliers like the Mainichi Newspaper and Nikkan Sports Newspaper to find material that has relevance beyond Japan.

We have a great set on Davish spanning his career from high school through to the Olympics and the World Baseball Classic. He's being tipped to play in the MLB at some stage and hopefully he'll find success and there will be much interest in his career.

If you want to find more out about him there is a good English article on Wikipedia

A New Dawn...?

2009-08-31T14:21:00.007+09:00

The DPJ lead by Yukio Hatoyama claimed a landslide victory in the Japanese elections last night. They now have almost 2/3 of the available lower house seats and have broken almost 55 years of continuous LDP governance.

Yukio Hatoyama & Ichiro Ozawa pictured in front of their DPJ candidate roster. Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO

This was the first election that we have covered seriously as a company and we had photographers at both campaign headquarters and also at polling and counting stations. With official campaigning only lasting 12 days it all seems over very quickly.

Almost there...

2009-08-28T14:15:00.003+09:00

We're loading up images to our new site and putting some final touches to the design to make everything as consistent as possible. We really wanted to have it "finished" by the end of August but it looks like we may be one or two days late. We'll see...

At the moment we're also working hard to add English keywords to some of our best sets of images of Japan. I can't wait to show these beautiful pictures of Kyoto and Miyajima and Nara through the site...

This is one of the early "prototype" layouts for the new website. Hopefully early next week you will be able to see how everything turned out!

Vote for Me!

2009-08-20T12:04:00.006+09:00

The Japanese elections will be held on August 30th this year and it really does look like a proper contest.

The candidates actually only have 12 official campaigning days where they can go out and ask for votes as reported in the Financial Times

Photo by Natsuki Sakai/AFLO

The picture shows Yukio Hatoyama, leader of Japan's main opposition Democratic Party of Japan, being welcomed by his supporters at a campaign rally in Yokohama, on Tuesday, August 18, 2009, as official campaigning began.

We'll be covering the major campaign events and of course following the whole thing with interest.

Jupiterimages RM Content - Aflo Brands

2009-08-18T11:22:00.003+09:00

We used to contribute two Rights Managed photo collections to jupiterimages.com

These were Relax (a living in harmony with our environment lifestyle oriented collection) and Sport (a collection of model released sporting images covering everything from table tennis to skydiving and ballet to rally car racing).

As of August 1st 2009 these two collections, along with most other rights managed material, were removed from the Jupiter website.

Both collections continue to be available through Aflo and we at support@aflo.com will do our best to answer any questions and requests.

I have written here before about our new website which I would love to be able to direct you to right now but we are still a few days away from opening it up. At the moment all of our content is available at www.aflo.com which is our Japanese site and most is on our previous English language site at www.aflo.com/en

The 64th Anniversary of the worlds first atomic bomb attack

2009-08-06T15:44:00.006+09:00

Video by: Noriyuki Araki/AFLO

The mood was somber today in Hiroshima on the 64th anniversary of the worlds first Atomic bomb attack. Hundreds of people, both young and old, converged on the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to pay their respects to the more than 220,000 victims of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Some placed flowers and prayed with their hands together while others layed down in a 'Die in' in front of the Genbaku Dome (A-Bomb Dome) to represent those who perished. The Dome, now known as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, was one of the last remaining structures intact despite being almost below the center of the blast which was actually 150m(490 feet) away and 600m(1,968 feet) above ground.

Nikkan Sports x Aflo

2009-08-06T15:13:00.004+09:00

We're lucky to have just signed up the Nikkan Sports newspaper as a image partner. They are one of Japan's largest and most established sports' newspapers and we now have access to some great moments in Japanese sports as well as their regular production.

I'm sure that we'll end up doing best with this in Japan where the collection will help us to fill gaps in our own archives but along with the Mainichi Newspaper and Kingendai collections it also gives us some great material to license worldwide.

You can see a brief initial selection of pictures here

Jessica Michibata modelling for Samantha Thavasa

2009-08-03T15:25:00.004+09:00

Photo by Atsushi Tomura/AFLO

We manage to shoot some fun assignments too here although this beach shoot was taken on a rainy Sunday down in Kamakura - about 30 minutes south of Tokyo.

Jessica Michibata, the model in the shot, is a star in Japan but in Europe she is better known as the girlfriend of F1 racer Jenson Button. She was modeling Honey Bunch swimwear and Samantha Thavasa bags and managed to brighten up a gray day.

It usually gets up to 40 degrees in August here so the rain and cooler weather is welcome although less so on the weekends!

World Record Bass

2009-07-23T17:01:00.005+09:00

Photo by Manabu Kurita/AFLO

One of our contributors recently caught this monster black bass. It could even be a world record catch.

Here are the details: "Manabu Kurita shows off the 22.5-pound (10.12 kg) black bass he caught at Lake Biwa in Shiga prefecture in western Japan on July 2, 2009. Kurita, the 33-year-old self-employed worker caught what could be the world record if approved at the country's larget lake. The existing world record, the 22-pound and four-ounce bass, was caught by George W. Perry at Montgomery Lake in Georgia, USA, in 1972."

Gundam in Tokyo

2009-07-21T16:07:00.003+09:00

Photo by AFLO

I managed to get down to Odaiba on Sunday in Tokyo Bay and there were big crowds to see the "lifesize" Gundam robot standing guard there. We spent about 30 minutes looking around in the heat and were lucky enough to see the head move although that was all very quick. Apparently steam comes out of certain orifices too but the crowd gets no warning as to when something might happen.

Even without much movement though the "statue" (?) looks amazing. Supposedly it will be removed at the end of the summer but I can't see why it couldn't be a permanent attraction there. After all it is much more impressive than the miniture Statue of Liberty on display just around the corner.

Tanabata

2009-07-07T14:47:00.002+09:00

Today is July 7th or Tanabata as it is otherwise known in Japan. It is traditionally a time for making wishes and star gazing.

We create and stock plenty of festival related images including aspirational children in their summer dress dreaming of the future.

There is plenty more information including the origins of the festival and a sad/happy(?) story of two fated lovers on Wikipedia.

New Website

2009-07-02T19:20:00.003+09:00

We're nearly there. I hope!

We've been preparing new (and very old archive) images to put into the site and spending time creating all the footer links to explain how it should work. There's so much that can go into an FAQ when you don't actually know which questions are going to be the frequent ones.

Pink Fries

2009-06-17T14:14:00.003+09:00

Aflo is based in Ginza - the main centre for department stores and luxury brand flagship stores - in Tokyo.

We try to cover interesting stories and colourful events from around Tokyo and Japan though and sometimes venture into the bustle of Shibuya...

Photo by Yusuke Nakanishi/AFLO

The fries on display at this McDonald’s restaurant in Tokyo’s Shibuya area last Friday, June 12, 2009, were wrapped in a giant pink t-shirt in collaboration with a Japanese apparel maker in their promotion to sell rose pink T-shirts at the franchise.

We do of course welcome tips and picture contributions too.

Hiroshige - Japanese Art

2009-06-12T16:15:00.004+09:00

We have just loaded a beautiful set of Hiroshige Wood Block Prints to our site.

We have everything from his celebrated sets: Eight Views of Omi, Eight Views of Kanazawa
Fifty-three Stations of Tokaido, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, Eight Views in the Neighbourhood of Edo, and Famous places of Kyoto.

I love to look at these prints as there is so much going on. I was given a set as a present when I first came to Japan. I also enjoy the Japanese lists of things to do and places to see.

The pictures themselves have been published many times but we are lucky to have a beautiful set of colour adjusted 80mb tiffs.

This image is from the 53 Views of the Tokaido series and shows a ferry crossing at Kawasaki.

CEPIC 2009

2009-06-01T14:54:00.002+09:00

I'm planning on attending the CEPIC congress for picture agencies this week in Dresden, Germany. It's a good chance to meet　face to face with current and new suppliers from all over the world and also to find new outlets for the material that we produce.

Pictures from the Aflo Trip

2009-05-25T15:24:00.005+09:00

I am posting a few shots from our company trip.

We all traveled up to Matsushima just north of Sendai on May 16th/17th and stayed in a smart hotel for the weekend. I think that over 80 of us made it.

We had beef tongue (a local delicacy) for lunch on arrival in Sendai and then split from the main group.

We have a small gourmet cycling group and always bring our bikes on these trips. This time 6 of us joined in and we cycled from Sendai to the hotel and then around the bay to Okumatsushima.

We stopped for homemade ice cream near the hotel.

We all climbed Ootakamori (big high wood) for a spectacular view back towards Matsushima.

We also stoppped off on the way back for fresh seafoood from a roadside stall.

The rest of the crew took a train to Matsushima and then a boat around the bay.

The main event was the "enkai" in the evening and the various parties that continued after this. The whole idea is to get everyone together and as ever it seemed to work.

On the Sunday I managed an early ride and onsen before everyone boarded our two coaches to go back into Sendai (via a fish market) where we visited the site of Date Masamune's castle before returning back to Tokyo.

Aflo Company Trip

2009-05-15T10:36:00.006+09:00

We're all traveling up to Sendai and Matsushima tomorrow for our annual company trip. This year there should be 90 of us going. Matsushima has one of the three best "views" in Japan and the region is well known for beef tongue which is a local delicacy. (I hope it isn't eaten raw!)

The plan is to stay somewhere nice - this time with a rotemburo overlooking the sea - and spend the weekend together.

We also usually manage to get a good group shot to use on our company new year's card. The one below is from our trip to Matsumoto and Kamikochi in 2007.

Golden Week

2009-04-30T09:32:00.006+09:00

There are four public holidays every year at the start of May. This is referred to as "Golden Week" in Japan and is one of the busiest times for tourist travel in Japan.

The last of the days off is May 5th which is "kodomo no hi" ("children's day" or sometimes "boy's day"). For this festival, families with young boys often display "koi nobori" (flying carp) from their balconies or gardens and some town's even organise large public displays.

This picture was taken in Matsukawa Village in Nagano and is part of the Aflo travel photo collection.

When Aflo started out we used to encourage employees to take a full week off during Golden Week as it is also a quiet time for business. This year is the first year that we will be open every day though through the holiday. With travel costs high during the period and popular destinations busy it isn't too hard to find people who want to take their time off at a quieter time.

As we now handle more breaking news and entertainment images it makes sense to be available but we don't yet know how many of our clients will be working too. Still, it does seem extravagant to be taking a big break whilst we're trying to expand.

There's a bit more information about the Golden Week holiday on Wikipedia.

Aflo Vision

2009-04-23T15:36:00.006+09:00

We launched Aflo Vision at the start of 2008. Before then we had done image post production work of our own but hadn't really gone out of our way to push this service. We do retouching, merging, masking, and can change the mood of most images we work on. Recently we've been creating scenes from pre-war Japan from current images.

It is now one of our growth areas and most of the work that we handle is on assignment basis for actual clients as opposed to working on our own stock images. We have three studios, two in Tokyo and a house studio on the coast in Kanagawa (just south of Tokyo) and with our photographers, illustrators and now the Vision team we can handle most projects.

Some of the fun projects involve shooting members of my football team and then seeing whether we can make them appear like stars in the World Cup...

Models Needed for Photo Shoots

2009-04-13T10:44:00.005+09:00

We're always looking for "models" for our stock photography shoots and for assignment work that we handle. The sports projects can be pretty fun especially if we get into one of the big stadiums to take pictures. Most of the work is in Tokyo or the Kanto region and on bright sunny days. There's a nice gallery of recent projects here: http://www.aflo.com/gallery/aflo-model/

We have a sign up page in our site (see link below) and also periodically post requirements there. At the moment Aflo needs models for upcoming lifestyle photo shoots: beautiful young women (aged 16-25), Western/Japanese couples (mid-20s to mid-40s), recreational golfers (aged 20-40), "foreigners in Japan" (mid-20s to mid-40s) and more. The sign-up page is https://ssl.aflo.com/en/models.htm

Sakura

2009-04-10T12:02:00.004+09:00

The cherry blossom here in Tokyo came a little later than usual this year and is still around at the moment. The longer I live here the more beautiful it seems. I had a family hanami (cherry blossom viewing) party last Sunday in the local park and have been running through cherry blossom lined tracks on the mornings this week.

Cherry blossom time is a busy time for us as we shoot alot of new material - both editorial photos and commercial stock photos. It always corresponds with the new financial and school years and is full of symbolism.

(Sakura at Chidorigafuchi in central Tokyo; photo by Aflo)

In our Japanese website we have a page dedicated to cherry blossom images (http://www.aflo.com/sakura/) and here you can find pictures from all the famous viewing spots across Japan. It has taken some time to get everything together but we now have a comprehensive collection. We hope to replicate this on our English language site soon too.

Sunday Opening

2009-04-08T14:56:00.003+09:00

Aflo has just started to open on Sunday's and public holidays from April 2009.

We used to open on Saturday's but not holidays or Sundays. We have plenty of staff now and it makes sense for us to be using the resources we have as much as possible. I guess that to begin with we will be looking to increase editorial sales and improve our service.
http://www.aflo.com/info/research_promo.html

I'm not a big fan of "open 365 days a year" though so hope that we can rethink our marketing copy!

Score RF

2009-04-02T10:36:00.008+09:00

As well as editorial pictures and video we also shoot our own "creative" content for advertising use.

Aflo was founded by a sports photographer, Koji Aoki, back in 1980 and became the official Japanese Olympic Committee Photo Team back in 1998 at the time of the Nagano Olympic Games (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_Winter_Olympics). We still have 10 full-time staff sports photographers, including two in Europe, and these guys shoot creative content for our sports brands.

We launched Score by Aflo (Royalty Free images) back in 2006 and have had lots of fun building this up. We always look for real athletes and locations and have some great fun coming up with ideas and situations and shooting this. So far we've produced content on four continents and have 35 "collections" on various sports. Soccer is best covered perhaps because Mikey and I here have a team in Tokyo and a ready pool of contacts.

I've been lucky enough to be involved in some back country snow and football productions and have directed a few of our collections.

You can see more at http://www.aflo.com/score

We're currently planning more shoots so if you have ideas, requests, locations or particular skills and want to get involved do get in touch. (Potential models can find us here https://ssl.aflo.com/en/models.htm)

Japan - The Mainichi Newspaper (1)

2009-03-31T10:30:00.004+09:00

We're based in Tokyo and have an office in Osaka too that handles western Japan. We're starting to become quite international and have a Brit (me), Canadian, American and Korean on the staff as well as all of our Japanese employees.

We started to work with the Mainichi Newspaper Group a few years back and this has proved a great resource of Japanese archive content for us. The story goes that the Mainichi Newspaper staff managed to hide their picture archive in Osaka at the end of the second world war. At the same time other major Japanese newspapers had their own archives destroyed in Tokyo. Thus the Mainichi Newspaper has the most complete archive on contemporary Japan available.

You can read more about the oldest Japanese newspaper here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainichi_Shimbun

Aflo is lucky to be able to syndicate Mainichi content to the Japanese media and we also handle all international requests for their pictures. We hope that we'll be able to do more with this material as it is an amazing archive. Of course we can also handle current production too which supports our own offering.

http://www.aflo.com/en/mainichi/

First Post

2009-03-30T14:05:00.003+09:00

Aflo is one of the biggest Japanese distributors and producers of digital media for professional use.

We began as a photo agency back in 1980 and since then have grown into a company with over 120 staff. We shoot sports and recently have been expanding editorial coverage of Japanese news events and international celebrities passing through Tokyo, and even providing video coverage of these.

We also produce for and represent commercial image collections. These include major international brands such as Jupiter Images, Corbis, Getty Images and also some of the best Japanese content from providers such as Amana and Datacraft.

Most of the content that we represent can be found on our Japanese website: www.aflo.com and we are currently working on an upgrade to our English language site to bring more of the material we handle to the global marketplace.

We have plenty to keep us busy...