Japanscapes: Three Cameras, Three Journeys »

Born in Columbus, Georgia, BEN SIMMONS is a photography instructor turned professional photographer. Long based in Tokyo, his work has been published in magazines worldwide and collected in several books. His publications include Introducing Tokyo and Tokyo Desire, a look at the many layers of life in Japan's largest city. Simmons arrived in Japan in 1982.

JOHNNY HYMAS was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1934. While touring the globe as a professional gymnast, he developed an interest in photography and eventually settled in Japan, which he considers a "landscape photographer's paradise." Hymas's work has appeared in magazines and calendars around the world and has been collected in over fifteen books, including the perennial best-seller Japan: The Four Seasons; Japan: The Living Gardens; and Tambo: The Sacred Fields, for which he received an award from the Iwate Prefectural government. A multimedia CD/video version of his Japan: The Four Seasons was awarded the High Vision Grand Prix from the International Audio-Visual Association.

GORAZS VILHAR was born in Slovenia and holds a degree in art history from the University of Ljubljana. His photographs have been published in travel, culture, and lifestyle magazines around the world. Together with his wife, writer Charlotte Anderson, he has published three books, among them Kyoto: A Cultural Sojourn and Gracious Gifts: Japan's Sacred Offerings. Vilhar moved to Japan in 1985, and has exhibited his work in galleries in Japan and Europe. At an international exhibition sponsored by Konica, his images of traditional Japanese culture were selected for innovative interpretations of the traditional Japanese folding screen.

A native of suburban Washington, D.C., LUCILLE M. CRAFT has lived and worked in Tokyo for twenty years, mostly as a producer and reporter for public radio and television news programs in the United States. She occasionally contributes freelance articles to publications in Japan and abroad. In 1998, she founded the Kuril Island Network, a small nonprofit conservation group dedicated to protecting wilderness on the borders of Russia and Japan.

CHARLOTTE ANDERSON earned a degree in women's studies from the University of Utah and did graduate work in cultural anthropology as a Fulbright Scholar in Slovenia before turning to writing on Japanese and world culture. Her articles have appeared in numerous magazines, often accompanied by the work of her photographer-husband Gorazd Vilhar. Their partnership has also produced three collaborative volumes, including Matsuri: World of Japanese Festivals.

AZBY BROWN is an architect and artist who writes extensively about the arts in Japan. A native of New Orleans with degrees from Yale College and Tokyo University, he has lived in Japan since 1985, and is presently Associate Professor of Architecture at Kanazawa Institute of Technology. His three books-The Genius of Japanese Carpentry, Small Spaces, and The Very Small Home-are available from Kodansha International.

This attractive photo essay captures the many facets of present-day Japan, from its vibrant architecture and urban areas, to its rural landscapes and farming communities. Three expert photographers were assigned the themes of city, country, and culture. The results of their explorations are presented in color with accompanying commentary by writers with backgrounds in architecture, journalism, and cultural anthropology. Annotation ©2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR