Daily HDR Photo — Miko Collecting God’s Money
Today’s shot is of a miko (me-ko / priestess) collecting the shrine’s morning donations.
About
In Shinto, traditionally miko were the daughters of the Shrine’s priest and held an important place in running the shrine. These days, however, a miko is simply a shrine assistant, likely only holding the position as a part-time job during college. They do odd jobs, sell souvenirs and fortunes, and maybe do some dances in traditional events.
I love the outfit. Nice and simple. Much of current Shinto was shaped by Buddhist practices (they were practiced so closely that they were much the same religion for much of Japan’s history), so maybe that is why it is so simple? I’m not sure on that one.
Most people donate a little when they visit shrines. The most popular amount to give is 5 yen. 5 yen coins are considered lucky due to the hole in the middle. As to why that makes them lucky, I’ve no idea. Anyone know?
Remember, I offer the full-size version of this. Zoom in and let it fill your screen. I find HDR works best when the photo is too big for you to take completely in, so your eyes have to wander around. Try it.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments.
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Nice shot Dave. Have some old feel to it, like it was happining long time ago, espically if that women on the right wasn’t there, but it adds current day touch. Is this a single raw hdr?
I really wish I coud have gotten rid of that woman! My cloning skills aren’t quite up to the job. Yeah, it’s a single RAW.
Nice shot Dave. Have some old feel to it, like it was happining long time ago, espically if that women on the right wasn’t there, but it adds current day touch. Is this a single raw hdr?
I really wish I coud have gotten rid of that woman! My cloning skills aren’t quite up to the job. Yeah, it’s a single RAW.
Hello. It is a very wonderful view… Your photography is beautiful all.
Thank you for visiting my blog. ruma
Thanks for the compliment, Ruma. I really appreciate it. ^^
Hello. It is a very wonderful view… Your photography is beautiful all.
Thank you for visiting my blog. ruma
Thanks for the compliment, Ruma. I really appreciate it. ^^
First time visitor.…Really nice photo…ok, the extra woman kinda detracts from being a totally brilliant photo, but sometimes there’s just moments to take a photo and it’s hard to get the perfect composition. I just really like the ambiance created here. Nice use of background, depth of field an structure.
If only we could go back in time and change those little things that annoy us in our photos.
Thanks for visiting and for the compliments.
Yeah, exactly. If I coud have waited for the perfect shot, I would have. But it was a busy shrine and impossible to get any shots without people (and with a miko). All other shots I took have even more people in them. Oh well. I always look at these flawed photos as good reason to return to the scene someday!