HOKKAIDO, May 26 (News On Japan) - While working as a civil servant in Sapporo, Mitsuhiko Kamata spent decades capturing the natural beauty of Hokkaido through his lens. Now, having taken early retirement after 35 years, he has dedicated himself full time to pursuing the fleeting, miraculous moments found in nature—moments he believes must rise to the level of art to truly move the viewer.
Kamata has gained attention for his stunning images that resemble scenes from a painting—misty soba fields in Horokanai, stormy dusk skies in Wakkanai, and rare light phenomena on snow-covered plains. These are not chance discoveries. He returns to the same locations time and again, often enduring freezing temperatures and long hikes, waiting for the perfect confluence of light, weather, and composition.
His first major outing of 2025 took place in March in Rikubetsu, known as Japan’s coldest town. “If the temperature drops below minus 15°C and the sun comes out, there’s a good chance we’ll see it,” he said, targeting a rare winter phenomenon called diamond dust. That morning, with conditions aligning at minus 18°C, Kamata captured a spectacular sun pillar—sunlight refracting off suspended ice crystals to form a glowing vertical beam—titling the photo "Sun Pillar Pouring onto Frost-Covered Trees".
Later, a second trip in May took him to Muroran. There, at a secluded coastal spot called Houraimon—reachable only at low tide and after descending a rope-lined mountain path—he photographed jagged volcanic rock shaped by waves into a natural arch. As the sun set, the scene transformed, and Kamata noted how the landscape's moods shift each time he visits.
On the drive back toward Sapporo, Kamata stopped at a stream near Chitose known to anglers but rarely photographed. As sunlight filtered through the forest canopy, illuminating the Mamachi River, he captured what he described as “a moment that glowed while I was driving past”.
In early summer, Kamata visited Shūjitsu Hill near Asahikawa, a sweeping vista backdropped by the Tokachi mountain range. There he met up with Fumiaki Nishikawa, a younger photographer who once shadowed Kamata and now calls him his mentor. Together, they photographed expansive hills at dawn and dusk—golden fields dotted with running herds of Ezo deer.
One of Kamata’s final shots of the day came unexpectedly: a tractor churning soil, smoke drifting across a dusky farm field. "That haze from tilling—there’s something painterly about it," he remarked. In his hands, even an ordinary rural scene became a piece of visual poetry.
Though Kamata used to spend about 70 days a year on photography while working, he estimates only three or four shots annually reached the level he strives for. Now, with more time and fewer constraints, he hopes to increase that number and devote every free moment to the craft. “As long as I’m healthy, I want to keep chasing those rare, breathtaking moments,” he said.
Kamata’s pursuit of the extraordinary continues to transform the everyday into something timeless—fragments of nature captured with the eye of an artist and the patience of a seasoned hunter of light.
Source: 北海道ニュースUHB
