It’s not difficult to find good Tokyo photo spots, especially if it’s your first time there and you’re just wanting to take back some good pics for your own collection.  There’s plenty of sites that list the typical so called “best photo Tokyo photo spots” so I’ll leave most of those out and just mention a few places that aren’t usually found on most sites.

Always something happening on the streets of Tokyo and whether you’ve been there or not, if you’re a street photographer you’re probably going to love it.  It’s difficult to take your eyes of the Japanese girls, and the boys (I reckon the Japanese are the best looking race on the planet) so focus!  Because of their nature, a lot of locals won’t particularly like their photo being taken, with the exception of Takashita Street where all the Cosplay goes on.

You could spend a whole week photographing Tokyo and still not cover half of it.  My favourite places are Shinjuku or Ginza at night, and Shimokitazawa during the day, just before it starts to open. Here there’s a bunch of neat street scenes where you just set yourself up and wait for people to enter the scene.  This is probably my favourite place to take photos in Tokyo as along with the street scenes that appear they’ve been set up for a shot, there’s some way more interesting people here (think hipsters in cool clothes).  In the tourist areas like Shinjuku and Ginza it’s hard to get just 1 person in the shot because of the amount of people so Shimokitazawa is a bit of a change.

If you know anything about film cameras, you’ll know all the best conditioned ones come from Japan.  I’m not going to pretend I know where all the best places are and I’ve never been to any of them myself, but check this post out from Japan Camera Hunter (actually multiple posts), which is the best resource out there for finding film cameras in Tokyo.  For digital, the prices aren’t the best in the world but if there is any camera or camera accessory you can think of, or can’t think of, it’s more than likely you can find it in Tokyo. Head to Bic Camera, the selection is mind blowing and if you’re into Photography gadgets, this is pure heaven.  I’d bet my left testicle that if you’re a photographer who likes their toys, you will not be able to go into Bic Camera or Yodabashi Camera and come out empty handed.

For more info on Tokyo photo spots feel free to ask us on Twitter or send us an email on our contact page.  Go back to the main Tokyo Guide page here.