Snaps and documentary shots by Daisuke Kumakiri, shooting everything with a single lens! The expansive breadth of expression made possible with the 28-75mm F2.8 G2 (A063) for Nikon Z mount

The key functional point I find the most useful in photography is mobility. The greatest feature of TAMRON 28-75mm F/2.8 Di III VXD G2 (Model A063) for Nikon Z mount which I used on this occasion is its size. An important point when taking regular street snapshots is that being able to easily carry something around with you on a regular basis, including its portability, ensures you don’t miss photo opportunities when you encounter them. At the same time, you of course want a lens that doesn’t compromise on expressiveness, that allows for artistic expression with the full use of sharp rendering capabilities, and which nicely balances a sense of speed with keen descriptive capabilities. It was with such a lens that I tasked myself in this latest shoot.

The first photo：　Focal length: 28mm　Exposure: F2.8　Shutter Speed: 1/25sec　ISO: 100　Camera: Nikon Z8

On this occasion I tried out the lens at the site of traditional Okinawan culture, a theme I have long pursued in my photography. When you think of Okinawa, you think of the sea. Many aspects of Okinawa’s unique culture have their origins in the sea. Traditional SABANI fishing boats are truly symbolic of this heritage. Its bright red sail catches the sea breeze. This was taken at sea. Shooting from a small boat is unstable, but a compact system lets you shoot in a wide variety of locations. The lens features a Moisture-Resistant Construction, enabling me to concentrate on shooting despite the harsh environment with splashing water.

Okinawa features a multitude of unique and traditional cultural aspects. But as with other regions, Okinawa faces a general lack of successors and declining demand for these cultural assets, placing their survival in jeopardy. At the same time, young people are starting to develop an interest in ancient culture as they rediscover their own roots. Preserving the traditional cultural aspects, and passing them on to future generations. I tried to capture these elements with the 28-75mm F2.8 G2.

The beautiful, streamlined construction of SABANI boats is such that even modern boat developers are believed to take cues from them. This day coincided with the opening of the beach in Itoman. With this composition I intentionally chose backlighting as the SABANI boat glided across the blue sea, but the 28-75mm F2.8 G2 does not suffer from unpleasant flaring or ghosting, and rendered the sunlight impressively.

Kiyoshi Oshiro has continued to build SABANI boats as the love of his life. For a while, he says, there were tough times due to the lack of successors, but recently young people, particularly women have expressed an interest, and on this day a young female owner of a boat came to visit him. The three-dimensional and well-balanced bokeh of the lens was able to capture Kiyoshi’s expressions in a natural way as he spoke with passion and joy.

I also paid a visit to Michimasa Tokeshi at his SANSHIN (traditional Okinawan three-stringed musical instrument) workshop. Each SANSHIN is made with careful and heartfelt attention to detail. The idea that every household has a SANSHIN is something that has been passed for generations and is arguably the soul of the Okinawan people. The process of carving out the pieces from carefully selected materials is more laborious than you would imagine. I captured Michimasa’s expression as he checked the finishing touches of a piece with a sharp eye.

The handle of a SANSHIN is shaped with detailed and minute adjustments using a variety of tools. The smooth and delicate curves are created while changing the tools to be used by step. The commonly used tool is an iron file, and in order to carve out rounded sections, the file itself has been hammered into a round shape. Close-focusing is another of the 28-75mm F2.8 G2’s features. I made use of it to capture the expression of the sharp blade, and was able to get very close to the MOD (Minimum Object Distance) at the telephoto end to capture the details to a fine degree.

Next, it was on to the Koshiro Oshiro Weaving Workshop that specializes in RYUKYU KASURI textiles. RYUKYU KASURI is a kind of textile craft unique to Okinawa that bears a distinctive design. I was shown the dye workshop by Kazuo Oshiro, who is mainly responsible for design. When Japanese hear the term “KASURI” they are probably reminded of indigo blue. I heard an interesting story about how the Okinawan liquor awamori is added to the dye to develop and enliven the color.

Gentle tapping sounds can be heard from the tightly packed looms of the workshop. The work continued with careful and heartfelt attention given to each and every weave. This photo depicts the warp winding process, with the delicate appearance of the threads captured with backlighting. While I was impressed by the bokeh with the aperture of the lens wide open, I was equally impressed by its extremely high resolving capabilities, which were able to resolve the individual threads with stunning clarity.

UMINCHU is a term used to refer to who ply the fishing trade in Itoman, known as the seafood capital of Okinawa. Various items used for fishing and hunting have been created here. A notable example are MIIKAGAN goggles. They first appeared in 1884 as underwater glasses for diving, and are considered the forerunner on which modern swimming goggles are based. They are also a tangible folk cultural property of the city of Itoman. The entire city is working to preserve Okinawa’s unique culture.

Osamu Matsuda has been continuing the fight to pass on the heritage of MIIKAGAN goggles to future generations. By having young people take part in making them, the craft can be more broadly connected with future generations. I also think it is important to share this culture with everyone by incorporating MIIKAGAN production as a form of employment support. The wood in the background is from the Heliotropium foertherianum tree, the essential material used to produce MIIKAGAN goggles.

Documentary photography is not simply a matter of photographing items; by expressing a theme in more impressive ways, you can convey a more powerful message to the audience. To create those images, a light lens with uncompromising performance is a must. In addition to its compact size and light weight, the responsive autofocus on the lens quickly reacted to capture fleeting expressions on the faces of subjects and adapt to momentary changes in the angle of view. The resolving performance of the lens, which renders clear images all the way to the corners, was also a great fit for my photographic sensibilities that involve capturing a large amount of information to fill the entire field of view.