37 FramesThe wedding was only chapter one. The story continued in Hirosaki.
For this Australian bride and American groom, their ryokan wedding in Kanagawa was just the beginning. A few weeks later, after a honeymoon traveling across Japan, we met again. Not just as planners and photographers, but as friends. Because you can’t walk through a wedding planning journey together and not come out the other side bound for life.
This time far to the north, in Hirosaki, Aomori, we slipped back into that easy rhythm only shared history brings. Their comfort in front of the cameras … both still and video … was now legendary. Practiced pros, yes, but more than that: all of us so comfortable together, laughter flowing as naturally as the petals falling around us.
And there, among some of the most iconic cherry blossoms in the world, we closed their Japan story together.
Why Hirosaki?
When most people think of cherry blossoms in Japan, they imagine Tokyo or Kyoto. The truth? Those places are breathtaking, but also impossibly crowded. Thousands of people fill the parks, tripods jostle for position, and the serenity of sakura can be lost in the noise.
Hirosaki is different.
Located in Aomori Prefecture, at the northern tip of Honshu, Hirosaki Park is home to more than 2,600 cherry trees, including some over 100 years old. The park surrounds the historic Hirosaki Castle, with moats filled with petals so thick they look like pink rivers. For many in Japan, it’s considered one of the most beautiful cherry blossom sites in the country. And yet it remains far less crowded than the big city hotspots.
For our couple, this meant something rare: space and silence. Sakura without the rush. Time to walk slowly, to hold hands, to laugh and breathe under the blossoms without anyone else around.
The Morning
It was early. Almost no one was there. Just us, the couple, and an endless canopy of pale pink.
There’s something transformative about seeing sakura without distraction. They stop being the backdrop and start being the experience itself. For this shoot, they weren’t props. They were presence.
We walked with them through Hirosaki Park. No crowds, no rush, just quiet paths leading to the castle. Petals floated in the moat like they’d been scattered just for them. The kind of scene you can’t stage, only stumble into, and never forget.
A Poetic Finale
Their wedding at Jinya had been filled with rain, laughter, mochi pounding, and 80+ guests from around the world. This post-shoot was its opposite: quiet, solitary, just the two of them.
It felt like Japan gave them a farewell no itinerary could promise … cherry blossoms, quiet and unshared, just for them.
As photographers and filmmakers, we live for these contrasts. The joy of a wedding day, the intimacy of the moments that follow. And for this couple, their story was never just about one day. It was about weaving together their history in Japan, their families, their travels, and finally, this still, pink morning in Hirosaki.
Final Reflection
Cherry blossoms are fleeting. They bloom, they scatter, they disappear. That impermanence is what makes them so beloved in Japan. That’s their lesson and their gift. Beauty that asks you to notice it before it slips away. For this couple, their final images among the blossoms weren’t just photos. They were reminders that the most extraordinary beauty often lives in the briefest of moments.
And as we said goodbye under the sakura in Hirosaki, we knew their story with Japan had come full circle. From the small towns where they first met, to their ryokan wedding, to this farewell among the blossoms.
It was a journey only they could write.
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