Seiganto-Ji at Sunrise (Vertical Panorama)
Seiganto-ji Temple, near Nachikatsuura, Japan
Seiganto-Ji, or the Temple of Crossing the Blue Shore, is a Buddhist Temple several hours south of Osaka and Kyoto. While well-known, it is much less accessible than most of the other spots I photographed during my 2022-2023 visit to Japan, simply because of its distance from major cities and tourism centers. Perhaps because of this, or perhaps in spite of it, Seiganto-ji was one of my favorite photo locations in Japan. Like so many other historical sites in Japan, Seiganto-Ji's history is long and complicated, and involves numerous dynasties, wars, reconstructions, etc., but for me, this location was all about the simple peace and beauty it offers. I made sure to arrive early (before buses began running) to get this photo, which involved me booking a 5AM taxi the night before, but the payoff was well worth it. Did I forget to mention that Nachi Falls, at 133 meters in height and the tallest single-drop waterfall in Japan, is right behind it? Yeah, that's there too. Photo © copyright by Glenn Lewis.