Black kites as far as the eye can see.

I spent the second half of April with friends in Japan. We traveled from Fukuoka to Tokyo via Osaka. I hadn’t prepared much and just went with the flow, wanting to drift along and simply explore this unfamiliar world. I briefly considered leaving my full camera bag at home, but then the thought crossed my mind that I might never get back there, so I took my entire camera backpack with me. In the cities and parks, I found herons, turtles, various songbirds, and cheeky crows. The highlight, however, was a day at the end of the trip when I went to Enoshima alone and was greeted by flocks of birds of prey. Black kites, in large groups, snatching food from the hands of unsuspecting passersby—not gulls, but kites. Besides the city and the island, this was an absolute highlight, and I took far too many pictures, some of which I will present to you soon, but to start, here’s THE Air-Joradn shot…