October 18, 2026

Kyoto Portrait Shoot with Sora | Leica SL2s + SL 50mm F2 APO

Leica

This is an outdoor portrait shoot in Kyoto with photographer Daran and Japan-based photographer Stanley. Away from the bustling tourist spots, we wandered beautiful places only locals know — both carrying only Leica, with quiet smiles of satisfaction hidden in the photos.

By Daran Wu

Kyoto in May — it had rained just the day before, yet the sun unexpectedly came out. The Japanese air seems to carry a scent — hmm~, I think it's the "smell" of light: the photos show a clarity different from shooting in Taiwan, always so translucent, with a uniquely natural tone.

I love shooting in Japan — familiar culture mixed with the thrill of exploration. Stanley, Sora, and I strolled slowly along the path, shooting whatever caught our eyes, chasing light with Leica in hand — as if returning to the simplicity and purity of when we first started photography.

Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress stretches her arms wide with eyes closed, soaking in the sunlight before green trees and a traditional building
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress walks slowly along a traditional street beside a white wall with black roof tiles and a weeping willow
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a light long skirt and red boots tilts her head up toward the sunlight in front of a tiled-roof white wall
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress shades her eyes with one hand and gazes into the distance before a noren curtain at a traditional wooden house
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a light top smiles with a hand softly covering her mouth beside a noren curtain and wooden wall
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a light top looks back over her shoulder at the camera in a narrow alley between traditional wooden houses
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots walks toward the camera through a narrow alley of old wooden houses
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress smiles brightly with arms spread wide in an alley with dark wooden walls
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots stands in the middle of the street at the corner of a traditional house
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress stands in profile beside a stone wall covered in green leaves, looking to the side
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a light dress smiles by the roadside on a street lined with traditional wooden houses and utility poles
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress smiles at the camera with hands clasped before green trees at a residential street corner
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress carrying a small bag looks back with a smile beside the railing of a small river bridge
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress lifts a hand to her hair and lowers her gaze in thought on a riverside path
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress looks back at the camera in front of a vermilion torii gate
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress smiles with palms pressed together beside the vermilion fence and torii of a shrine
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress rests her hand on the railing of a wooden bridge surrounded by green trees, gazing into the distance with a torii roof peeking through the treetops
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots crosses the street on a zebra crossing beneath a giant vermilion torii gate
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress gazes into the distance at the base of a towering stone pillar sculpture beneath green trees
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress crouches among white flower beds beside a stone pillar sculpture, reaching out to touch the blossoms
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress sits by the base of a stone pillar and looks at the camera through softly blurred white flowers in the foreground
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress crouches beneath tall trees among white flower beds, resting her chin on her hand as she looks at the camera
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots carries a light-colored bag and looks up at the treetops in the shade of a large tree
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress lightly touches her collar and smiles at the camera before green trees and a stone base
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress raises a hand to her hair and tilts her head slightly beneath a giant vermilion torii gate
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots walks with a hand on a glass wall beside a brick building, her reflection mirrored in the glass
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress stands with a hand on a curved glass wall, eyes lowered
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress leans sideways against a glass railing with eyes lowered, a brick building and blue sky behind her
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress and red boots stands by a curved glass railing under a blue sky with white clouds, head bowed as she holds the railing
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a white dress stands beneath a giant vermilion torii gate soaring into the clouds, looking up at it
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress holds the handrail on stone steps beside a giant torii gate, with a pine tree behind her
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress holds the railing and turns back in profile on stone steps beside a giant torii gate and pine tree
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a light top raises a hand to her hairline before towering pine trees and the base of a stone pillar
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress gently touches her hair and looks at the camera inside a vermilion corridor
Kyoto Portrait | Close-up side profile of a woman in a light knit top with eyes lowered and chin resting on her hand, against a softly blurred green background
Kyoto Portrait | A woman in a long white dress stands with eyes closed beneath a wall streaked with diagonal tree shadows in the evening light

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