Today, and for the next few days of my cross country Japan Cherry Blossom photo tour, I’m near my satellite office in Niigata enjoying the Myoko kogen highlands.  The area near Myoko that I’m taking my participants is famous for the weeping sakura variety (Cerasus pendula), and during the day between shots of the magnificent full bloom sakura, my participants, support group members, and I may indulge in 森林浴 (shinrin yoku), forest bathing among the amazing bamboo groves.  At night, near Takada Castle, the entire grounds are illuminated, and it makes the cherry blossoms even more spectacular to spot and photograph.  It’s like wandering through a perfectly pink wonderland of beauty.  The Takada Park cherry blossom illumination is in the Top 3 illuminations in all of Japan, but for me it’s my number 1 because I get to head off the beaten paths of Tokyo which is where most of Japan’s Top 10 blossoms are located, but they are also located among the most popular tourist locations in Japan, so to save my participants from having to photograph shoulder to shoulder with hundreds sometimes thousands of other photographers, for my cherry blossom photo workshop tour is always a cross-country adventure.  One of my favorite features of the Takada Castle cherry blossom experience is ‘Sakura Road’ which yields breathtaking photos both day and night, a heavenly pink ceiling enclosing your stroll toward the park.  During the festival that happens during peak blooming time, you can take a few moments and enjoy some of Niigata prefecture’s culinary delights.  Once we’re done with our days of sakura photography, I encourage everyone to enjoy a refreshing soak in the therapeutic mineral enriched milky white hot springs.  As a final treat during the beginning of the cherry blossom photo tour, I will add some wildlife photography by traveling to Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park to introduce my participants to the 300 snow monkeys in three different troops that populate the park and spend time soaking in the hot springs.  Knowing several of the troop members since their first trip to the park with their mothers, I feel at home while visiting the park, as well as locations to sit and wait for the best shots.  Having spent more than two decades at the park and with a personal history spanning the wilds of the Canadian bush, wildlife photography is second nature to me.  I know the best locations to wait for the perfect up close and personal encounter with adorable baby snow monkeys. In the span of 15 - 20 minutes, after arriving at the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park and Hot Springs, I have already taken unforgettable photos and video, and I only give participants on my annual Hokkaido photo tour the advice of how to if they are so inclined to take their once in a lifetime photos using my tricks of the trade while other visiting photographers spend countless hours trying to capture breathtaking photos, but often walk away having wasted a potentially amazing photo op because they lack experience with the Japanese macaque, more commonly known as the snow monkeys.