'Memorial Photo Service Set to Take Place at Temple in Japan’s Mie Prefecture'
TSU — A chain of photography shops located in central Japan’s Mie Prefecture plans to hold a “photography remembrance ceremony” at a local temple on June 1, which has been proclaimed as “Photography Day” by the Photographic Society of Japan.
In 2016, a memorial ceremony was initiated when a client requested assistance with disposing of photographs they found too emotionally difficult to discard like regular trash. Over time, this service has grown significantly and now receives petitions from customers across eastern Japan’s Kanto area all the way down to the southwestern Kyushu region.
The majority of these orders originate from adults aged 40 and above who have lost their parents, with 53 such requests recorded in the previous year. It seems some individuals are also opting to discard photographs as they make arrangements for the later stages of life.
Koichi Nakao, aged 70 and the head of the "Mie Prefecture Camera Merchant Association," which includes 12 photographic shops within the region, as well as proprietor of Nakao Camera in Tsu, commented, “I trust this initiative will be advantageous for individuals desiring to preserve their photographs. Numerous people appreciate having an avenue through which they can pay respects to images of relatives whose pictures are too precious to throw away.” The location offering these services is Shitennoji Temple, recognized as the final resting spot of Horie Kuwajiro from the Tsu clan, known for bringing photography to Mie Prefecture.
Photographs may be submitted at any of the 12 participating stores up until May 24. The photos must be taken out of their frames or albums, placed inside cardboard boxes, and each box will incur a fee of 3,000 yen (approximately $20), irrespective of photo dimensions. For further inquiries, contact the association’s office via phone number 059-225-8188 (unavailable on Sundays and public holidays; in Japanese only). Please do not deliver photographs directly to Shitennnoji Temple.
(Originally written in Japanese by Nene Haseyama, Tsu Bureau)