Ippei & Janine

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Hi! We are Tokyo based husband and wife photography duo, Ippei and Janine. Ippei is from Tokyo and Janine is from Melbourne, we found each other in Amsterdam while living there.

We have been based in Tokyo for almost 15 years now, doing outdoor/adventure lifestyle photography for brands and corporate advertisements, lifestyle portraiture, and Sony Xperia ambassador projects.

Although we have been doing commercial photography for many years, our business grew rapidly in a different direction when our daughter was born, shifting to lifestyle photography. Having a growing and changing new human in our lives, as well as frequent bursts of travel particularly around Japan for photoshoots, gave us (and continues to give us) great inspiration to create beautiful, storytelling images.

Our daughter is now seven and still features in many of our images, with her cheeky smile and zest for life!

This life change quickly led us to offer our services to non-corporate clients for family occasions such as engagements, weddings, maternity and newborn. Creating powerful yet timeless cinematic images to tell their unique stories.

Over the years we have gravitated to Sony products (we used to use Canon bodies, with either Canon or third-party lenses).

Main Gear Talk

Sony Alpha 1 – AKA “The Workhorse”. This has been THE camera since the day we got our hands on it (the day of its release!). Previously our main workhorse was the combo of the Alpha 9 series and the Alpha 7R IV, and we longed for a camera that combined the strengths of the Alpha 9 series and Alpha 7R series in one package.

We never thought there would be a high megapixel camera with a faster and more accurate real-time tracking than the Alpha 9 series!

Sony Alpha 9 – With a shoot that requires both of us shooting, the Alpha 9 is a great reliable second camera. We like its compact and lighter package. The smaller file size makes it sometimes more suitable depending on the type of project. This was the first camera that made us realise that we could never go back to a camera with slow sensor readout speed (in silent shutter mode).

Sony Xperia PRO-I – We are currently using the pre-production sample, although we have used Xperia for some time now as a second super-compact camera to the Alpha. For a Smartphone, this new Xperia PRO-I has unbelievable image quality, with a whopping 1-inch image sensor.

It really feels like a mini Alpha camera now that the eye-AF and real-time tracking have become highly capable, all through the familiar Alpha style user interface. Basically this Smartphone eliminated our need for the RX0 and RX100 series.

Sony 50mm f/1.2 G Master – We think this lens together with the Alpha 1 is a match made in heaven! We love the focal length and it’s always been essential to have an outstanding 50mm for our portraiture work. We love its rendering coupled with its bokeh and AF speed as we are tending to do more and more low light photography.

The f/1.2 is also a welcome upgrade from the 50ZA. Needless to say, the size and the weight of the 50mm GM is impressive for a f/1.2 lens.

Sony 24mm f/1.4 G Master – When it comes to outdoor lifestyle and adventure photography, 24mm is our focal of choice, and this fast yet compact 24mm GM is our go-to lens. Besides its outstanding optical quality, the compact size and light weight of this 24mm GM is a big advantage since we always want to go as lightweight as possible when exploring nature (as other parents of young children would know, there is always a lot to carry).

Sony 35mm f/1.4 G Master – It’s not often that we use a 35mm focal, but it’s our go-to lens when we cannot decide between 24mm and 50mm, or if we can take just one lens. Just like the other recent fast GM prime lenses, this 35mm GM is also optically superb while being so compact and light for a f/1.4 lens, which we really appreciate.

Sony 20mm f/1.8 G Master – When the 24mm GM is not quite wide enough and a shallow depth of field is desired, this fast 20mm is the solution for us when we are out exploring. Getting close to the subject while including the surroundings gives a cinematic and storytelling perspective that engages viewers into feeling that fleeting moment.

Voigtlander Super Wide-Helliar 15mm f/4.5 Aspherical III – This compact, sharp and practically distortion-free lens is great for interior shots, as well as for exploring caves and jungles when we want to go lightweight.

DJI Mavic 2 Pro – It was unimaginable to fly a drone like Mavic 2 Pro when we were flying our self-built and quite frankly dangerous drone 10 years ago! The image quality from Hasselblad’s 1-inch sensor camera is a big step forward compared with the first Mavic Pro.

Lume Cube Led Panel – This light has occasionally saved the day. Even though we prefer to shoot only with available light, sometimes it’s inevitable to use fill light.

Final Words

We have never purchased a preset for editing our images. We’ve been working on our own original Lightroom preset for almost 10 years now, and it’s an evolving process.

Lastly – One of our photos above was taken with the Sony Xperia Smartphone. Any guesses?

www.ippei-janine.com | @ippei.janine