It’s a little embarrassing to say, but I had never been to Hokkaido until 4 years ago.

When I visited Hokkaido for the first time for a photo shoot, I was so overwhelmed by the beauty of the scenery that ran across from Shin Chitose to Asahikawa, It made me realize my ignorance of not coming here earlier on. Why didn’t anyone tell me that Hokkaido was so beautiful!

I could go on and on about the charms of Hokkaido, but above all, I like the fact that the low humidity makes the air feel completely different from the mainland. When the air feels different, it’s a different world . To me, Hokkaido is a different country with rich nature, delicious food and, coincidentally, everyone just happens to speak Japanese.

Before I knew it, I had been visiting Hokkaido every year since my first visit 4 years ago. This year, in particular, I am thrilled to have been able to visit Hokkaido twice for this shoot. It used to puzzle me when I heard that Hideki Toyoshima, the project director of Yamatomichi HLC and the model for this shoot, has been skiing and living in Niseko every winter and spring for almost 10 years. But now I understand why.

However, I have yet to visit Shiretoko, Hakodate, or Wakkanai. There are still many places I want to visit in the east, north, and south of Hokkaido. Hokkaido and the world is an endless adventure, but life is far too short. Keeping that at heart, I can’t wait to go back to Hokkaido to once again feel the fresh and beautiful air of this unique Japanese island.

Photographer: Masaaki Mita

Model:
Hideki Toyoshima
Naomi Kazama
Yoshitaka Toge
Makoto Fujiyama
Yukari Mita
Yumiko Natsume
Mimi
Hikaru Otake

Art Director: Yosuke Abe

Production Manager:
Junki Nakamura
Hikaru Otake
Yuma Shimoyama

Director: Akira Natsume

Special Thanks:
Tabitsumugi (Niseko）
SPROUT (Niseko)
Izakaya Rishiri (Higashikawa)
ON THE TABLE (Higashikawa)
Gaku