Obon is the Buddhist festival of the dead. Celebrations can include dancing and taiko drumming, such as this small event under the train tracks near a small station in Tokyo’s Kita Ward.

Matsumoto Shoukei is the author of A Monk’s Guide to a Clean House and Mind (Penguin). He hold periodic cleaning sessions at his temple in Tokyo's Kamiyacho district.

Japan-born Haruka Kuroda is a British Academy of Dramatic Combat certified instructor. She also voiced the character Noodle in the virtual pop group Gorillaz and appears on the CBBC programme Officially Amazing.

It was the dream of becoming a professional Tsugaru shamisen performer and teacher that took Hibiki Ichikawa to London. A master of the three-stringed guitar-like instrument, he is the only professional Tsugaru shamisen player and performer in the UK or Europe.

Kazuya Ishida is a potter from Bizen in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. He is Project Administrator of the Oxford Anagama Project, which has built a Bizen-style kiln in Wytham Woods near Oxford, UK.

Yoshifumi Miyazaki is the author of Shinrin-yoku: The Japanese Way of Forest Bathing for Health and Relaxation

Portraits of participants in the 2017 Jane Austen Festival Parade. These photos were taken with a Fujifilm Instax 200 instant camera.

Craftsman Robert Soanes specializes in the restoration and conservation of samurai armour, swords and other Japanese fine art. He lives and works in the English seaside resort of Brighton.

A designer, illustrator and DJ, as well as fly fishing expert, Hasegawa spent fifteeen years in Paris before eventually settling in the Somerset countryside. Weekdays he works as a designer for a globally-known shoe company. At the weekend he might be found by a bubbling stream sharing tips on casting technique and the ways of the wily local trout.

Kendama performers Zoomadanke put on over 100 kendama shows a year in Japan and around the world. Formed in 2010, Zoomadanke are "KODAMA" and "Easy". Their shows mix kendama tricks, music and dance. The kendama is a traditional wooden Japanese toy consisting of three cups, a spike, and a red ball.

In 2013 Masahiro Kikuno became the first Japanese watchmaker to be admitted to the prestigious Horological Academy of Independent Creators (ACHI) in Switzerland. He performs each stage of the watchmaking process, from design to making the parts to assembly, by himself and by hand. Prior to his career as a watchmaker Kikuno was a member of the Japanese Self Defense Forces.

"The Araki" is a sushi restaurant in London's Mayfair run by renowned chef Mitsuhiro Araki. Following the success of his three-Michelin-star restaurant in Tokyo's Ginza, in 2014 Araki relocated to London with his family. The exclusive restaurant serves an "omakase" dinner for approximately £250 per head. Ingredients used at the restaurant include caviar, white truffles, Cornish squid and Scottish Salmon.

Sake sommelier and communicator Natsuki Kikuya is based in London. As well as representing Japanese breweries in Europe, she helps organizes sake tasting events, classes, and pairings with food as varied as Indian cuisine and English afternoon tea. She was born into a family of Akita brewers and has worked as a sommelier at top London restaurants such as Roka and Zuma. She is the founder of The Museum of Sake.

During the four-day-long Somanomaoi Festival in Minami-soma, Fukushima, members of old samurai families ride horseback through the town in traditional armour. There are ceremonies at local shrines, while riders take part in horse races, and compete on horseback to catch a flag launched into the air by fireworks. Many of the participants were forced to moved away from their homes after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident.

Doreen Simmons was a sumo commentator for Japanese broadcaster NHK.

Toshi Maeda, CEO Pacific Bridge Media and Consulting demonstrates his SnapCast iPhone app.

Takayuki Ohira is professional planetarium designer and projector manufacturer. His most advanced projector can display up to 22 million stars. Ohira's projectors have been installed in planteriums around the world.

People taking part in anti-nuclear protests outside the Japanese Prime Minister's official residence in central Tokyo. Demonstrators oppose the restart of Japan's nuclear power stations. Protests are being held weekly on a Friday evening, with organizers claiming hundreds of thousands of participants.

Ai Futaki is a champion free diver, model, videographer and instructor.

Street portraits in Tokyo (2008)

Toshimitsu Hayakawa was one of Tokyo's last sento bathhouse mural painters.

German architect Karl Bengs diassembles Japanese wooden farmhouses then rebuilds them in his own modern, comfortable and unique style.

Tokyo has one of the most extensive and efficient transport networks in the world - but also one of the most crowded. Rail companies calculate crowding by percent of standard capacity (ie when all the seats and standing spaces are occupied). Some trains reach 220%+.