I am so glad I didn’t chicken out and followed through with this promise to myself to try this style of photoshoot out for myself.
I CANNOT recommend it enough!
The company is called Studio Kokoro.
You can book via their website here or, if you want to book less than 3 days in advance you will need to call them.
The staff can get by in English ( a large chunk of their clientele are from overseas) so you don’t need to worry if you come without language support.
The entire process took approximately 2.5 hours! (They asked me to leave 3 hours open just in case.)
And that time frame included : make up and hair, being dressed, photoshoot, selecting my favourite photos, album printing and digital copies sent to my phone.
Amazing, right?
They are truly a well oiled machine!!!
The staff are young and kind and (just like they shouldn’t) don’t take the whole experience too seriously. I mean, the quality and organization is outstanding but they are also happy to giggle and smile along with you.
I chose the HIMETSUBAKI plan. 14,000 yen. Details of the plan are here.
But I did opt for some extras such as that big hair piece at the back ( they had a whole selection of colours) , to have digital copies of the photos and to have stick on nails. So, in the end, the price was more like 21,000 yen.
There was an option to purchase additional photos but I was happy with the 5 that I selected and are included in the plan.
I didn’t find the head piece to be too heavy. Everything was just so much fun.
After the photo shoot they even left me alone in the waiting area for a bit so that I could take some selfies!
This was the process:
– I arrived, make up free.
– I was asked to choose my kimono colours from a small, glossy catalog.
– Put belongings in a locker
– I was given a wrap around ‘boob-tube’ style dress to change into over underwear.
– I was asked to choose my make up colours from another glossy catalog.
– Hair was done
-Make up was done
-Nails were added (optional)
-I was dressed by the staff
-Moved to the photoshoot room
-Photoshoot took approx 30 minutes ( the photographer basically just put me in the poses so I loved not having to worry)
-I got a few minutes of selfie time in the waiting area
-The staff helped me undress and remove make-up
– I got dressed back into my own clothes
– I moved to the waiting room and chose my favourite photos
– I went back to the locker area and applied my own normal make up
– I waited 10 minutes and my photos were ready!!!
What I recommend doing ahead of time:
- Making a reservation ( definitely)
– Having a good think about what kinds of kimono & makeup colours you’d like ( stalk their website and instagram tags for inspiration)
-Make sure you take your own makeup for afterwards
Have a look on the Studio Kokoro website to see what plans you’re interested in.
They offer shoots out and about town and in the bamboo forest too.
They also offer photoshoots for men, couples and children (but I haven’t tried it out before.)
If you’re looking for additional things to do in this area see my Arashiyama post here.
Or if you read this post as you like to do fun and unusual things in Japan I recommend reading this post here and this post here.
If you are looking for an option similar to this in Tokyo, there is a company called Studio Nanairo in Asakusa.
