Log
Below are summaries of my daily journal that I have been keeping since January 20, 2019, without missing a day. Summaries do not include personal life details and are more focused on the projects and work I produce. This log also serves as a work log for this website. Published monthly. Also, available via RSS feed.
(The 2022.11–2019.01 range is currently being backfilled.)
- Completed printing workprints for Out of Memory Vol. 7 and Vol. 8, including custom storage boxes—now only two volumes behind digital archive
- Designed and published a 40-roll rugged film storage box design
- Listed all my 4x5 and 6x17 lenses on Mercari as part of ongoing gear decluttering
- Launched photographic website at toto.photo!
- Started an experimental photography sketchbook
- Started year-long bookbinding class in Tokyo
- Added photos of the Unbound Notebook System to the page
- Prepared and printed materials for Jinny Street Gallery’s Big City Bathing exhibition (opened May 16th)
- Activated the Jinny Street Gallery newsletter which now has around 130 subscribers
- Traveled to Berlin for byLudo’s Green Product Award ceremony; met George Nebieridze who I haven’t seen in a decade.
- Spent time in Rome working intensively on Soma and Synapse development
- Made prototype Mac app for converting digital negatives to positives – not sure I’ll continue
- Did portrait photography test shoot in Villa Pamphili Park
- Traveled to Ariccia; food was amazing
- Got confirmation for [redacted] retreat in late September in Canada – excited
- Arrived to Madrid
The highlight of the month, particularly on the very last day, is definitely the upcoming retreat to Canada in September. I’m really looking forward to it. As a bonus, I’ll be doing it with my dear friend and fellow photographer, Leon Gallo.
Soma.app has grown into an entire ecosystem of thinking tools, which I’m calling Synapse. It’s a bit of an ambitious project and will require at least a year of work, but hopefully, I’ll have a working prototype and perhaps even an alpha program together in a couple of months. If you want to follow along with the progress, make sure to subscribe to The Flâneur, where I might announce a dedicated newsletter or work blog.
As usual, this month also felt empty before writing the summary above. It is astonishing how helpful this practice has become to my end-of-month routine.
Soma.app is becoming much more than just a paper-to-digital note scanner app. I’ve named this new project it spawned Synapse. It seems like I’m building a note-taking app that can surface insights by simply searching the entire ‘vault’ of notes. I’m unsure whether to start with an Obsidian plug-in or a brand new macOS app. My disdain for multi-platform apps might push me towards the latter, but an Obsidian plug-in could be a good start since I’ve already implemented a command line version of Synapse.
During the month, I also caught up with my film backlog—everything in my red folder, marked “To Scan / Needs Attention,” is now developed and scanned as working files. Work on the 10th(!) volume of Out of Memory has begun.
- Completed setup and renovation of my darkroom at Kyojima Studio with proper organization, light-sealing, and equipment installation.
- Preparing for Project Roam launch—announcement of what it is and when, coming soon.
- Resumed development of Soma.app and Synapse.app—my note-taking software ecosystem that will integrate into Unbound Notebook System.
- Advanced Project Manus by installing a ceiling-mounted projector and camera system at the studio.
- Worked on the first Project Roam product during a trip to Ito.
- Developed dozens of films for upcoming Out of Memory Vol. 10.
- Michibiki Vol.2 exhibition at Jinny Street Gallery.
- Designed and released new Jinny ⨉ Erica Ward Hoodies on the Jinny Street Gallery Store.
- Got myself a maxed-out MacBook Pro M4 Max with all the memory to play with AI and Ollama.
- Started designing and brainstorming on Project Janus—a hybrid digital-film 6x9 camera.
- Revived the Jinny Street Gallery newsletter (subscribe here).
- Attended the Tokyo Art Fair 2025.
- Visited Katsumi Nishizawa’s show and a book launch.
- Celebrated the closing of NININI, a beloved local bar and friends of mine and Jinny Street Gallery.
- Added a few more books to the library—Todd Hido’s House Hunting and Outskirts and William Eggleston’s 2 1/4.
Looking at the list above, I’d call this month productive, though everything was blurred by the onset of my hay fever, which struck almost precisely at midnight on March 1.
Reviewing this list also reminded me how glad I am to have started keeping a daily journal back in early 2019. It’s become one of the best investments in my mental health. As someone with the memory of a goldfish, who constantly needs reminders, it’s reassuring that each month I can have an AI generate a summary of everything I’ve done. This monthly retrospective leaves me feeling calm and satisfied.
(The list above differs significantly from the summaries produced by AI, as I need to manually clean up project names, add relevant links, and remove personal items. However, I do rely extensively on AI for analyzing my journal entries and drafting initial monthly summaries like this one. I’ll be writing about how I combine these tools.)
- Prepared Michibiki Vol. 2 exhibition at Jinny Street Gallery.
- Shipped all Punctum exhibition catalogs—some copies are still available for sale.
- Made major modifications to the darkroom to enable C-printing.
- Created a “VNS adapter"—merging Valoi easy120 and Negative Supply light source for better color negative scanning.
- Published Pentax Digital Spotmeter Sticker.
- Published Foldable Film Reminders.
- Completed shooting the final roll for the Out of Memory Vol. 10 project.
- Committed to a year-long bookbinding course starting in April.
- Featured (with Lorenzo) on the cover of a local Jingumae magazine—andJ.
- Created substantial updates to the Unbound Notebook System’s Analog Photography Templates.
- Took a ski trip to Zao Onsen in Yamagata, experiencing the famous “snow monsters” (ice-covered trees).
- Spent time developing my film scanning workflow, improving negative-to-positive conversion techniques.
The shortest month of the year turned out to be quite productive—or maybe it’s just being back in Tokyo and getting into its rhythm again that moved me fast. For certain, I do feel quite a bit more comfortable in my studio—creating and working there comes easily.
I’m catching up on my infinite backlog of tasks and getting closer to launching a membership program. I haven’t set an exact launch date yet, but it feels more imminent than ever.
- Developed new sections for toto.photo—exhibitions, press coverage, and a works archive.
- Had three photographs from my Tskaltubo series published in the Atlas of Ruins book.
- Migrated The Flaneur newsletter platform to ttvl.co; no more Substack and walled gardens.
- Updated ttvl.co: the darkroom section now has several new items, and the Unbound System section has been expanded with new templates.
- Learned a new technique for negative-to-positive conversion in Photoshop using negative mask subtraction—still fine-tuning the results.
- Built and started experimenting with a pinhole camera.
- Started working on a membership website platform using Go + Gin.
- Took a long walk in the Pigneto district in Rome.
- Visited the Vatican Museums; Raphael’s School of Athens and the Sistine Chapel are impressive.
2025 started off very busy. I’ve made good progress towards my plan to launch a membership program alongside three(!) websites. I feel like I’m on track to achieve that. The 12-week year system is working well for me, although I do not adhere to its original methodology from the book. I didn’t find the book quite good, frankly—but the idea is well worth trying.
The visit to Tbilisi was pleasant as usual, but the moment I was there, the protests were much calmer than I expected. I didn’t manage to shoot much.
- Completed the Punctum Exhibition Catalog – now available for purchase.
- New film development workflow using the Jobo Tank System. I might consider using it as a rapid travel film development workflow too.
- Made a new Film Process Template page on Unbound, creating detailed guides for chemical preparation and development procedures.
- Published the Film Canisters Stickers project.
- Acquired and tested a second Contax G2 camera body – Araki – with a 21mm Biogon lens and GD-2 data back.
- Published EDC Modular Keychain for carrying photography accessories (film canisters, filters, and other tools) alongside with keys and EDC essentials (band-aid, AirTag, etc).
- Led few Artist Walks for Punctum at Jinny Street Gallery.
- Upgraded the studio workspace with new adjustable lighting system – now my shop desk is as lit as a stadium.
- Traveled to Tbilisi for protests and New Year’s Eve.
December was hectic, but it felt less overwhelming than November, mainly because I’m no longer preoccupied with the visa and paperwork I had to submit to the government. Everything is completed, and now I’m just waiting.
I’ve also found more time to spend in a studio, which has become my happy place for small projects and creative work.
November is always tough on my brain, but pleasant on my senses. Tokyo is blessed to have one of the nicest Novembers of all the places I have been. The sun shines at least two-thirds of the days, and the cold is not as bone-piercing as it could be. November is also the month I have to renew my Japanese visa—every, damn, year. I hope this time I’ll get a three-year break from it.
- Worked on book projects including printing Out of Memory Vol. 9
- Tskaltubo photos accepted for publication in Atlas of Ruins book
- Managed Jinny Street Gallery activities, including an Artist Walk
- Trip to Bucharest, Romania
- Started Transcendental Meditation
- Visited Tokyo Photographic Art Museum to see Alec Soth’s A Room of Rooms
- New photography books: list them.
- Volunteered as polling station staff for elections in Georgia
- Spent time in Georgia and Tbilisi
- Took a trip to Kazbegi, staying at Rooms Hotel with views of Mount Kazbegi – never gets old.
- Did a photo shoot for byLudo at Tsekhi
- Successfully repaired an RZ67 camera using 3D-printed parts
- Translated a Lucky/Fujimoto CP32 manual from Japanese to English
- Implemented a new 6 AM work routine
- Continued work on Out of Memory series
- Set up and organized the Studio
- Italian road-trip: Rome, Siena, Lucca, Cinque Terre, and Porto Venere.
- Walked the Aurelian Walls in Rome
- Explored Cyprus: Larnaca’s coastal areas, Nicosia’s divided capital, Famagusta’s ghost town, Troodos mountain villages
- Rammstein show in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
- Launched the Jinny Lemon Sour project at the beginning of the month
- I have new dedicated studio in Tokyo! A lot of work completed: renovation including wall repainting and deep cleaning, established a dedicated darkroom area, installed work bench and some storage systems
- Led an Artist Walk for the final day of Maan Limburg’s Without Us at Jinny Street Gallery
- Bonobo live DJ performance at O-East Shibuya
- Travel: Naples and Pompeii, Italy
- Attended and documented live music performances, including an Arabic punk band—Tabla Kwaiesa—and other local musicians in Tokyo
- Averaged 13.5km walking through Tokyo with RZ67 (it’s heavy!)
- Milan Design Week (Salone del Mobile) and Venice Art Biennale, with notable visits to Pirelli HangarBicocca featuring Anselm Kiefer’s work and discovering Nari Ward’s installations
- Participated in a traditional washi paper-making workshop in Asakusa, exploring potential applications for alternative printing processes like platinum palladium
- Alec Soth’s exhibition for Bottega
- Fuego show
- Met with Yosuke Taki, son of Koji Taki (co-founder of Provoke magazine), had an interesting chat
- Set up Sean Lotman’s exhibition at Jinny Street Gallery; Grateful to have him in the gallery.
- Developed film workflow templates for the Notebook System
- Launched Jinny Street Gallery T-shirts
- Started testing various film development processes
- Attended a Kintsugi class; the instructor’s fashion style was 11/10.
- Snowboarding in Nozawa Onsen during heavy snowfall conditions; Nozawa distillery was a highlight. Shiso gin is top notch.
- Travel in Japan: Kawagoe, Okutama and Sawai.
- Released Out of Memory Vol. 8 and received the printed copies
- Started learning Fusion 360 for future projects
- Started transitioning towards darkroom-focused workflow
- Began experimenting with an odd 16-lens camera from Fujifilm
- Explored Venice during Carnival season, Peggy Guggenheim Collection.
- Visited the Opera House of Rome’s stenography workshop to observe the creation of 10x22 meter stage backdrop canvases.
- Documented Civita di Bagnoregio, walking 100% of the city’s streets–there are so few!
- Write few dispatches for The Flâneur newsletter.
- Curated and installed Tokyo Flâneur Vol. 2 exhibition at Jinny Street Gallery; conducted the first Artists Walk event.
- Created documentary content for Jinny Street Gallery, filming and editing artist videos.
- Developed new variations of the Unbound System– experimenting with recycled tarp for covers and testing different formats including A5 size.
- Set-up newsletter for Jinny Street Gallery – subscribe here.
- Started exploring 3D design with Fusion 360
- Visited several art venues including a book exhibition
- Completed and installed the group exhibition Michibiki at Jinny Street Gallery; one of my pieces, “Ocean Eyes,” was also there.
- Delivered a PechaKucha Night presentation with Lorenzo about Jinny Street Gallery.
- Installed a permanent Wirescapes frame installation at Clandestino 41 in Tokyo.
- Started development of Soma.app focusing on AI transcription.
- Advanced the Out of Memory series, processing 1,377 new photographs for Volume 8.
- Visited Olafur Eliasson’s exhibition at Azabudai and Plaza of Kanagawa Institute of Technology.
- Developed 2024 theme — “Year of Travel.”
- Planned and organized the Michibiki exhibition; this must be the shortest notice Lorenzo and I have ever worked with.
- Visited the Enoura Observatory; this was the second time in the past few years—still extremely pleasant.
- Attended the Tokyo Art Book Fair; a bit overwhelmed by the amount of books and people there.
- Started exploring electronic music production, got a Digitakt, and am planning future modular synthesis expansions.
- Visited the new The Tokyo Toilet project by Marc Newson.
- Secured a visa extension; one more year in Japan.
- Visited QWS several times a week; I like the working atmosphere there.
- Hosted Sante Visioni at Jinny Street Gallery.
- Advanced development of the Unbound System (née PHNS), creating new prototypes including index card holders and map insert designs.
- Explored 3D printing for organization, producing custom storage for tools and supplies.
- Visited exhibition by Andrea Samory at Contrast Tokyo.
- Viewed Tom Sachs’ boom boxes and furniture at Isetan.
- Climbed Mount Fuji! The sunrise from the peak was majestic.
- Spent the month traveling.
- Successfully guided a group through Georgia.
- Explored Rome for several days, visiting the MAXXI museum.
- Visiting Enoshima, Onomichi, Naoshima, and Kyoto.
- Made Out of Memory Vol. 7 and expanded photography practice with new film experiments and equipment
- Prototyped AI transcription workflow/app for TP-7
- Began work on the I Know You (P0352) photography project
- Developed concept for a Light Meter Watch (P0354) inspired by the Seiko Metronome
- Completed development of Toto Command Center (P0360), evolved from the previous CLI project into a menu-bar application
- Started the Pen Project (P0359) for creating a custom multi-color pen design
- Conducted photo shoot for Sante Visioni’s work at Jinny Street Gallery
- Traveled and photographed extensively during Singapore trip
- Visited James Turrell installation at The National Art Center in Tokyo and studied Rothko paintings using Mark Power’s focusing technique
- Completed Mark Power’s Magnum photography course
- Experimented with paper-based todo system in Field Notes
- Set up Jinny Street Gallery’s fifth exhibition with Lorenzo
- Participated in an NHK World interview and documentary about the gallery, which aired on June 28th and featured both gallery operations and a photo walk
- Attended Fuego: NEEDLESS performance, which was an expanded version of their previous Hanoi show
- Maintained regular work sessions at SHIBUYA QWS, finding the city center location and views conducive to productivity
- Fixed damaged flags at Jinny Street Gallery during a rainy evening
- Tried pottery – finding it meditative and purchasing plates and a cup
- Read Four Thousand Weeks
- Completed maintenance and cleaning work on Jinny Street Gallery display boxes with Lorenzo
- Conducted a Nabeghlavi photo shoot
- Attended Kyotographie 2023 in Kyoto, discovering photographer Mabel Poblet’s work
- Finished building a custom macropad for Project Manus
- Visited Tom Sachs’ Chawan exhibition
- Completed Susan Orlean’s Creative Non-fiction writing course from New Yorker Magazine
- Participated in Georgian festival celebrations in Tokyo, reconnecting with the Georgian community
- Finished watching Ted Lasso series
- Launched Jinny Street Gallery’s third exhibition
- Completed a 9-day Brompton Rando cycling tour across Japan from Tokyo to Onomichi
- Started learning traditional Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock carving technique
- Attended Rainbow Disco Club outdoor electronic music festival
- Launched Jinny Street Gallery’s second exhibition Ropetine Street by Kohei Shibusawa
- Received media coverage for Jinny Street Gallery including features in Asahi Shinbun and Tokyo Weekender print edition
- Completed video interview with Tokyo Weekender about Jinny Street Gallery operations (Thank you, Lisa!)
- Attended Tokyo Art Fair and viewed Tom Sachs’ work, acquired new art piece by Sante Visioni
- Explored electronics and embedded programming projects, began planning custom macropad build
- Established collaboration discussions with UltraSuperNew Gallery through Eleanor
- Visited Shimoda Aquarium
- Hanami cherry blossom viewing in Yoyogi Park
- Watched Everything Everywhere All at Once
- Got my first 3D printer!
- Completed the I Want to Do Bad Things to You (Box-Set)
- Created a custom tape dispenser using 3D printing and repurposed saw blade
- Worked on Jinny Street Gallery operations including preparing display boards and taking down exhibition elements
- Featured Jinny Street Gallery in Tokyo Weekender’s Instagram coverage
- Helped print and organize photos from Leon Gallo’s exhibition for permanent display
- Visited Ivan Kwong’s exhibition at Gallery Ether
- Attended Red Hot Chili Peppers show in Tokyo
- Took a snowboarding trip to Niseko, Hokkaido with friends
- Officially opened Jinny Street Gallery with the inaugural exhibition setup and launch
- Gained significant media attention for Jinny Street Gallery with features in Asahi Shinbun (national newspaper) and Canon Photo Circle
- Completed my participation in Tokyo Flâneur exhibition
- Attended letterpress workshop
- Visited Enoura Observatory by Hiroshi Sugimoto
- Acquired a decommissioned Tokyo Metro train sign for my collection
- Visited Mori Art Museum exhibition with friends
- Completed the initial setup and promotion of Jinny Street Gallery
- Created an hand-carved artist hanko for myself
- Took a week-long trip to Hanoi, Vietnam for the Fuego/Tokyo takeover event series
- Visited the Print Museum in Tokyo to study their permanent and temporary exhibitions about maps and printing
- Received “Honorable Mention” recognition for the [Catch-32] photography project in TIFA (Tokyo International Foto Awards)
