Sakura Gallery

What are sakura?
Sakura is the name given to the japanese cherry tree (the Prunus serrulata). For Japanese, cherry blossoms are an enduring metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life, and as such are frequently depicted in japanese art.

Annually, the Japanese Meteorological Agency and general public track the sakura zensen, or Cherry-Blossom Front. Nightly forecasts follow the weather segment of news programs. The blossoming begins in Okinawa in January, and typically reaches Kyoto and Tokyo at the end of March or the beginning of April. Then it proceeds north, arriving in Hokkaidō a few weeks later. Japanese pay close attention to these forecasts. They will go to parks, shrines and temples with family and friends and hold a "flower viewing party" known as hanami (花見). Hanami festivals celebrate the beauty of sakura, and for many, it is a chance to relax and enjoy the beautiful view. Hanami custom in Japan dates back to many centuries ago. It is witten in Nihon Shoki (日本書紀) that the Hanami festival were already held in the 3rd century.

Most Japanese schools and public buildings have sakura trees outside of them. Since the fiscal and school year both begin in April, in many parts of Honshū, the first day of work or school will coincide with the cherry blossom season.

reference Wikipedia

Frantisek Staud’s Biography

(for full-text see Frantisek Staud's profile published in Nikon Owner Magazine in spring 2003) 

Ttraveller, photographer, scientist and writer - father of two and husband of one.

Frantisek Staud was born in 1970 in Policka, Czech Republic, and spent most of his childhood taking photographs and learning to develop them himself. His first camera was a Zenit EM, and since then, he has never been without a camera.

He lived and worked in Japan for two years and then in the United Kingdom for almost 3 years. Now he is based in the Czech Republic and makes regular trips around the world on magazine assignments or to update his files.

With thousands of photographs published in numerous books, magazines, calendars and newspapers around the world, Frantisek is one of the most widely published Czech travel photographers. His photographs have regularly been used in advertising campaings of multinational companies (Merck Sharp & Dohme, PricewaterhousesCoopers, Thomson Multimedia) and also appeared in The Last Samurai movie (featuring Tom Cruise) by Warner Bros (see list of clients).