Currently I am leading a private Essence of Autumn Photography workshop.  Hakone is a two-hour drive from Mt. Fuji, so now that we are done photographing Japan’s volcanic power spot and the surrounding Fuji Five Lakes, we’re spending time exploring off the beaten path locations in Hakone.  The recent influx of international visitors has led to a spike in tourist pollution for Hakone, but having scouted and explored the region for decades, I know the ebb and flow of the tourist traffic and how to avoid it, so everywhere we’ve visited, my participants and I were never shoulder to shoulder with tens or hundreds of other people taking almost identical autumn leaves photos.  Hakone is beautiful all year round, but it positively shines with the radiance of reds, yellows, and oranges from the lush forests surrounding the region’s main lake.  Mt. Fuji also made a repeat appearance in my Essence of Autumn Leaves workshop as it is framed by the brilliant fall colors.  This scene is so artistically significant that Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849) devoted one of his ‘36 Views of Mt. Fuji’ to the view from Hakone.  After creating our own art, I took my participants to Amazake chaya, a one of a kind tea house, founded over 400 years ago to refresh ourselves before concluding another Autumn Leaves photography adventure.