Vending machines are an indispensable part of Japanese life. They appear everywhere, attracting the eyes of every tourist when they first come to the land of the rising sun. They sell all kinds of goods such as water, hot coffee, fresh fruit juice..., and are present in every corner, from the sidewalk to the subway stations, from the bustling center of Tokyo to the remote residential areas on the island of Hokkaido. There are more than 5.5 million vending machines in Japan, equivalent to one machine for every 23 people, this is the highest rate in the world.
Photographer Eiji Ohashi has spent years traveling across Japan, photographing vending machines. For Ohashi, they act as beacons on land. "I started this project nine years ago when I noticed a lit vending machine near my house when I was returning from a night shift," he says. "At the time, I was living in a town in northern Japan that was hit by terrible snowstorms during the winter. I drove my car and used the light from the vending machines to find my way home."
From there, Ohashi realized the hidden beauty of vending machines as a source of light, guiding lonely travelers. The photo above was taken on Christmas Eve 2016. "That day, for the first time in 60 years, it snowed so heavily in Sapporo. All traffic was at a standstill," Ohashi recalled.
A vending machine in Urakawa town in southern Hokkaido. The town has a sparse population of just 18 people per square kilometer.2"Vending machines are in such remote places that one wonders if anyone actually buys from them," Ohashi writes in his photo book "Roadside Lights," the 66-year-old photographer's work after spending years traveling around the country photographing vending machines.
This photo was taken in Isahaya City, near Nagasaki, on the southern tip of Japan's mainland. "It's a road with no traffic," Ohashi says. "You can put these machines anywhere without worrying about them being stolen or vandalized. They even work well in snowstorms."
"Businesses in Japan always maintain their products very carefully, they always want to show customers the modernity in their business culture. Therefore, they can survive in harsh weather conditions without any problems" - he added.
Vending machines in front of a 100-year-old restaurant in Sapporo city on Hokkaido island.
According to photographer Ohashi, vending machines are so popular in Japan because people in the Land of the Rising Sun love convenience. "I don't think anyone in Japan thinks that vending machines ruin the landscape of a town. We always think of ways to make life more convenient. And vending machines are a symbol of that philosophy."
“While everyone else is sleeping, the vending machines are still running,” Ohashi took this photo in downtown Sapporo on a winter night. He observed that the vending machines in Japan all look the same, an oddity in a country that values regional uniqueness, where even sweets are produced with local flavors.
The above photo shows a row of vending machines near Osaka Castle. The photographer said the uniformity in design of millions of vending machines across Japan brings a sense of comfort to people who have to travel here and there. "I wanted to capture the similar shapes of the machines and let viewers realize the differences between regions based on the surrounding scenery."
This is Ohashi's favorite photo. Behind the vending machine, in the distance is the Yotei volcano on Hokkaido Island. He confided: "The photo gives a very lonely feeling... There used to be two machines in this area, but due to low profits, one was removed. I think in a way (when taking these photos), I was comparing modern people to vending machines. We are like these machines, struggling to withstand the harshness of life but not always succeeding."
Some more photos from Photographer Eiji Ohashi's vending machine photo collection:
