From Beginning to End: Your Complete Photoshoot Journey

🗺️ The Ultimate Photoshoot Roadmap: From Deposit to Delivery

Here is exactly how our adventure unfolds. No stress, no guesswork—just great memories and epic photos.



⏳ Phase 1: Before the Shoot (The Blueprint)

  • Lock It In: Secure your date with a 20% down payment via credit card or PayPal.
  • The Game Plan: We will chat beforehand to scout the perfect location and pick the ultimate meeting point.
  • The 24-Hour Check-In: I will slip into your DMs exactly 1 day before the shoot to confirm everything.



📸 Phase 2: During the Shoot (The Main Event)

  • The Rendezvous: We meet at our secret spot and jump right into the magic.
  • Zero Modeling Experience Required: Panic about posing? Don't! I will direct you the entire time. Expect easy, candid prompts like walking, laughing, chatting, and maybe a tiny, uncoordinated dance.
  • The Grand Finale (The 80% Cash Drop): We wrap up the session, celebrate, and clear the remaining balance in cash (Yen).
  • The Math: Usually, this is ¥32,000 for 1 hour or ¥56,000 for 2 hours.
  • Pro-Tip: Please bring cash! If you prefer a digital credit card link at the end, a 4% processing fee applies (as noted in the FAQ).



✨ Phase 3: After the Shoot (The Masterpieces)

  • The 48-Hour Lockup: You will receive your gorgeous photos within maximum 2 days. Please brew some tea, enjoy Japan, and protect my sanity by refraining from asking "Are they ready yet?" before the 2-day mark! ⏳
  • The 1-Month Countdown: Your files land in a gorgeous, private digital album. It stays alive for 1 month. But you can extend it for lifetime if you leave me 2 review on my google maps (link later, read down here)



🚨 The Ultimate Choice: True Friend vs. Hard Drive Premium

What happens after that 1 month? You have two choices:

  • Option A: The "Michael's Friend" Lifetime Pass (Free)
  • Drop me 2 reviews on Google Maps (one from you, one from your partner account) within that first month, and shoot me a DM to tell me you did it. Boom! Your album is upgraded to Lifetime Backup for free. Download it whenever you want.
  • Option B: The $50 RAW Resurrection Fee
  • If the 1-month timer runs out with no reviews, the album self-destructs. If you email me a year later asking for the files, it costs $50 USD to bring them back because I need to re-edit it from RAW.



🧐 "Michael, why can't you just click upload? Why the fee?"

Because I do not save JPEGs on my computer! Keeping both RAW files and finished JPEGs burns through my storage space faster than a runaway bullet train, and online servers are expensive.

If your album expires, I have to go into my digital vault, find your massive, unedited RAW camera files, and re-edit your entire shoot from scratch to generate new JPEGs. That is a lot of coffee and computer time!

  • So, let's keep it simple: Be a friend, drop the reviews, and keep your photos forever! 🥂





🥢 Michael’s Personal Food Recommendations!

When my clients ask for the best spots to eat after a shoot, I always send them to my absolute favorite spots in Osaka and Kyoto. Here is where you should go:

🥩 The Ultimate Wagyu Experience (Osaka)

If you want to experience incredible world-class Japanese Wagyu, you absolutely must visit Matsusakagyu Yakiniku M in Osaka!

This place is incredibly special to me because I used to work there as a part-timer right in the kitchen! 👨‍🍳 I became great friends with the team. If you decide to go, please say a huge hello to them from me! Tell them you just finished a photoshoot with Michael.

  • 📍 Where to go: I believe my good friends, the managers Yoshi and Kuni, are currently running the beautiful, traditional Houzenji Yokocho Branch near Namba.
  • 📸 Your Mission: If you meet them, please take a quick selfie together and text it to me! Haha!
  • 👉 Click here to book your Wagyu table directly on their official link!

https://matsusaka-projects.com/english/shop#booking_link


🍜 Kyoto & Osaka Local Favorites

If you are looking for specific cravings around Kyoto or Osaka, here are my top three trusted choices:

  • 🌱 Best Vegan Option: If you are looking for plant-based comfort food, head straight to Engine Ramen in Kyoto. Their vegan ramen options are completely packed with flavor!
  • 🐖 Best Crispy Pork Cutlet: If you want to try authentic, perfectly crispy tonkatsu, you have to try Katsukura Tonkatsu in Kyoto. It is a local staple for a reason!
  • 🍜 Best Late-Night Ramen: For a rich, deeply satisfying bowl of classic pork-bone broth anywhere in Kyoto or Osaka, find a Zundoya Ramen location. It hits the spot perfectly after a long day of exploring!


The list could go on forever! But I know your time in Kyoto is short, and I don't want to keep you so busy exploring that you never want to go home. 😉