In Tokyo

We’re happy to be returning to Tokyo, a city that is very special to Drake’s, for a week of appointments, previews and a drakes.com pop-up shop (running on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 May (11AM-7PM on Saturday and 11AM-5PM on Sunday), all taking place across several floors at ZeroBase Omotesando, 3-5-22 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-ku.

Capturing the spirit of the city on a recent visit, Isaac Marley Morgan, photographer and Head of Art Direction at Drake’s, has put together a Tokyo diary, with a few thoughts on what makes it such a unique part of the world. 

“It's October, 2023 and my wife and I went on our (delayed) honeymoon to Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. A trip bookended by stays in Shibuya and Shinjuku. I set myself the challenge of not taking a camera flash... or a tripod, which resulted in a few  photos with motion blur as I struggled to steady my Pentax. 

The way I see places outside of where I grew up (England - Ipswich to be precise) is completely different to how I see the world around me in my home country. Whether its New York, Mallorca, or Japan, my eye gets drawn to the everyday. Street signs, road markings, cars. 'Yeah, that looks cool,' might best describe my process. An American once laughed at me for taking a picture of a drain cover because 'Manhattan' was written on it. It was my first trip to New York. 

But Japan is special. It’s a city that looks like no other. The neon lights that crawl up the side of buildings, advertising a 8th floor sushi restaurant. Or the side streets illuminated only by the light pouring from the bars crammed along it, big enough to seat just six people. Walking the streets with a whisky high ball in a can, every 7-11 looking a little bit like a set from Blade Runner, it’s a place that draws you in and stays with you long after you leave.”