Depicted on the thousands and thousands of artworks, Mount Fuji is probably the most widely recognisable symbol of Japan. It is absolutely ubiquitous: it is in the classic Japanese poetry and on the logos of the high-tech companies, on the ancient woodblock prints and on the modern photographs. There is probably no man on Earth who haven't seen the iconic perfectly shaped cone of the dormant volcano at least once in his life.
The mount is 3776 meters high, the highest in Japan, and dominates the surroundings. No wonder it was considered sacred for a long time. Nowadays it is quite easy to climb it in the summer months. You can even find an accommodation and the hot meals on its summit, yet it could be a little bit pricy. If you are on a budget, you don't even need to visit Japan. Just climb the Fuji-san virtually, on the special Google Street View page.
However, despite all the luxuries and conveniences of contemporary life, it is still not that easy to get a good picture of the Fuji. As Japanese often say, it is a big luck to see Fuji top clearly without its usual cloudy shroud.
Though the Fuji is visible from Tokyo — the ultramodern megacity and a home for almost 36 million — the days when the skies over the mountain is clear and the air over the city is not heavily polluted are quite rare. To capture a perfect shot from the number of different parks surrounding the mountain is not much easier, either.
But on some fortunate occasions the cone of the volcano is clearly visible, as on the palm of the hand. This is when the opportunity for the perfect shot arises.
