A Long-Awaited Outing to Hongjecheon and Bulgwangcheon With. fujifilm X-T50

Using the cold winter as an excuse, I've only been commuting between work and home, and I've started to feel a severe lack of exercise. With the weather warming up, I quickly finished my chores and set out with the goal of walking to the Han River and back. While I was at it, I brought my camera along. Today's setup was the Fujifilm X-T50 paired with the XF16-50mmF2.8-4.8 R LM WR lens. Despite it being the weekend, there doesn't seem to be much traffic. In the past, roads used to be clogged with cars heading out for leisure on weekends, but since the economy worsened, traffic jams feel subtly reduced. I plan to head towards Hongjecheon, visit Mangwon Han River Park, then go to Bulgwangcheon, and finally return home. When I went down to Hongjecheon, the forsythias were already in full bloom. The recently popular Hongjecheon Waterfall begins to come into view. Thanks to that cafe, Japanese YouTubers occasionally come to film there. For over a decade, it was a rather peculiar place with just an artificial waterfall and nothing else around, undeveloped as a tourist spot, but since that cafe opened, it has become vibrant. The waterfall is not one with a huge, refreshing cascade. However, it's quite cool in the summer, making it a good place to visit occasionally to escape the heat. For some reason, the stream's waters are a bit dirty. It seems like some maintenance work might be going on upstream. The Hongjecheon walking path is built along the inner ring road. One might say this is also quite unique, wouldn't they? Because of this, it's quite shady in the summer, offering many places to rest. The forsythias reflected in the water look like a watercolor painting. There are quite a few stone bridges along the way that allow you to cross to the other side. Although they might look dangerous, I've never heard of anyone falling in and getting hurt. For some reason, the forsythias seem to grow more abundantly the closer you get to the Han River. That tongue drawing has been there for quite a while, and what's amazing is how someone managed to climb up there to do that graffiti. Given that it hasn't been removed, it seems the district office quite likes it too. I thought it was a cherry blossom and took a picture on the way, but it turned out to be a plum blossom. I don't know much about plants, so everything that blooms like this in spring looks like a cherry blossom to me. There are quite a few bridges visible along the way, which can also be considered a sight to see. I've often walked this path, but this was the first time I noticed a train track midway. Curious, I waited and took a few shots. These seem to be trains coming in and out of Susaek Station, with both subways and trains sharing the same track. It would be great if there were some sound from afar to secure a shutter chance, but they run so quietly that it's hard to catch them. What technology do they use that there's almost no rattling sound? The X-T50's burst performance isn't bad, so I managed to capture a few decent shots. Seeing the KTX makes me want to pack my bags right here and leave for anywhere. Someday, that day will come. It seems there's still quite a bit of traffic towards Seongsan-dong. I pass by, thinking it would be better for them to just walk like me at that point. The inner ring road runs overhead for quite a long stretch. This promenade has an unusual number of exercise machines for seniors. Not only are there many machines, but there are always many users as well. Everyone is very diligent. After walking for a while, I arrived at Mangwon Han River Park. Whether it's a weekend or a weekday, there are always many people walking and cycling. It's ironic that the online world is full of gloomy stories, as if the country is about to collapse, but the real world is quite the opposite and full of vitality. Carp in their spawning season are teeming, trying to go upstream. Perhaps because it's spawning season, they all look incredibly fat and huge. For some reason, they're trying to get past that weir and go upstream. Why? Forsythias are also quite bloomed in Han River Park, making it worth seeing. I bought a mango-flavored Welch's from a convenience store and had a drink. It was my first time trying Welch's Zero, and also my first time trying the mango flavor. Since I consider OranC Pineapple to be the best fruit soda, Welch's Mango is just okay. In Han River Park, an enormous number of people have already laid out mats and are relaxing. Listening to the atmosphere inside and outside the country, news, and YouTubers, it might seem like everyone should be depressed, but in reality, that's not the case at all. This is why people who only stay home and use the internet should come out into the world and see people directly. Actually, if you just look at the sky, it was blue yesterday, but the fine dust concentration was enormous. Today, the fine dust concentration is low, but the weather is completely awful. I'm not sure if it's a Fujifilm characteristic, but even in broad daylight, if the weather is a bit cloudy, I use up to ISO 1,600 to secure a faster shutter speed. Anyway, raising the ISO in daylight doesn't smear the image or anything, but the unique sensor structure of Fujifilm cameras, which is the most distinctive among mirrorless cameras, still feels unfamiliar to me. I finally found cherry blossoms. It seems they have just started blooming in a sunny spot. If it doesn't rain this week, I think we'll be able to see "popcorn" cherry blossoms and sakura drops next weekend. Seeing this tree, I thought the pink cherry blossoms were really pretty, so I approached and pressed the shutter. It's pretty, but the shape is somewhat strange. These are called apricot blossoms. They say plum blossoms and apricot blossoms are easily mistaken for cherry blossoms when seen from a distance. However, as I kept taking pictures, I found apricot blossoms to be quite beautiful too. Next spring, I'm thinking of finding a place with many apricot blossoms and going for a photo shoot before the cherry blossom season. It seems I wasn't the only one mistaken; many people were taking selfies or phone pictures, saying how beautiful the cherry blossoms were. The local specialty in our neighborhood is the "Majung Cherry Blossom" (Welcoming Cherry Blossom). These "Majung Cherry Blossoms" also bloom almost at the same time as the Jinhae Gunhangje (Cherry Blossom Festival) opens. It's truly fascinating, when these cherry blossoms fully bloom, cherry blossoms in Seoul begin to bloom a week later. That's why they're called "Majung Cherry Blossoms" (Welcoming Cherry Blossoms); whoever named them did so very romantically. The cherry blossoms are abundant, but it feels a bit bland with only one tree blooming profusely. Cherry blossoms are truly spectacular when their petals fall simultaneously from many trees, but Seoul hasn't reached that stage yet. Nevertheless, the reason I keep taking pictures like this is because it always rains before the peak of cherry blossoms in Seoul, causing all the petals to fall. Therefore, I took pictures with the mindset of "let's capture them while I can, who knows what will happen next week." Even though these "Majung Cherry Blossoms" are quite a unique spot, many people still don't know about them. Even those taking photos here just marvel at them without knowing that these are the "Majung Cherry Blossoms" and that they bloom early every year. Anyway, seeing the "Majung Cherry Blossoms" bloom so profusely, I think I'll be able to enjoy the "Sakura Drop" at Bulgwangcheon next weekend. But every time I take flower photos with a Fujifilm camera, I feel like the colors are a bit muted, perhaps because it's optimized for street photography. So, when I compare the results to the vibrant colors I got with Canon, it feels a bit subtle. This is the most common composition I use when photographing Bulgwangcheon. It's definitely one tone less vibrant than Canon. This is just with JPG; if I use a RAW converter like Capture One, the contrast drops another tone. I tried it because it's said to express Fuji RAW the best, but the feeling is quite different. Using FUJIFILM X RAW STUDIO is too slow to be practical, and Lightroom produces photos with a completely different feel, so I can't use it either... it's difficult. Perhaps because I've adapted to Canon's bright colors, these colors aren't really growing on me. When I was young, this stream was filled with trash, a dead stream. There were no apartments beyond it either. I never imagined the world would change so much in the meantime; it's amazing. I really like this alley at the end of Bulgwangcheon. It seems I take a picture of this spot every time I come. After not visiting Bulgwangcheon during winter, I came again recently and noticed quite a few small changes. It's connected to Hongjecheon, but Bulgwangcheon seems to be developing a lot more than Hongjecheon. After walking for almost 5 hours, I started to feel hungry. It's time to head home to have dinner and prepare for work tomorrow.