All over Japan, cities, towns, and villages seek to capture their traditions in a variety of ways. Whether it is promoting the local food, celebrating a local festival, or just remembering the deep traditions and past that are a part of their local identities. In Sōma, Fukushima, despite the trials they faced after the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, residents chose to continue their over 800 year tradition of celebrating local samurai culture with an annual summer festival full of bright costumes, horseback riding, and battle reenactments. As a part of documenting the enthusiasm and traditions of the area, photographer Everett Kennedy Brown began taking photos of the event’s participants in 2015. Through long exposures and black and white compositions, the feeling of connection with the samurai past richly emerges. Check out more of the photography of Brown at his site and more of the Sōma photography by clicking the photograph below!

Photo by Everett Kennedy Brown.