About Ray Holland

Ray Holland is a documentary photographer whose career spans over four decades and two continents. After studying photography at the West Surrey College of Art and Design in the UK (1979-1981), he moved to Osaka, Japan—originally for just three months. That brief assignment turned into a 22-year immersion into Japanese culture and photographic mastery.

In Osaka, Ray worked as an assistant at Yamagishi Studio, one of the largest commercial photography studios in Japan, where he was the only foreign assistant among six Japanese photographers. This formative experience taught him precision, patience, and an extreme attention to light and shadow that defines his work today. He learned to recreate natural light for fashion, interiors, and catalogue work, mastering both tungsten and flash lighting techniques.

Ray learned to speak Japanese fluently, which gave him a unique advantage: the ability to connect authentically with subjects and enter situations that other foreign photographers could only observe from a distance. As an outsider who speaks the language, he captures expressions and fleeting moments that Japanese photographers might overlook—rare emotions in a culture known for restraint and self-control.

His black and white documentary work focuses on "capturing the moment"—anticipating and waiting for that exact instant when human emotion, light, and composition align perfectly. His philosophy is rooted in simplicity: "Fewer parameters allow stronger creativity. Simplicity enables clear thought." This minimalist approach extends beyond his photography into every aspect of his life and creative process.

His career highlights include an eight-page feature in Savvy magazine, one of Japan's largest publications (still in print today), and location shoots across Los Angeles, Guam, and Okinawa. His rigorous training included photographing single objects 100 times from different angles to develop an innate sense of composition within the rectangular frame—a discipline that continues to inform his work.

In 2003, Ray returned to Cambridge, UK, to marry and raise a family. Twenty years later, in August 2023, he returned to Osaka with his children to continue documenting the vibrant cityscape. He is currently working on a self-published photobook showcasing his decades of work in Japan.

In addition to photography, Ray is also a composer, creating music that incorporates Japanese and Indian instruments using a Korg Synthesizer. His diverse compositions can be explored on SoundCloud.