Talk:Sakae Tamura (nature photographer)

Vital statistics
日本の写真家 (Biographic Dictionary of Japanese Photography) says 1911–1987. Tokyo municipal library OPAC says “1903-”. NDL OPAC says “1910-”, and Neichā wārudo agrees.

None of the three books by Tamura between 1951 and 1965 has any biographical information. Kamakura Kaidō, published in 1990, refers to Tamura as alive; I cannot believe that the publisher of this carefully produced book got this fact wrong.

It would be very remiss of Neichā wārudo, published for an exhibition starting in April 1997 and therefore presumably edited in late 1996 or so, to describe Tamura as alive if he were not.

Tamura may have been born in 1910 or 1911, but I very much doubt that he was born in 1903. Why would his father be introducing him to photography when he (the son) was well into his twenties?

Call it "OR" if you like, but I infer that Tamura was alive into the nineties. I'd tend to write "1910/11–?" until better information comes along.

Incidentally, the library catalogue of Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography does not provide years of birth or death; and although its catalogue of prints says that dozens by Tamura are held and offers "Infomation" (sic) about Tamura, there turns out to be no information on him whatever (ditto for the other chap). -- Hoary 07:53, 5 August 2007 (UTC)


 * I'm increasingly inclined to write "(b. 1910)". Too OR-ish? -- Hoary 13:21, 5 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Library of Congress Authorities gives "1910-". George Eastman House gives (the rather unhelpful) "active 1930s", but this is just as likely in reference to the other Tamura. Nothing at ULAN. Tomorrow, books. Pinkville 02:30, 7 August 2007 (UTC)


 * I've looked again in the Kamakura-kaidō book. It says 1910 too -- so 1910 it is. -- Hoary 13:26, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Today I bought a book titled (as if a lesson in case or relative clauses): 戦後、写真クロニクル：時代をつくった写真、時代がつくった写真 (ISBN 978-4-903485-15-7). It's written by a man who's not only dubbed a 写真研究者 but is also described as a regular contributor to PhotoCON of a column titled ネイチャーフォト. The latter suggests that he should know what he's talking about. On pp273-4 he provides a potted bio of Tamura (yes, definitely this Tamura), and says "1910–1987年". That ought to clinch it. However, I don't buy it. Two publications postdating 1987 (Kamakura-kaidō and Neichā wārudo) imply that he was then alive. Incidentally, or perhaps not, 1987 was the year in which the unrelated but easily confusable photographer Sakae Tamura died. And this book 戦後、写真クロニクル has a lot of potted bios (well over a hundred); their cumulative bulk suggests that they were put together by a team of editorial assistants. -- Hoary (talk) 14:10, 8 June 2008 (UTC)


 * I think 1903 is the year Sakae Tamura (photographer) was born. His 著者名典拠ID/ID number is 00081108. While Sakae Tamura (nature photographer)'s ID is 00195220. And according to this, Sakae Tamura (nature photographer) died in 2003. Oda Mari (talk) 15:17, 8 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Good! On this photographer: It doesn't matter in the slightest that the site looks like a blog; it's 海野's blog and I take his word for this. On the other one: thank you for the tip, but I'll get back to him in a day or so. -- Hoary (talk) 21:16, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

Another prize
The potted bio in Neichā wārudo says that the 1951 insect book also won 装幀美術賞. Googling this prize shows up nothing. I can robotically transliterate it and gloss it, of course, but have no idea of its significance. Anyone heard of it? -- Hoary 13:24, 5 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Can you scan the bio and post a link to the pic? ··· 日本穣 ? · Talk to Nihonjoe 20:03, 8 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Shall do. Please hang on a day or so. -- Hoary (talk) 21:16, 8 June 2008 (UTC)