I may never be the greatest photographer in the world, but every now and then I take one I’m really happy with like this one of Shibuya Crossing, last weekend. Like many people do, we had headed into the Starbucks Cafe at the Tsutaya bookshop overlooking the Crossing. If you wait a little while, someone will be bound to leave and you can jump into their seats, as we did! (Note: the cafe recently closed for a remodel, but it reopened in April 2024 so it should be even easier to get those iconic shots you have been looking for!)
The Cafe is on the second floor, so it is the perfect spot to take photos of Shibuya Crossing where you can make out individuals as in my photo. You are only slightly elevated above street level so still involved even as you look down at all the hubbub below. Since I took this photo, of course, there has been lots and lots of redevelopment around Shibuya station and it is almost unrecognisable when I go back there now.
I still have not been to the Shibuya Sky area which has been built on one of the new tall buildings but have heard that that offers more of a cloud’s eye view of the Shibuya Crossing, where the people and the cars and taxis must look like they are toys. That experience is similar to the one at Roppongi’s Tokyo City View and, if you are visiting Tokyo, I recommend getting up above to get a different perspective on the sprawl of the city as it envelopes you.
