I was very pleased with the large number of entries received for this year's photo contest.
We were impressed and entertained by the results of everyone's efforts as we judged the entries, and we thank you for that. Among them, the three works selected for the Grand Prix and the Runner-up Grand Prix were outstanding.

However, I was concerned that, despite the fact that we have increased the number of locations selected each time, the entries tended to be biased toward locations or properties that are relatively easy to photograph and produce a certain level of work. Moreover, many of the scenes are similar. I hope that you will take a step forward to find the best of Hokkaido's heritage sites for your own eyes, and make an effort to impress the viewer.

This year, more than ever before, we saw many entries that were photographed with smartphones. I was particularly surprised to see about 20 pictures of the same location with almost identical patterns on display. I think you should submit cuts that you have selected yourself. It is also important to have an eye for selection. We expect the number of smartphone works to increase in the future, so we ask that you please take this into consideration.

I had the opportunity to read many tanka poems related to Hokkaido's heritage sites this year, and the ones that I felt were outstanding were all works that were not contained within a tourist's point of view. They do not see Hokkaido's heritage sites and landscapes as stimuli unrelated to their own daily lives. They see them as part of the world in which they live and explore sincere dialogue. I decided to actively evaluate works with such tendencies.

I am very fond of the haiku poet Kubota Mantaro's works depicting the dying downtown area of Tokyo, but Mantaro did not write these works with the intention of making the downtown area a tourist resource. Mantaro did not write such works with the intention of making the downtown area a tourist attraction. He simply had a favorite scenery and wished to enclose it in words, and as a result, the downtown area became a tourist attraction. The tanka poems selected for the Hokkaido Heritage Site were chosen for their earnest love for the scenery.

The tourism value is only an afterthought. Tanka is the simplest conversational drama, and sometimes it depicts a conversation with something other than human beings.

When you think about it, don't you think tanka is quite interesting and simple?