I travelled to the beautiful island of Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan, in February 2019 for a 2-week trip. I was going to be travelling with my friend Ulana Switucha. We had travelled together in Japan in 2017 and I knew I’d have an amazing experience with her because she speaks some Japanese and knows Japan well. We rented an SUV and travelled from Sapporo in the west to Lake Kussharo and Lake Akan in the east, going north to Haboro and stopping in Biei along the way. We hoped to photograph mostly minimalist scenes and we weren’t disappointed. Hokkaido is one of the snowiest places in the world and that snow blanket made for some wonderful minimalist images.