List of Japanese women photographers explained

This is a list of women photographers who were born in Japan or whose works are closely associated with that country.

A

Mikiko Hara (born 1967), colour snapshots of people or things in everyday life, often causing feelings of levity or foreboding, people in public spaces
Hiromix (born 1976), life from a teenager's perspective and photo books on identity, community, gender and the everyday

Hisae Imai (1931–2009), specialized in the photography of horses
Ariko Inaoka (active since 1998), photographer
Miyako Ishiuchi (born 1947), contrasty prints including close-ups of the very old, grainy-blurry works, close-ups of the elderly

Miho Kajioka (born 1973)
Mari Katayama (born 1987), self-portraits with textile sculptures
Rinko Kawauchi (born 1972), serene, poetic style, ordinary moments in life
Aya Kida (born 1974), photographer, winner of the Kimura Ihei Award
Fusako Kodama (born 1945), depicted Japan as a nation of high technology, and life in Tokyo
Michiko Kon (born 1955), new approach to mainly black-and-white still lifes with images of everything from toothbrushes to timepieces and fish parts^[1] black and white prints, sea creatures
Yasuko Kotani (born 1962), photographer

Miyuki Matsuda (born 1961), actor who has published photography of nudes
Michiko Matsumoto (born 1950), portraits of artists and dancers living in various countries
Tomoko Miyamoto (born 1960), photographer

Yurie Nagashima (born 1973), portraits, including portraits of herself and her family in the nude, street photography, still lifes
Mika Ninagawa (born 1972), brightly coloured photographs of flowers, goldfish and landscapes, commercially successful in fashion and advertising
Rika Noguchi (born 1971), landscape photographer, artistic photographer, based in Berlin

Yoshino Ōishi (born 1944), widely travelled photojournalist, educator
Yuki Onodera (born 1962), images of everyday objects such as old clothes, tin cans, birds, houses shining in the darkness, and human figures,^[2] living in France
Kei Orihara (born 1948), documentary and portrait photographer, has published books on life in New York, and books for children about the disabled, interior portraits, photobooks for children

Tsuneko Sasamoto (1914–2022), Japan's first female photojournalist, has photographed some of the country's greatest personalities and historic moments^[3]
Tomoko Sawada (born 1977), feminist photographer, performance artist
Shima Ryū (1823–1899), earliest known Japanese woman photographer, photographed her husband in 1864, later opened a studio in Kiryū
Mieko Shiomi (1909–1984), abstraction and realism, known for her monochrome compositions
Kunié Sugiura (born 1942), creator of photograms, based in New York City
Ryoko Suzuki (born 1970), photographic artist

Cozue Takagi (born 1985), creator of montages
Toyoko Tokiwa (1928–2019), best known for her depiction of the red-light district of post-occupation Yokohama, for a clientele of US servicemen
Tokuko Ushioda (born 1940), widely exhibited freelance photographer

Eiko Yamazawa (1899–1995), portrait photographer and founder of a photography school, owns a studio
Miwa Yanagi (born 1967), staged events with women of various ages, frequently using the computer to alter the image in strange ways, several published series including Elevator Girls
Shizuka Yokomizo (born 1966), photographer and installation artist based in London
Ruiko Yoshida (born 1938), published several photobooks designed to fight against discrimination towards the poor and blacks, best known for Harlem Black Angels^[4]