STORY 01

It started with an idea from within

The project began with an internal competition for proposals to improve the business. A group of early- and mid-career employees explored how Iwate Nippo's generative AI service could help create a new business that customers would enjoy. One of their proposals was a set of trading cards.

The cards could offer the fun of collecting while also encouraging tourism. That possibility sparked the team's enthusiasm and set development in motion. The Content Business Department, which manages the company's content rights, led the project with help from colleagues in other departments.

The cards feature real photographs taken by the newspaper's journalists. Images gathered through years of reporting became something people could collect and enjoy at home or on their travels.

STORY 02

Choosing from a wealth of photographs

Iwate Nippo has an extensive archive of photographs taken by its journalists across the prefecture. With so much material to draw from, choosing the images for the cards was both enjoyable and challenging.

Some places may have changed since older photographs were taken. Keeping that in mind, the team focused on more recent images and first narrowed the possibilities to nearly 1,000 photographs.

Each photograph needed to be compelling in its own right. Just as important was showing the many different sides of Iwate.

STORY 03

The views that could not all make the cut

Take Hachimantai: the Dragon Eye in spring, deep greenery in summer, autumn foliage and frost-covered trees in the depths of winter. The same area reveals a completely different face with each season.

Every image had its appeal. But to give different regions a place in the collection, the team could not fill it with views of Hachimantai alone. The same was true of other areas.

Every part of this vast prefecture has something special to offer. Narrowing the selection was difficult, and the team reluctantly had to leave out many photographs they loved.

After this selection process, Vol. 1 took shape as a collection of 26 cards. Behind each one are many more views that could not be included, and a wish to share the breadth of Iwate's appeal.

STORY 04

Three stars for a moment that is hard to find

When discussing the three-star cards, the developers spoke about how difficult it can be to encounter the scenes themselves.

Photojournalists research their subjects carefully and return to locations again and again. They wait for a moment when the temperature, weather, wind direction and other conditions come together. Each photograph is the result of that patient work.

“I don't think three stars are enough.”

Translated from the development team's comments in Nippo Soken

Imagining the time and effort behind a beautiful scene may change the way you look at a card. A moment that is hard to encounter in person becomes something you can return to, again and again, in your own hands.

STORY 05

Follow a card into the places beyond it

The developers hope the cards will spark curiosity about the communities and places behind each scene.

In the newspaper feature, they also described sharing other views of the featured locations on the official X account. If a card shows a scene at dusk, for example, they might visit during the day to share a different view. Even a familiar place has more to reveal.

When you visit, the sky and light may be different from those in the card. Come in another season or at another time of day, and a new landscape may be waiting.

Find a card that catches your eye, then explore the place beyond it. Collect, visit and enjoy discovering your own 100 Views of Iwate.