Roadside Lights: Vending Machines as Beacons in the Night by Eiji Ohashi

Japanese photographer Eiji Ohashi has spent more than a decade documenting one of Japan’s most familiar sights: the roadside vending machine. In his series Roadside Lights, these glowing boxes of soda and snacks become luminous markers against snowy landscapes, empty streets, and quiet rural backdrops.

Ohashi’s bond with vending machines was forged in the extremes of Hokkaido’s winters. While living in Wakkanai, the northernmost city of Japan, he once got lost in a blizzard and found his way by the warm glow of a machine standing alone in the snow. That moment turned them into symbols of safety and guidance in his work, small guardians of light in otherwise desolate settings.

Though the machines look the same, their surroundings frame their own unique stories. Buried under heavy snow, flanked by cherry blossoms, or standing solitary beneath Mount Yōtei, they become metaphors for resilience, trust, and a uniquely Japanese worldview, where even machines can feel like companions.

Some of these images, along with many more, are collected in his book Roadside Lights Seasons: Winter. You can also explore more of Eiji Ohashi’s work on his website.

More photography inspiration Eiji Ohashi’s website