Koenji is one of Tokyo's great centres of subculture — a neighbourhood with a long history of punk, independent music, activism and doing things its own way. Spend some time walking its streets and it quickly becomes clear there's nowhere else quite like it in the city.

Vintage shops, tiny live houses and old bars sit alongside graffiti-covered walls, record stores, independent businesses and a maze of narrow backstreets. It's rougher around the edges than many parts of Tokyo, but that's a big part of its appeal. Koenji has managed to hold onto a character that feels increasingly rare in a city that's constantly rebuilding itself.

For street photography, that gives us a lot to work with. We'll photograph the people, details and unexpected moments that make the neighbourhood what it is — local characters, musicians, old storefronts, street art, late-night restaurants and whatever else we happen to find along the way.

We'll also work on finding stronger photographs within all of that: getting closer when a moment calls for it, using the clutter and layers of the streets rather than avoiding them, and learning to recognize the small details that can say as much about a place as the obvious scenes.

This is Tokyo with a little more attitude — unpredictable, independent and full of character.