In the first edition of Contact Sheet, Benny Loy shares the cameras he can't live without, the photographers who inspire him and why the best images still come down to instinct.

Beyond Tokyo, Kyoto and the well-worn tourist trail, Michael Petkovic discovered a quieter Japan in Fukushima City—a place shaped by perseverance, hospitality and communities determined to survive. Through photography, he documents the people and places he fears may one day disappear.

Does carrying a camera pull us away from the present, or bring us closer to it? In this personal essay, Ty Alexander reflects on memory, photography and the quiet act of paying attention, arguing that making photographs isn't about escaping life—it's about learning how to see it.