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Photo Libraries And News Services 
It originally started in 1982 as owner-director Takashi
Yoshida's private library and was named American Photo Library when PLANS, Ltd.
was founded. Mr. Yoshida worked as a photographer in New York City and
also traveled to all the 50 States of the United States. And made many
editorial photo stories including the National Geographic Magazine(nationalgeographic). Also made many photographs for advertising usages as a member of the
Japan Advertising Photographer's Association Inc. (APA) and the Japan Professional Photographers Society Inc. (JPS), affiliated organizations such as the ASMP.
Since then, the library has branched out to include
not just photos of the United States but also photos from around the World with
a wide spectrum of subjects. The library caters to many of Japan's most
prestigious photo users including Nihon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), Japan's equivalent of BBC, Japan Travel Bureau (JTB), the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, plus numerous top publishing houses and ad agencies.
PLANS, LTD. Headquarter is now located in Kamakura City, a suburban city of Tokyo, known as “the Kamakura by the Sea”, and also known as an ancient Capital City of Japan. Kamakura Station is on the direct line from the Tokyo Central Station as well as Tokyo International Airport.
In 1986, PLANS, Ltd. and 9 other leading specialized photo libraries formed the Japan Photo Research Center Inc. And the JPRC made the Japan's first large stock photo database (total of 83,000) computer photo filing system with using Laser Disc then.
In 1999, PLANS, LTD. started an online photo agency, named CHROMADEX as the joint project with the Canon Inc.'s world headquarter(Canon). CHROMADEX was in the website of the Canon's multimedia site called CanDINet.
In 2002, CHROMADEX moved to PLANS, Ltd's own website
and changed it's name to "APL Online"
In 2003, APL Online reached its total amount of
photographs to over 200,000 photographs, which is one of the Japan's largest
researchable stock photo databases.
In 2004, American Photo Library and APL online moved from PLANS. Ltd. to JTB Photo Communication Inc. in order to strengthen the Worldwide operation. JTB Photo is 100% owned by the JTB Group, Japan’s leading Travel Agency.
PLANS, Ltd. will work such as; Consultant for making Affiliations International Business, Copy Rights of Photograph as well as many other Arts, Privacy Rights, Property Rights, for the Japan’s Stock Photo Industry.
Coordinated Agencies (Alphabetical order)
Adventure Photo & Film
Galaxy Contact
The
Granger Collection
ImagineChina
IPOL/GLOBE PHOTOS
Omni-Photo Communications, Inc
Photos
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Retrofile
UPI
PLANS, LTD.
5-17-2 Inamuragasaki Kamakura 248-0024 Japan
tel /fax: (81)467-31-0330
e-mail :yoshida@plans.jp
Takashi Yoshida Frofile (Interviewed at an Ansel Adams Family Homein Fresno CA)