Familiar looking landscapes offering a taste of old Japan's hidden and harmonious coexistence with the modern era exemplify the theme of this year's "Japan Through Diplomats' Eyes" annual photo competition.

A photograph capturing the stillness of a Zen monk, wearing a vivid golden robe and standing amid the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, taken by Attila Erdos, minister counselor at the Hungarian embassy won the Prince Takamado Memorial Prize, the top prize in the annual competition held under the theme "Hidden Japan."

"I have seen photographs of such monks before, but never with such extensive and effective use of bokeh (blur effect)," said Princess Hisako, the late Prince Takamado's widow, in praising the snapshot's value. She presented Erdos with the prize during the exhibition's opening Thursday at the Roppongi Hills complex in Tokyo.

Erdos told The Japan Times he passed by presumably the same monk day after day and wanted to capture the contrast between his peaceful lifestyle and the hectic pace of other people's daily lives.

Princess Hisako, the contest's honorary president, called the snapshot "an alluring and attractively well-composed photograph that appeals to both our hearts and our intellect."

The memorial award was set up in tribute to Prince Takamado, himself a photographer, who passed away in 2002.

The Grand Prize went to Farukh Amil, Pakistani ambassador to Japan, for the photograph "Hidden Biker," which captured a puppy wearing a biker's outfit and accompanying his owner during his ride.

"I'm not a photographer at all, but I'm in a fascinating country where I see a million things everyday and I think 'I wish I had my camera'," Amil said in his speech.

Calling the scene an "intersection of the unusual," he told The Japan Times it highlighted the contrast between the masculine image of a bike and the cuteness of a puppy wearing an outfit resembling that of his owner.

"I have never seen anything like this in any other place in the world. You never see a man on a Harley (with a dog)," he said. "It was supposed to be funny because Japan is a funny place."

He took the snapshot with his iPhone.

In its 18th year, this year's winning works were selected from a record 67 entries submitted by the diplomats and family members of 42 countries.

It was initiated by former Luxembourg Ambassador to Japan Pierre Gramegna, who believed that diplomats with broad experience in different countries had the ability to show Japan in a new perspective.

Princess Hisako praised the participants' achievements, saying that since the launch of the competition they had managed to show many different sides of Japan.

The jury also presented the Special Mention Award to five works for their unique and outstanding ideas in capturing how Japan had embraced modern trends while preserving tradition.

Among such works is a photo by Benjamin Francis, counselor at the Australian Embassy, who photographed a stone jizo statue in a Kyoto garden. Jizo, often seen at intersections, is a Buddhist symbol believed to help protect travelers, women, children and the weak.

Francis said he believed the statue's presence, often seen as part of a landscape, had the power to eclipse its surroundings.

The Special Mention Award winners also included Roman Malyshev, an attache at the Russian Embassy and last year's winner of the Prince Takamado Memorial Prize; Hendrik Aschermann, husband of a diplomat at the German Embassy; Luca Querin, economic attache at the Italian Embassy; and Galina Meiluniene, wife of the Lithuanian ambassador to Japan.

The exhibition will be held at Hills Cafe/Space in Roppongi Hills from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. until Wednesday, before traveling to Nagoya, Kobe and Higashikawa in Hokkaido. Admission is free.