TOKYO >> Unable to get married legally in Japan, LGBTQ couples are celebrating their special bond by donning traditional kimono and fashionable formal wear for elaborate “photo weddings.”

But these carefully choreographed images are often kept hidden in this conservative society where many LGBTQ people say they face prejudice, even from their own families.

Reuters spent eight months documenting photo weddings by studio Onestyle in Tokyo and neighboring Yokohama. The couples spoke to Reuters and allowed their pictures to be taken on condition their identities were protected due to concerns they may face discrimination.

“Not everyone, like my parents or friends, know about our relationship. We thought it would be nice if we could leave a tangible memory just for the two of us,” said a 40-year old female office worker who posed with her 35-year old partner in matching wedding dresses at a photo studio in Yokohama in November.

She said they had struggled to find a studio that would accommodate a same-sex couple for the shoot, which they did on the day they submitted an application to enter a partnership agreement with their local council.

Japan is the only member of the Group of Seven industrialized nations that does not recognize same-sex marriage or provide legal protections for LGBTQ people, despite polls showing public support and court rulings that have deemed its stance unconstitutional.

While hundreds of municipalities throughout Japan, covering more than 80% of the population, allow same-sex couples to enter into partnership agreements, their rights are limited.

Partners cannot inherit each other’s assets or have parental rights to each other’s children. Being able to visit their loved one in the hospital isn’t guaranteed.

Generational divide

Established in 2015, Onestyle offers photo weddings for more than 2,000 couples a year; up to 5% of them are people identifying as LGBTQ, said founder Natsue Ikeda.

“The photos will be our treasure,” said a 32-year-old female graphic designer who took photos with her partner, a 33-year-old transgender man, at Onestyle’s Tokyo studio in August.

Even though some opinion polls show the majority of respondents support same-sex marriage being legalized, there is a clear generational difference in views.

A Fuji TV survey last year showed 91.4% of respondents in their late teens and 20s were in favor of same-sex marriage, whereas less than half of those ages 70 and older endorsed it.

“My mother told me she would want me to date a man and have a baby,” said a 27-year-old gender-nonconforming office worker who held a wedding shoot at a traditional garden in Yokohama in March with their partner, a 31-year-old female nurse.

“My grandmother warned me not to tell my dad and other relatives I am dating a woman because they would think I’m a pervert,” the person added.

The couple both wore kimono and custom-made wedding rings featuring each others’ DNA.

“In my mind, it is just that the person I naturally fell in love with was the same sex,” the office worker said. “I think it is natural that there are people who do not understand this feeling, and I am not trying to force them to understand.”

Some couples said they had been accepted by family members.

“My father had an aversion toward same-sex couples, so I was nervous to tell him about living together with a woman,” said a 33-year-old woman who works in the service industry. “When I did, he accepted without hesitation.”

The woman and her 32-year-old partner said they would give their wedding photos, taken in Tokyo in November, to their parents as gifts, and they would also show them to their friends.

Slow change

Changes are taking place in Japan, albeit slowly.

Facing pressure at home and abroad, Japan passed legislation last year meant to promote understanding of the LGBTQ community.

But the language was watered down from the original bill after pushback from conservative lawmakers in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and critics say the legislation provides no human rights guarantees.

In a landmark ruling in March, a high court said Japan’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. The ruling has been appealed to the Supreme Court.

Lower courts have delivered mixed verdicts.

An Ipsos poll this year found just 29% of respondents in Japan said they support LGBTQ people being open with everyone about their sexual orientation or gender identity, the third-lowest level of support among 26 countries surveyed.

Thailand and Spain topped the poll with 68% support, while Turkey had the lowest at 21%.

“Legal changes are nice, but they don’t mean much if society as a whole doesn’t start to normalize the existence of LGBTQ people,” said a 46-year-old male office worker who posed for photos with his partner in matching blue haori (traditional jacket) in November.