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New service lets Tokyo tourists display their faces on giant screen at Japan’s busiest intersection

Casey Baseel Jul 31, 2026
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Pedestrian crossing outside Shibuya Station to lean even harder into tourist selfie appeal.

Shibuya’s Scramble Crossing is one of Tokyo’s most iconic locations, and some would say that a trip to Japan’s capital isn’t complete without stopping by to snap a photo. Soon, though, tourists won’t just be taking photos at the world-famous intersection outside Shibuya Station, but displaying them too, on one of Tokyo’s largest skyscraper-side video screens.

Tentatively titled Shibuya Scramble Crossing Photo, this service will allow individuals to have their photos displayed on Q’s Eye, the video screen mounted on the side of Q Front, a building across the Scramble Crossing that houses a Starbucks (and was one of the last places in Tokyo where you could rent VHS tapes). Shibuya Scramble Crossing Photo actually had a brief test run between July 24 and 26, during which 48 people had their pictures put up on the screen for 15 seconds each, with their faces appearing inside a cute illustration evoking Shibuya’s famously loyal dog/statue Hachiko.

渋谷スクランブル交差点の大型ビジョンに、自分の顔が映る!? 東急が新たなインバウンド向けの観光体験サービスを実証実験。デザインや演出など、参加した外国人観光客にもお話を聞きました。世界的観光スポット・渋谷は、次のステージへ。https://t.co/JyZ735Y3dm

— 渋谷文化 (@shibuya_bunka) July 30, 2026

Though the service, offered through rail company and property developer Tokyu, won’t be exclusively available to foreign tourists, they’re the primary intended market, with all of the test-run participants being travelers from Germany, India, Italy, Korea, the U.S.A., Vietnam, or elsewhere overseas. Selfie-snapping is a priority for the service, with Tokyo taking participant feedback into account to try to determine the optimum times to offer displays at, since the screen itself doesn’t photograph as nicely during midday, but the tourists themselves can be obscured in shadow when photographed at night. One participant said he would like to be able to select alternate frames/artwork or add some sort of background music when his photo is displayed, and Tokyu itself says it’s looking for ways to let participants add personalized on-screen text messages or purchase merchandise showing their photo as it appeared on Q’s Eye. Tokyu also wants to shorten the lead time from the current six days down and eventually allow travelers to have their picture up on the screen for everyone to see on the same day they apply for the service.

On the one hand, Shibuya Scramble Crossing Photo makes for a uniquely personalized photo opportunity, and is sure to appeal to travelers who think half the fun of going somewhere is posting photos online showing that you were there. On the other hand, this could nudge the crossing’s environment even farther towards being a total circus, further frustrating locals who are growing increasingly tired of having to dodge tourists who stop mid-intersection and turn their back to the flow of foot traffic as they pose for their selfies.

Tokyu does seem to have crowd control concerns in mind, as one reason for the test run was to assess safety issues. Participants were told in advance when their photos would be displayed, and the Q Front screen is visible/photographable from the Hachiko statue plaza on the station side of the intersection, so there’s no need to stand in the middle of the crossing in order to get a selfie with your on-screen photo in the background. However, this then runs the risk of adding to the congestion of the already crowded plaza if multiple photos are going to be displayed on Q’s Eye in rapid succession.

Prices for Shibuya Scramble Crossing Photo are expected to be in the range of 5,000 to 10,000 yen (approximately US$30-US$60), with the service slated to officially start in March of next year.

Source: Shibuya Keizai Shimbun via Yahoo! Japan News, Shibuya Bunka Project
Top image: Pakutaso (edited by SoraNews24)
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