Wrapped in a beige satin kimono, with her face painted white and the edges of her eyes defined in crimson, 15-year-old Tomitae debuted as a maiko - or 'novice geisha' - at the annual Gion Odori, or dance performance, in Kyoto last month.
Tomitae has learned to dance with a folding fan and prepare a cup of powdered tea in the traditional way. But it will take a further five years of rigorous study before she is a fully qualified geisha - a Japanese hostess trained to entertain men with conversation, dance and song. In Japanese, gei means 'performing arts' and sha means 'person'.
Obsessed with her country's traditional culture, the junior high school graduate from Himeiji, in southern Japan, gave up mainstream education to join the ranks of the ancient profession.
In April, she travelled northeast to Kyoto's Gion district - regarded as the hometown of geishas - and moved into one of its geisha teahouses. Tomitae adopted her stage name and embraced a new life in a society whose lifestyle has changed little since the 18th century.
As the youngest in the household, at first Tomitae performed only daily chores and watched her senior colleagues at work. After a month, the head of the household - whom the students call 'mother' - deemed her ready for the military-like classes. The lessons began with basic dance steps and tea ceremony skills, which took more than five hours a day. These lessons were followed by learning arts and skills that are required of a geisha, including the playing of instruments, singing, pouring sake, and rules of conversation.
Tomitae must also study the rules affecting every aspect of life - from walking quietly and elegantly on wooden clogs, to eating tofu.
She most enjoys dancing and playing the koto, a Japanese wooden harp. 'I love the traditional melodies, but I need to work harder on expressing the feelings ... that go with traditional Japanese dance performances,' she says.