Yamada Ai - Ohaa~i

Wani Books releases Ohaa~i, the highly anticipated first photobook from Yamada Ai. Shot in Hawaii by photographer Takahashi Keisuke, the book captures the breakout star of 2025 in her solo debut—and the results justify the hype.

Yamada's rise has been genuinely unusual. She went from web-only content to dominating magazine rankings within months, building momentum through RIPGIRLS before this solo release. The speed of her ascent meant this debut carried weight before a single page was revealed. That's a lot of pressure on a first book.

Takahashi Keisuke handles it well. The Hawaii location provides the obvious backdrop—turquoise water, golden light, the visual shorthand for paradise—but he doesn't lean on it. The strongest sequences are the quieter ones: a hotel balcony at dusk, a shadowed corridor, moments where Yamada's presence does the work rather than the scenery. She has a directness in front of the camera that's rare in debuts. No coyness, no over-performance. She looks at the lens like she's been doing this for years.

The production is standard Wani Books—reliable paper stock, clean printing, nothing that surprises but nothing that disappoints. At ¥3,630, the price point is fair for what you're getting. The real question was never the physical product but whether Yamada could carry a full book solo after years of group work. She can. Comfortably.

Signed editions through Wani's official store sold out within hours. If you're tracking the next generation of gravure talent, this is the benchmark debut of the year.