He was one of the most celebrated photographers in Japan in the 19th century. He was also one of the first war photographers of his time. From 1863-1877 he ran a photographic studio in Yokohama, Japan and employed Japanese watercolourists and ukiyo-e woodblock printmakers to tint his photographs. These prints could take up to 12 hours to complete only 2 or 3 prints as they had to be very meticulous in their painting. Each watercolorist would be assigned a specific area to complete on the prints eg. one on faces, one on clothes etc. This allowed for Beato to have control of the images so that they met his satisfaction.