Araki then worked as a commercial photographer at the Dentsu advertising agency, which he found extremely dull. He did, however, use the Dentsu facilities to further his independent photography work, even using the company's photocopier to produce one of his early photobooks, The Xerox Photo Albums (1970). He held his first solo exhibition in 1965 at Shinjuku Station Building. In 1967, Araki's father passed away. One year later, he met the woman who would become his wife whilst at work at Dentsu - essayist Yōko Aoki. Art historian Matthew Kluk notes that these two events were "pivotal" in Araki's life, writing that "Death and love would become two of the principal driving forces behind Araki's profoundly human photography."

Araki is known for his intimate access to models. When asked about this in 2011, he bragged that he gained access through sex. [17] Photography for the Afterlife. Tokyo: Heibonsha, 2014. ISBN 978-4582278118. With an essay by Mario Perniola, "Araki's Hell". Artists A-Z::: Museum für Moderne Kunst Frankfurt am Main". Museum für Moderne Kunst. Archived from the original on 2018-03-02 . Retrieved 2018-03-02. Martin Parr; Gerry Badger (2004). The Photobook: A History, Volume I. London: Phaidon. p.274,286. ISBN 978-0-7148-4285-1.Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Araki became known for pushing boundaries with his "sex photography", straddling the line between art and pornography. In 1977, Araki began working for the Tokyo magazine New Self and at the same time began publishing two series, Actresses and Pseudo-Reportage for Weekend Super magazine, the precursor to Photo Age magazine. Photo Age and Araki published a series of prankish articles baiting the censorship laws in Japan throughout the 1980s, responding to new legislation by deliberately flaunting it. One article contained images of only pubic hair after the showing of genitals was made illegal, for example, and then, once the display of pubic hair was also made illegal, was followed by a series of images of shaved genitals with pubic hair hand-drawn over the image. In 1988 a series of Araki's contributions to Photo Age were so explicit that Japanese authorities had an entire issue of the magazine recalled and the magazine was eventually forced to close due to escalating legal costs. He also worked for Japanese Playboy during this period, as well as Japanese photography magazine Camera Mainichi. Exposed: Voyeurism, Surveillance, and the Camera Since 1870, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco [30]

Sentimental Journy. Tokyo: Kawade Shobo Shinsha, 2016. ISBN 978-4-309-27700-4. Facsimile edition. With an introduction in Japanese and English by Araki. Housed in a slipcase with a postcard. Araki's work has been legally controversial, with many of his images flaunting Japanese obscenity restrictions on the showing of pubic hair, for example. Despite public outcry, political condemnation, and police interventions, Araki refuses to modify his practice or desist from making his work. This defiance has consistently been positioned as a commentary on Japanese society and a challenge to the hypocrisy of censorship laws and other sexual repression. His practice therefore occupies a unique position where it is recognized as a vastly significant artistic export for contemporary Japan, but also a controversial and occasionally illegal body of work at odds with the establishment. a b c Shiraishi, Sakiko (April 25, 2018). "#MeToo Japan: What happened when women broke their silence". BBC News . Retrieved May 6, 2018. Street Life & Home Stories.Photographs from the Goetz Collection - Sammlung Goetz". Goetz Collection. Archived from the original on 2018-03-02 . Retrieved 2018-03-02. Tokyo Biyori (1997) – a biographical drama based on the life of Yoko Araki, the wife of Nobuyoshi Araki. Written by Nobuyoshi Araki and Ryo Iwamatsu, and directed by Naoto Takenaka. The Araki couple were portrayed by Naoto Takenaka and Miho Nakayama. Araki makes a cameo as a train conductor. [28]a b c d Rich, Motoko (May 5, 2018). "When an Erotic Photographer's Muse Becomes His Critic". The New York Times . Retrieved May 6, 2018.