New years

I am just wondering is Japanese new year and Chinese new year pretty much the same thing? The reason I ask is because I am doing a photo for Chinese new year and some of my objects have Japanese symbols. would that be offensive? Would it not matter? I am freaking out because I see them as pretty similar but they aren't? please explain this to me.

I am just wondering is Japanese new year and Chinese new year pretty much the same thing?

No, they are not the same in the modern sense. They have very different customs and are celebrated at different times, sometimes as much as 2.5 months apart like in this year. For example, Chinese new year follows the lunar calendar, while Japanese new year does not.

The reason I ask is because I am doing a photo for Chinese new year and some of my objects have Japanese symbols. would that be offensive? Would it not matter?

Are you sure they are only Japanese symbols? Japan and Chinese share a lot of writing, so it may not necessarily be Japanese items. Can you post a pic?

from westerner point of view, ASIAN culture may look the same, but trust me Japanese and Chinese New Year celebration are very much apart.

If you could show some of your preliminary work, maybe we can comment and avoid you the embarrassing mistake.

Example：福 , both mean luck or good fortune.
Japanese read it as 'fuku' and in Chinese it is read as Fú.
However, for Chinese New Year, the word is normally shown/mounted upside down.

Are you talking about the writing used for greetings? Or are you talking about the festivities??

Please keep in mind that the kanji writing was imported into Japan centuries ago, with modifications, so some kanji writing is common, while others not.

Japan's new year is the time you spend quietly with family members and relatives.
it is the time to thank gods for the happiness of the past year, and to hope the same happiness of the new year.
it is not noisy.