Dear streettogs, I am excited to share that I have a new free e-book to share with you guys: “On Being an Artist and Photographer“. The chapters include: Chapter 1: How to Succeed and Survive as an Artist and Photographer Chapter 2: The Role of the Artist and Photographer Chapter 3: How to Express Yourself as…
I think as artists and photographers we often put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We always put pressure on ourselves to improve our photography, to take our work to the next level, and to make “original” work. In “Akademie x Lessons in Art and Life” artist (and our tutor) Shirley Tse gave lots of…
I think one of the most exciting things about being an artist is following your curiosity, passion, and to pursue a life-long path of learning. Continuing from my “Akademie x Lessons in Art and Life” series, here are some lessons I learned from the Raqs Media Collective in how you can constantly transform yourself through…
Continuing my series on “Akademie x Lessons in Art and Life”, I thoroughly enjoyed an essay titled: “Me and Marcuse” by Michelle Grabner. She exposed me to a lot of new ideas that I want to explore below on the following topics: what art is for, the importance of filtering images, undoing and re-doing your…
Continuing the lessons I’ve learned from “Akademie x Lessons in Art + Life”, I want to share some thoughts I’ve learned from Carol Bove, one and the artists and “tutors” from the book. Carol expresses ideas on self-expression, what work means to her, time and information management, as well as uncensoring and finding yourself. I…
(Editor’s Note: Words and Photographs by Ryan Tacay) In a world of instant-gratification and disposable media, it’s hard to take something like instagram as a serious way to share something artistic and long-lasting. Going past the jokes about it being all about the bathroom selfies, things I ate today, or this afternoon’s sunset, it’s actually one of the…
Continuing my education with “Akademie x Lessons in Art + Life”, I wanted to share some thoughts I have gleaned from Piero Golia, one of the artists and “tutors” in the book. Here are some of his ideas that stirred my thoughts and creativity, and how I think we can apply these concepts as a…
I just gave a free street photography webinar, and here are some of the slides that I shared on practical tips, assignments, and “traits of great street photographers”. The video recording of the event will be available in a week or so, will also make sure to share. In the meanwhile, enjoy this presentation! You…
I am currently reading: “Akademie x Lessons in Art + Life”, which is probably one of the most inspirational art/life books I’ve picked up as of late. It is a beautifully printed and bound book, folding open like a school instructional manual. I personally never went to art school. I entered college as a Biology…
Hey streetogs, after my 3-week trip in Chicago, Toronto, NYC, I am excited to finally be back home in Berkeley. It is wonderful to enjoy sleeping in my own bed, being back at home with Cindy, and the lovely weather of Berkeley. Unfortunately, I think I caught a mild cold while traveling, and will spend the…
(Editor’s Note: Words and Photographs by Jared Krause) I started shooting in June of 2009. I had causally been thinking about photography and decided to buy a camera. I started posting to a photo blog because I felt like photography was a good way to share my experiences with other people. Shooting street photos gave…
I just finished reading a new book titled: “Becoming Steve Jobs”, which is a new biography on the life of Steve Jobs. I also read the other (more famous) Walter Isaacson biography: “Steve Jobs”, and found this to be a great refresher to the life, work, and passion of Steve Jobs. In “Becoming Steve Jobs”,…
I love music. I love listening to music when I’m writing (like I am doing now), I love listening to music when I’m driving, and I love having music play in the background when I’m with my friends. I have a lot of favorite artists and I have found one thing that separates the “successful”…
(Editor’s Note: Interview by Eric Kim. Photographs by Nick Gervin.) Eric: Hey Nick great to have you. Can you start off by telling us a (brief) life story and how you first picked up a camera? Nick: Thanks for having me, Eric. I first picked up a camera in 1992 at the age of twelve. I wanted to…
It is inevitable. Sooner or later, someone will give you shit for taking their photograph. No matter how good your intentions are, there will always be someone who will be offended. You can smile, be friendly, and use all the right techniques — but there are just some people who won’t respond positively. There will…
In my street photography workshops, I often give the students a “5 yes/5 no” assignment. The concept is simple: you approach a bunch of strangers and ask permission to take their portrait. You intentionally try to get 5 people to say “yes”, and 5 people to say “no.” Sometimes students struggle to get all 5…
One thing to remind myself: street photography is supposed to be fun. If you’re not having fun, why are you doing it? We all have the stresses of everyday life that we have to deal with. We have to deal with stressful commutes, unreasonable bosses, difficulties at home, drama with friends and family, and financial…
One of the most interesting ideas that I’ve got from Nassim Taleb’s book “Antifragile” is his concept of “via negativa”. The concept is this: when describing something, negative descriptions often work best. What is a negative description? Well, describing what something isn’t can better define something.
From here on out, Photography Quick Links will now be known as Street Photography Quick Links. Just like from last month, a compilation of interesting news, write-ups, videos, and other things about street photography and other related genres that I have personally consumed. Since it is international women’s month last March, there’s a special section…
Hey streettogs, I just uploaded some slides for a free talk I did for Chase Toronto the other day on tips, techniques, and tricks to conquer your fear of shooting street photography. You can also download the slides for free here. Enjoy! :)
So after a long trip in Stockholm, Dubai, and London I wanted to share some of my experiences shooting medium-format (Hasselblad 501c + 80mm lens and Mamiya 7 + 80mm lens) for street photography (and traveling in general). To start off, I have been really fascinated with shooting square-format photographs recently. To be honest, my…
OBSERVE is holding their first group exhibit in opening on June 12, 2015 in the Städtische Galerie in Iserlohn, Germany, and will run through July 26, 2015. The exhibit will feature the works of the 13 members of the collective. Several members will be present in the opening as well. In line with the exhibit,…