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Life Update from LA!
Hey friends,
I wanted to give you a quick life update from LA.
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New HENRI SHOULDER STRAP (Crema Brown + Phantom Black)
First of all, super pumped to announce our brand new product, the Henri SHOULDER STRAP. We listened to all of your valuable feedback on the classic Henri Neck Strap, and improved it by making it longer (can be worn across your shoulder), and we also have two beautiful new limited-edition colors: CREMA BROWN and PHANTOM BLACK. You can learn more about the Henri Shoulder Strap, or you can buy one in the HAPTIC SHOP.
Japan -> LAX
A quick recap: Cindy and I just came back from about a 2 month stay in Japan, living roughly a month in Osaka, a month in Kyoto, and then two weeks in Tokyo. Creatively, it was a phenomenal experience. My friend Simon Jacobs inspired me to start making videos again (I’ve been on fire with these new GoPro videos on my YouTube channel), I picked up a GOPRO fusion 360/virtual reality camera (super cool and fun), and have resparked my passion and interest in street photography; specifically, seeing how I can continue to help push the genre forward.
Anyways, after a quite pleasant 9 hour direct flight from Tokyo to LAX (via American Airlines, which has a great entertainment console), I am still severely afflicted from jetlag, but still got a ton of new ideas and thoughts to share with you.
Life Musings
First of all, I watched a bunch of movies on the flight and got tons of new ideas in cinema. Specifically, how we as photographers can study great cinema and film to learn more about composition and storytelling. On the flight I watched Pacific Rim, Downsizing, and All the Money in the World (loved all of them).
Specifically what I did was this, when I got back to Cindy’s moms house in LA, I rewatched All the Money in the World and took screenshots whenever I saw a good composition or scene. Afterwards, I used Photoshop to draw the compositions I saw. I plan on studying more cinematography, especially I’m doing more video work with the new Lumix G9 Pro I bought (check out my MISS STEP music video I filmed for Cindy).
Secondly, I’m having a lot of spirited thoughts on life, art, and philosophy. One big idea I came up with is this: strive to become the most developed artist-philosopher possible. This means, never stop making new art, and never stop asking questions on how to find more fulfillment and meaning in life. I genuinely feel that this personal artist-philosopher pursuit we can make in life is one of the best ways we can effectively leverage our lives.
Thirdly, I’m feeling super optimistic about life after a random trip to Walmart here in the Los Angeles suburbs. I was shocked: 18 eggs for only $1.38! You can buy a pound of chicken legs for less than 99 cents! You can buy a brand new t-shirt for less than 3 dollars!
I’m still unsure about the business practices and ethics of Walmart, but my big takeaway was this:
All of the essentials and basics we need to live, survive, and thrive is practically “free” (or super cheap).
Consider, we can buy phenomenally powerful smartphones for only a few hundred bucks. With the internet, there are no more gatekeepers or barriers to entry for us as artists, content creators, and entrepreneurs!
And also funny enough, I usually hate the suburbs (I prefer busy cities), but I have found a bunch of random interesting stuff to photograph here! I shot a lot of photos at the Walmart (even a nice street portrait), just walking around the block or to the gym, on Cal State Fullerton campus, or even when going on random errands with the family.
So the takeaway is this: no matter how boring your life is, there are always photo opportunities! My suggestion is just carry your camera with you everywhere you go, and shoot anything and everything you find interesting! Then process the photos with free ERIC KIM PRESETS (now optimized for the new Lightroom Classic CC).
Lots more dopeness to come!
You have the willpower!
Concluding thought: never talk down on yourself, assume you can do anything and everything, and treat everything in life like a fun and playful experiment!
Never stop striving,
ERIC
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- ARTIST-PHILOSOPHER
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Cinema and Composition Techniques
- Cinematography and Composition Lessons from All the Money in the World (2017) film by Ridley Scott
- Cinematography Composition Techniques for Photographers
- Lessons I’ve Learned Shooting my first Music Video with Cindy Nguyen: MISS STEP
New Photo-Diaries
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