ERIC KIM

The Photographer is a Visual Explorer and Transformer

Have more fun in photography and life by using the camera to explore the world, and to transform the world according to your own artistic vision:

My thought

Little Saigon, 2019 #selfie #ricohgrii
Little Saigon, 2019 #selfie #ricohgrii

A thought:

We as photographers might have once been explorers and conquerers of the past (imagine Christopher Columbus). But now, we use our camera as our tool of exploration. We have an insatiable desire to SEE MORE, EXPERIENCE MORE, and to conquer more.

Why do we disdain the same?

Little Saigon, 2019 #ricohgrii
Little Saigon, 2019 #ricohgrii

It seems we easily get bored of the same. Why?

My theory:

It is in our human DNA to want to conquer the unknown.

This is what drove us human beings to BECOME more, DISCOVER MORE, and to gain more wealth.

A human who would be too satisfied with their current lot would probably still be in a cave eating (cold) acorns.

Exploration of the visual world

Buena Park, 2019 #ricohgrii #flash
Buena Park, 2019 #ricohgrii #flash

This is the fun thing with photography:

The world looks different as photographs.

This is what I thought about a lot when shooting digital medium format:

The ordinary/mundane world looks MORE INTERESTING when shot on digital medium format.

Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture
Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture

So perhaps one of our delight as photographers is to discover a NEW WORLD — a NEW world which is created when we make photographs.

Do photographers prefer the real world, or the world rendered via photographs?

Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture
Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture

When we make photographs, we become little mini demigods (photo gods). What this means is:

When we photograph the world, we control a small portion of it. We can create a NEW world, according to our own artistic image as photographers.

Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture
Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture

I think the mistake that a lot of us photographers make is this:

We want to photograph the world as we see it in real life.

However to me, this is more interesting:

Create a NEW world (create our own reality) with our photographs.

This means: don’t make photographs that look like ‘real life’.

Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture
Little Saigon, 2019 #fujifilmgfx50r #texture

This means, employ all photographic tools to TRANSFORM and mould the world according to your own vision. This means:

  1. Embrace extreme post-processing in your photos
  2. Experiment with different camera formats (film, digital medium format)
  3. Embrace distortions and macro photographs (use a wide-angle lens like 28mm, shoot super close)
  4. Shoot with flash (flash makes the world look different)

Explore more, conquer more

Little Saigon, 2019 #selfie #ricohgrii
Little Saigon, 2019 #selfie #ricohgrii

Explore more of the world, with your camera as your companion and tool of analysis. For me, street photography is visual sociology. Use your camera to analyze the world around you, and transform the world (composition/framing).

SHOOT ON!

ERIC

Photolosophy

Discover more personal meaning in your photographic life with my course: PHOTOLOSOPHY >