ERIC KIM ₿

Tag: diane arbus

  • Composition Lesson #14: Square Format

    Composition Lesson #14: Square Format

    symmetry-woman
    Symmetry in 6×6 photo by Diane Arbus

    You can see all my composition lessons here.

    I have been quite fascinated with the square-format in street photography for a while. My fascination first came about from Jeroen Helmink, a photographer from the Netherlands (you can see a fun video we made on shooting Hasseblads). There was something quite sexy about the 6×6 format– the way that it created perfect balance in the frame, the simplicity, as well as the novelty.

    Of course as Instagram has become insanely popular– the square-format just looks like an “Instagram shot.” I have heard of Instagram as “ruining” the 6×6 format (medium-format film).

    However I don’t think it really matters what camera, format, or aspect ratio you shoot in. Ultimately the most important thing is to create a visually compelling image that speaks to our hearts or souls.

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  • 11 Lessons Diane Arbus Can Teach You About Street Photography

    11 Lessons Diane Arbus Can Teach You About Street Photography

    (All photographs copyrighted by the Estate of Diane Arbus)

    Diane Arbus is a photographer that has a very profound impact on me. When I first saw her photograph of the “grenade kid” — it hit me in the chest and has burned itself in my mind ever since. Upon studying more of Diane Arbus’ work — I found her photographs to be very applicable to my interest in shooting street photography of strangers-  mostly as a mode of portraiture.

    There is a wealth of knowledge on Diane Arbus (several memoirs, books, and even movies have been made on her), and I cannot say I am an expert on her work. However here is some golden knowledge I have found from one her books published by Aperture that I found incredibly insightful that I wanted to share with you.

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