If you don’t love what you photograph — why photograph it?
PHOTO JOURNAL
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1. What do you love in life?
“Great love is needed to achieve this effect, a love capable of inspiring and sustaining that patient striving towards truth, that glowing warmth and that analytic profundity that accompany the birth of any work of art. But is not love the origin of all creation?” – Matisse
If you want to make better photos:
Discover what you love, and focus on photographing that.
If you know what you love in life, how can you not have passion and enthusiasm for it?
For example, I love Cindy. She is my center and anchor in life. Therefore, it is very easy for me to photograph Cindy with my heart and soul. I never bore of photographing her — because it is my love of her which is the most important, not the photographs of her.
I also love eating delicious food. Therefore, I will never bore of photographing my food. I like photographing lovely meals with Cindy and friends/family, and then reviewing old photos of my food, because it brings a smile to my face.
2. Do you love people?
I love to photograph street photography — because I love and am interested in people, and strangers. If I didn’t have an interest or passion in people, why would I have a passion to photograph them?
All street photographers must love, or be interested in people, especially strangers.
3. We are not objective photographers
My critique on modern photography:
Too much of modern photography is about analyzing the ‘other’ or ‘exotic’ peoples, without enough heart, empathy, and love.
A lot of photographers are these dispassionate, disconnected, and unempathetic observers, and instruments of vision. They shoot too much as ‘objective’ viewers, rather than emotional, subjective humans.
4. Love life more; don’t be a ‘better’ photographer
Don’t think of how you can become a ‘better’ photographer. Instead, ask yourself:
What do I love in life, and what brings me joy in life?
Then, once you figure out what you love or are interested in life, photograph that. It will be an affirmation of what you love in your life.
For example, this is what I love in my life:
- Friends, family: Personal photography
- Cindy: Cindy project
- Strangers: Street photography
- Visual art: Photography focused on forms, colors, compositions
- Myself: Selfies of myself (honor thy selfie)
5. Be a loving-first photographer
Once again, this should be your workflow as a photographer:
- Identify what you love in life
- Photograph that which you love.
Instead of,
- Make random photographs
- Love your random photographs
Let us have a loving-first approach to photography, then you will find more joy, meaning, and enthusiasm/passion in your photography and life.
Shoot with your heart,
ERIC
Personal Photography 101
PHOTO JOURNAL »
PHOTO JOURNAL will help you find more personal meaning in your photography.
Personal Photography Articles
- How I found more personal fulfillment in my photography.
- How to Find Your Purpose in Photography
- 3 Tips I Would Give Myself if I Started Photography All Over Again
- How I Photograph
- Photos Should Represent Life; Life Shouldn’t Represent Photos
- How to Photograph Self-Portraits of Yourself
- What Legacy Do You Want to Leave as a Photographer?
- Love Who You Photograph and Photograph Who You Love
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Personal Photography
- The “Personal Photography” Manifesto
- How to Find Your Style in Photography
- On Photographing Your Loved Ones
- Living is More Important than Photographing
- What is Your Personal Photography Philosophy?
- I Photograph Not For the Many, But For You
- Photograph What You Feel, and Feel What You Photograph
- Stay True To Your Own Style
- Do You See Yourself in Your Own Photos?
- Shoot For the Few, Not the Many
- Marvel at Nobody But Yourself
- How to Avoid Mediocrity in Your Personal Photography
- Be Your Own Harshest Critic
- How to Come Up With a Personal Photography Project Idea
- A Photographer’s Search For Meaning
- Nobody Wants to Look at Your Photos
- The Beauty of Being a Beginner Photographer
- Shoot different.
- Shoot What You Like
- What I Learned Photographing My Own Wedding
- How to Find Your Passion in Photography
- Find out What to Photograph, Not How
- Why Do You Take Photos?
- Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself
- Do You Like Your Own Photos?
- Simple Contentment
- The Cindy Project
- The Things That Matter Most
- The Point Isn’t to Be a Good Photographer, But to Enjoy Life
- How to Make More Interesting Photos
- Social Media 4.0
- Express Yourself
- Why Backup Your Photos?
- How to Overcome Disappointment in Your Photography
To learn more, Start Here >
Photography 101
Dear friend,
If you’re new to photography, start here:
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Mastering Photography
- Free Photography Bootcamp
- 100 Photography Tips for Beginners
Everyday Photography
- Everyday Photography
- 10 Tips How to Take Better Photos of Everyday Life
- 15 Tips How to Shoot Better Selfies
- 10 Tips How to Take Better Photos of Everyday Life
Color Photography 101
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Color Photography
- Opponent Process Color Theory For Photographers
- Color Theory For Photographers
New Photography Articles
- 15 Tips How to Shoot Better Selfies
- Photography is All a Matter of Perspective
- Photography Warmup Assignments
- 5 Simple Tips How to Take Better Pictures
- 10 Tips How to Shoot Better Architecture Photography
- 7 Reasons Why I Love Digital Medium-Format Photography
- My Experience Shooting Digital Medium Format in Street Photography
- My Experience Shooting my Friend Wedding on Digital Medium Format
Photography Philosophy
Photography Inspiration
- How to Become a Self-Confident Photographer
- The Spirit of Becoming a Photographer
- How to Make Better Pictures
- 10 Tips How to Take Better Photos of People
- How to Avoid Boredom in Photography
- How to Master Photography
- A Photographer’s Guide to Seeing
- PRETENTIOUS PHOTOGRAPHY
- Photography Energy Management
- How to Unlock Your Potential in Photography
- There Are No Good or Bad Photos
- The 5 Minute Photographer
- A-Z: PHOTOGRAPHY DICTIONARY by ERIC KIM
- Why I Want to Be a Photography Newbie Forever
- PHOTOGRAPHY FLUX.
- 10 Creative Photography Assignments to Re-Inspire You
- 50 Photography Tips by ERIC KIM
The Fundamentals of Photography
- Make Simple Pictures
- The Art of Reading a Picture
- How to Choose Your Best Photos
- GET CLOSER.
- Keep or Ditch?
- What Makes a Good Photo?
- Why Photography?
- Everyone is a Photographer
- How to take better pictures
- How to take better selfies
- How to Paint With Light
- Why Bokeh is Overrated
Photography Equipment »
- What is the Perfect Camera For You?
- What to Consider When Buying a Camera
- More Megapixels, More Problems
How to Take Better Photos »
- How to Take Better Photos
- How to Capture Emotion in Your Photos
- How to Create a “Curiosity Gap” in Your Photos
Composition Lessons »
- Composition Lesson #1: Triangles
- Composition Lesson #2: Figure-to-ground
- Composition Lesson #3: Diagonals
Photography Assignments »
- 40 Practical Photography Assignments
- 15 Street Photography Assignments
- 25 Photography New Year’s Resolutions
Contact Sheets »
- Street Photography Contact Sheets
- Street Photography Contact Sheets Volume II
- Debunking the “Myth of the Decisive Moment”
Editing (Image Selection) »
Creativity »
Motivation »
- Each Photo You Take is an “Attempt”
- How to Overcome Photographer’s Block
- Why Do You Need “Inspiration” to Shoot?
Post-Processing
- How to Edit Your Photos
- Grain is Beautiful
- Are Filters “Cheating” in Photography?
- Video: Introduction to Editing, Processing, and Workflow in Lightroom
How to Create a Body of Work
Technical Photography Settings
Learn From the Masters of Photography
“He without a past has no future.”
Start here:
- Why Study the Masters of Photography?
- Great Female Master Photographers
- Cheat Sheet of the Masters of Photography
- 100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography
- Beginner’s Guide to the Masters of Street Photography
- Download All Articles >
The Masters of Photography
Classics never die:
- Alfred Stieglitz
- Alec Soth
- Alex Webb
- Alexey Brodovitch
- Anders Petersen
- Andre Kertesz
- Ansel Adams
- Araki
- Blake Andrews
- Bruce Davidson
- Bruce Gilden
- Constantine Manos
- Daido Moriyama
- Dan Winters
- David Alan Harvey
- David Hurn
- Diane Arbus
- Dorothea Lange
- Elliott Erwitt
- Eugene Atget
- Eugene Smith
- Fan Ho
- Garry Winogrand
- Gordon Parks
- Helen Levitt
- Henri Cartier-Bresson
- Irving Penn
- Jacob Aue Sobol
- Jeff Mermelstein
- Joel Meyerowitz
- Joel Sternfeld
- Josef Koudelka / Part 2
- Josh White
- Lee Friedlander
- Lisette Model
- Magnum Contact Sheets
- Magnum Photographers
- Mark Cohen
- Martin Parr
- Martine Franck
- Mary Ellen Mark
- Rene Burri
- Richard Avedon
- Richard Kalvar
- Robert Capa
- Robert Frank
- Saul Leiter
- Sergio Larrain
- Sebastião Salgado
- Shomei Tomatsu
- Stephen Shore
- The History of Street Photography
- Todd Hido
- Tony Ray-Jones
- Trent Parke
- Vivian Maier
- Walker Evans
- Weegee
- William Eggleston
- William Klein
- Zoe Strauss