Dear friend,

After studying a lot of cinema, and doing random long walks in the park here in Saigon, while also studying the work of Gilles Peress (His Iran series), I had a huge epiphany on why I love street photography so much: the ability for me to make beautiful pictures/visual-art, in a random, chaotic, unpredictable setting (the streets), chat with people (strangers, and open up my heart to them), to travel and see the world, and have fun compositional-visual puzzle games!

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I’ve been watching a lot of cinema lately, and analyzing the compositions. Stanley Kubrick is a genius, and his compositions blow my mind.

Yet the problem is this: there is a much higher barrier to entry to become a (Hollywood) film director. However, today, we can already become street directors; street photography/visual directors on the streets, without the need to have huge crews, big budgets, or have all this technical or logistical headaches.

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To me, street photography is a way of life. It’s embracing chaos, the random, unplanned, unpredictable, and making something beautiful out of it (street photos). I get an insane amount of joy to just walk around in the world. Who knows, perhaps my passion of talking to strangers, walking, thinking, and philosophizing is actually deeper than my passion for making photos.

Yet still, realize that all of us as photographers are also philosophers. Why? We all make photos for different reasons. For example Gilles Peress said,

“I don’t care so much anymore about ‘good photography’; I am gathering evidence for history”- Gilles Peress

Gilles Peress has documented much human strife, pain and suffering all around the world, from Bosnia, to Iran, to Rwanda’s genocide. But the reason I love the work of Peress is this:

Peress is a visual historian, who makes visual poetry with his photos; and he also makes a strong social statement.

Of course, there is no ultimate reason why you should make photos. You must dictate your own purpose as a photographer, and it is beneficial to understand why you make photos.

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Why do you make photos?

I think once you discover why you make photos, it is easy to discover what to make photos of, and how to make photos. Nietzsche had a similar sentiment by saying,

For a man who has a why, he can discover almost any how.

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Never stop shooting!

If you know why you make photos, or why you make street photos, or why you do anything — it is easy to do so. You’ll be more selfish with your time (a good thing) to make more photos. To travel more, to explore more, to learn more.

So friend, why do you make photos? Share your thoughts in ERIC KIM FORUM.

NEVER STOP SHOOTING,
ERIC

Respark your passion for street photography at ERIC KIM WORKSHOP >