Human artist blog / Street photography / Philosophy
When people say, “the camera doesn’t matterâ€, what they really mean to say is: Your skill as a photographer doesn’t increase proportionally with the expense of your camera. For example having a $10,000 camera …
To ‘entertain’ literally means “to hold the attention” [of x]. Many of us like to be ‘entertained’ (by others). Generally speaking, entertainment is seen as a passive act. My thoughts and questions: Why do …
You don’t take a photo, you make it (Ansel Adams)
Is your desire to spend more time with yourself and with your own thoughts, or to escape yourself and your own thoughts?
Dear friend, If you want to make great photographs while elevating your photographic skills, technique, and artistic vision, I cordially invite you to my upcoming NEW ORLEANS Street Photography Experience (Feb 29-30th, 2020). O …
Without art, there is no life.
The eternal joy of creation (and destruction), just like Heractlius‘ child — continually building sand-castles, only to break them down again, or let them wash back into the ocean!
In a world with Uber, and in a future of electric self-driving cars — what are cars for? Which cars are the best, and for what?
It isn’t about how good you are as an artist, all that matters is the quantum of creative courage you got!
Of course genetics exists. But the problem about believing too much in genetics is this: We tend to believe that our future and fate is determined by our genetics. And that our genetics overpower …
A realization: More effective to train for strength (powerlifting) and gain muscle as a consequence, than to strive to maximize muscle growth.
If you need the ultimate everyday “daily driver”, “daily carry”, and want to be inspired and motivated everyday to shoot new photos, RICOH GR III x ERIC KIM is the answer.
To buy stuff doesn’t take skill. It’s boring. More fun, challenging, interesting and dangering to create, innovate, and produce. In praise of “producerism”, not consumerism.
I think film will be around forever, and I’m very grateful for my experiences shooting film. But at this point moving forward, “electric” (digital) cameras are the future.
The stoic motto— There is no greater joy than being alive. All the “downsides†of existence are petty concerns.
Assuming you have a luxury good or tool with the apex quality, craftsmanship and beauty, it is more “sustainableâ€because you’re more likely to own it forever and not throw it away.
The key to success in modern times: Start your own (self-hosted wordpress.org) blog.
The biggest danger: Indoctrination of certain beliefs, instead of being able to pursue your own (genius) artistic vision. Instead, become an entrepreneur.
Why do nerds on the internet desire to setup walls, definitions, and modes of doing things? Because they have no self-confidence in themselves and what they do. Avoid ANY and EVERY photographer who seems …
Don’t do anything in life you don’t care about. And in terms of living your life, only do and pursue things you care about. Go back to your 16 year old self, in terms …
What makes a genius? I don’t believe that certain individuals are born genetically different from us, “born” to be geniuses. No–a genius is simply someone with monster-like courage, a relentless vision, and someone who …
When I was 20 years old, I discovered this camera called ‘Leica’. It was fascinating to me (Henri Cartier-Bresson shot with it, and many of the masters). I had all these romantic notions of …
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A simple thought: When making life choices, let your own fun-meter gauge your direction. For example: Only do what is fun and interesting to you. Never do what is boring, uninteresting, or ‘meh’ to …
A thought: Perhaps we should think of the phone less as a camera, more of a productivity device. Have the phone as a mini mobile computer, and your RICOH GR III as your standalone …
Whenever I meet people who are “Marxist”, super anti capitalist or anti system, yet watch Netflix, shop at Whole Foods, and order stuff on Amazon, I get super suspicious.
Personal reflections:
One of the cameras which is truly great is the older Leica M9. To me, it’s far more interesting, sexy, and beautiful than the newer Leica M240, and even the newest Leica M10.
Darker, stronger, more solid, simpler, and deeper black monochromes:
Of course you can photograph anything and everything. But here are some practical ideas:
In order to become more productive, maximize your physical and physiological strength.
Shooting for yourself, of yourself. Feeding your ego is good. Ego literally means “self”. Don’t you respect, admire, and desire to glorify yourself?
Heraclitus notion: You are always different, and the river is always different! This means: You can keep repeating the same thing over and over again, and not repeat yourself, because you and the circumstances …
At this point, I feel like a mini-master in street photography. Here is the advice I will give you on your personal journey:
My ongoing photography project on AMERICA — my home, my love, my country:
In photography we need a motivation, a spark, a DRIVE to make a photograph. But what if there isn’t anything interesting to photograph? What if we aren’t motivated to make photos? Should we “force” …
The most important and only person to impress and surpass — yourself.
Seems like the same camera — with cosmetic and UI/UX differences:
My heuristic of whether a good is luxury or not: If they call it “luxuryâ€, it isn’t luxury. For example:
Stereotype: a commonly held belief about a certain group of people. Racism: belief in the inferiority of ability in a certain group or race of people. For example, “Asian people are good at math” …
Susan Sontag’s “On Photography†is one of the worst texts you can ever assign to an aspiring photographer, photography student, photography beginner, or lover of photography. My critique: I think Susan Sontag hates photography.
A realization: Almost all photography is street photography.
Advice I wish I could have given myself, if I rebooted my entire street photography journey all over again:
The beauty of Tri-X 400 pushed to 1600 with yellow filter:
Photos you didn’t like in the past often get better with time. To really get to know how you really feel about your photos, let them sit and marinate for a while. For example …
Long story short, iPhone Pro and noir is great. No third party apps— just the default iPhone Pro shooting in Noir filter mode, and later with some processing in the built-in Photos app:
Why I love monochrome:
To make more dynamic and interesting street photographs, shoot layers:
Before you travel to a new city for photography, how do you know whether to shoot color or black and white? My practical ideas:
What is your personal street photography philosophy?
I see myself more of a ‘sociologist with a camera’ than a ‘photographer’ or even a ‘street photographer’. This is another angle in street photography: you’re a sociologist with a camera!
Photograph as if you were to live forever!
What is the point of photography and art? My thought: To make sublime (great) photos, which inspire and uplift the souls of future photographers.
Nietzsche was staunchly anti-vegatarian. And I’m sure if he were alive today, he would be (even more) staunchly anti-vegan. An interesting thing he said in one of his books were about philosophers having ignorance …
The word habit comes from the word custom, which comes from the notion of setting your own path or way (suesco in Latin).
Seek LEGENDLegendaryTarry your own way LEGENDARYYou’re on the quest to become yourselfWhat path have you been dealt?Which way will you go, when you don’t know which way is right? The right way is through …
To build upon FILM 101: I wanted to review Kodak Portra 400, my favorite 35mm color film:
We cannot deny: Tokyo is one of the apex cities for street photography in the world.
Thoughts on composition, emotion, and mood in photography. Listen on ERIC KIM PODCAST >
Osaka as also a great place to travel, street photography, and living! Compared to Kyoto, more “gritty”, more influence of hip hop culture, and the people are more ‘down to earth’ and warmer. Kyoto …
Kyoto — the ultimate city in terms of street photography, aesthetics, food, and living:
In a world where all cameras are good cameras, and we all have the tools of creation — what now? My vision: Photography has truly become an even playing field — it’s all about …
Thank you to the Google Chrome team for making the “article suggestionsâ€tab an option to turn off! I think this is HUGE for design UI/UX ethics: If a user finds a certain feature as …
Do we believe in democratic photography — photography for all— photography for the masses? Photography that anyone, regardless of socio-economic class can access?
Fashion as in human clothing for humans as superior than sports cars, luxury cars, fancy homes, etc:
I make my living teaching street photography workshops how to conquer your fears in street photography and life. Why? Because fearlessness is one of the most important traits in life to get what you …