How to Master Photography

The notion of being a “master” comes from the Proto Indo European “meghs” which means “big, great” (same word as magnus, and “mega” in Latin).

So how does one become “mgh” (mega, great, magnum?) Simple— here are my thoughts:

Beyond small

Berlin, 2019 #cindyproject
Berlin, 2019 #cindyproject
Cindy, the love of my life. Berlin, 2015
Berlin, 2015
Berlin, 2015 #cindyproject

To become big, great and mega … it is simple:

Just go opposite. Don’t strive for small and petty. Strive for big and great.

Kill your masters

Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson Composition Simplified

We love our masters in photography but we must go *beyond* them— to metaphorically kill them. As Buddhism says:

If you meet Buddha on the road, you must kill him.

The poetic interpretation is:

Never see the ultimate truth in one man, person, organization, collective, or concept.

No. Insane faith and self confidence in you.

Explore it all.

Anave. Westerly, 2020

It is all of photography. Master it all. All genres, all modes of creative expression; all is all!

Teach

“When one teaches, two learn”. This means:

As you teach, you better understand the underlying philosophy or logic behind photography and the visual arts. To have to explain gives you the opportunity to discover what you really think and believe in.

Never stop curating

Dynamic portfolio. This means as time goes on, you keep adding to your portfolio, and keep *removing* and subtracting from your portfolio. It is dynamic, not static. Digital portfolios are the future.

ERIC KIM BEST PHOTOS PDF Download

ERIC KIM BEST PHOTOS

Your best photos are always in a state of flux.

Keep learning: How to Make a Digital Portfolio