Month: October 2020

What is street photography? Social photography.

To be an anti social street photographer seems like a contradiction. We street photographers love people, society, and the public!

New creations via the new Zen Brush 3 app. I made this on my iPad (just my finger, no silly Apple Pencil which I am very anti).

A thought:

Many individuals end up becoming enslaved to their homes (repair, mortgage, desire to continually remodel and decorate their homes unto no end).

But this seems like a poor way to live. Why? It prevents you from really living. The best life is outdoors, in the streets, traveling, living nomadically or just being out and about in the town. Living ain’t staying home!

Very interesting idea:

When I make a slide show of my photos and upload it to YouTube, YouTube (Google) always gives you 3 suggestions for the ‘best’ thumbnail (most likely to get clicked).

Contrary to popular technique, I do not create ‘customized’ thumbnails for YouTube. 99% of the time I just use the default suggested thumbnail that YouTube suggests for me.

Why? My theory:

1. YouTube (Google and Google Images) processes quadrillions of images a day, and their vision algorithms are probably sophisticated enough to somehow know which images often get most clicked on. Thus perhaps this can be a good guide and signal to helping us better select our most outstanding photos?
2. Then what seems to be an interesting hack and workaround: Make an iMovie slide show of your best photos, and then upload it to YouTube and see what YouTube (Google) thinks is best, and cross-reference it with your own gut feeling.
3. Idea: How could we use Google’s Vision API to perhaps create some sort of photo selection and editing tool which can help us quickly go through all our photos and identify our best images?

My street and photo and personal life integration:

A thought and reflection on photography and art:

There are no ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ ways to approach photography or art.

Then perhaps our greatest contribution to others can be:

Just share how *YOU* do it, and let others ‘take it or leave it’!

In other words, anti-artistic tyranny. Every one can do photography and art however *they* desire to do so.

All teaching is just suggestions and guidance!

When I look at my photos (often when I photograph the same scene in both monochrome *AND* color, the monochrome photos seem so much more artistic. Why is this the case?

Theory:

Color looks like ‘real life’ and we disdain ‘real life’. Perhaps we prefer the *false* reality of monochrome?

Then perhaps this is what art is:

Art is contra-reality?

A quick guide and primer on doing a floor bench press (not using standard bench press).

Why do it on the floor instead of using a bench? Some thoughts:

No right or wrong way to do things. The goal: create a new bespoke mould for yourself!

Or why I prefer heavy dumbbell press over benchpress:

I only ever feel like I ever got a good “workout” if I push myself to my one rep max, and either fail (while almost succeeding) or from suceeding.

Morale:

To skate and dance around and push yourself towards the proximity of your limits is pure bliss!

More interesting to come up with interesting questions than need to come up with the answers (and all the answers are subjective anyways!)

As someone who has been sponsored in the past, got free stuff, got paid, got special gigs and treatment etc I’d say brand sponsorships and endorsements (while they sound sexy) is mostly a trap. Why?

Well first of all, you lose your true opinion. For example as I was getting free cameras from Fujifilm I learned:

I would actually never spend my own and real money on a Fujifilm camera (and even before I got sponsored, I never purchased one with my own money).

Same when I got free phones from Samsung. Truth be told, I’d never actually buy a Samsung smartphone for myself in cash.

So as a consequence, it is great having free stuff but the downside is that I don’t use the stuff I really want to be using, and also I don’t know what my true preferences are. I’m not saying 100% undiluted what I *really* think and believe, in the low-key fear I might stop receiving free stuff in the future. So in this way, you become trapped.

My goal and my personal pursuit:

Discovering how we can maximize human potential … using my self and my life as a guinea pig!

Thought 1:

Variety of social spaces throughout the day. Not just staying home all day.

We get joy from looking at the photos of others (National Geographic, the old masters of photography, photo books, etc). But a thought:

Isn’t it better that we get more inspiration from looking at our own (old) photos than the photos of others?

First snow in Providence Rhode Island today.

A lot of East Coasters and Middle-Coasters often think California is the best. In my opinion, I think California is sooooo overrated.

Life with snow is more fun, interesting and dynamic!

Simple ideas:

Generation Iron 4 (Natty 4 Life) is a great film. Highly recommend it. Some quick thoughts:

1. What does it mean to be ‘health-conscious’? Why be health-conscious?
2. What role does ‘epigenetics’ play in bodybuilding?
3. Why does everyone want to get more attention, and get more influence?
4. Thoughts on longevity vs consistency in body building.
5. Does it matter how ‘hard’ you work, and why?
6. What makes a ‘beautiful’ vs ‘ugly’ physique?
7. ‘Steal Syndrome’: Steroids steal energy away from other organs to increase muscle tissue
8. Steroids feels like euphoria; but *why* feel euphoria?
9. Why do men lift weights?
10. On looking beautiful (all the time) vs looking beautiful ‘for a split second’ (Mike O Hearn?)
11. Why destroy your hormones just to look good?
12. Excellence, dedication, spirit, loyalty, integrity (motto of Natural Body Building)
13. Focusing on what you can control vs what you cannot control.
14. Body building as self development and self mastery
15. What is the ‘art form’ of body building?
16. What makes for beautiful proportions in the human body?
17. Body building vs Body ‘destroying’
18. Why grow?
19. Why do we desire to look like freaks?
20. What is our natural (physiological) potential?

The problem in today’s world:

Too many sheep, not enough personalities and true leaders.

Just watched Generation Iron 4 (Natty 4 Life) and really enjoyed it. The thought which came to me:

In body building, the ‘natural’ body building scene is more ‘legitimate’ or more ‘wholesome’, whereas 1000x less popular than the ‘freak show’ of traditional body building (with steroids).

Then this makes me think and wonder:

Why strive towards mainstream success? Perhaps mainstream success is positively bad; low-key success (in your small field, according to your own ethics and beliefs) is superior.

Even more deep:

*WHY* compete in the first place?

Snow as insanely beautiful:

The goal:

To never stop advancing in photography.

How to do this? Some thoughts:

Why be consistent? And how to become more consistent? My thoughts:

When it comes to lifting and powerlifting, I say this is the hierarchy:

1. Deadlifts
2. Squats
3. Everything else…

Typically speaking, I encourage you to first strengthen your legs (strong legs as the more masculine thing) and to make your leg strength your priority. Typically if you get a 4 plate deadlift (405 pounds+) or a 3 plate squat (315 pounds) your upper body will also naturally become very strong and buff (you must shoulder that weight, or lift it).

Anyways, here are some of my thoughts on squatting:

Why exercise, tax and exert bodily effort? Simple… as a means of inspiring and triggering your mind to think!

Don’t separate your identities, or your activities. You’re always a photographer and always you. This means always be shooting, always be recording, and most importantly… always be living!

My dream:

Come up with certain ideas and share them with others which can empower *all* photographers from around the globe, regardless of experience, socio-economic status, etc!

You exist and will continue to exist for (some) time. The question:

How do you desire to harness your life and existence? What interesting experiments do you want to try and discover for yourself or for others?

For example what new truths do you desire to discover? What new things do you desire to discover about your self or body? What specific or universal truths do you desire to discover?

Or in other words, COVID has taught us:

We humans thrive when we have the opportunity to interact, talk, and engage with other human beings!

When to color, when to black and white?

If you want to discover more inspiration and motivation, you need some sort of visual distractions (in embodied reality) via human beings, random textures, variation of environment.

Ideation:

The art of coming up with new ideas.

Why ideation? Why ideas? A world and society without any new ideas is a society on the decline.

What is the purpose of food?

‘Adrenaline in me like I got injected (BIG SEAN).

The more we can live with adrenaline, the better.

No deadlifts, no life:

Theory:

Our mood is mostly hormonal. Thus if we can identify the specific activities, substances, or lifestyle things which affect our hormones in a certain way… then it means:

Our moods are easily within our control!

Ever since Covid hit, I’ve been gymless for many months. Just got a new membership, and hit the deadlift, squat, heavy dumbell press. After quarantine my strength is still surprisingly good! Max 455 deadlift before COVID, and I just did 415 (pretty easy), squatted 3 plates and a 10 on each side (felt easy), and 100 pound dumbell with good effort.

Since this week powerlifting again, I’m less agitated easily. My mood is far more balanced and zen-stoic calm.

I read a theory from Nassim Taleb about testosterone:

The higher your testosterone, ironically your mood is *less* variable, and cortisol (stress) affects you less.

Then the theory:

If you desire to have a more stoic and zen calm in life, increasing your testosterone (via natural methods like powerlifting and consuming more fatty red meat like beef) is massively advantageous!

FIRST SENT TO ERIC KIM NEWSLETTER >

Dear friend,

The thought to inspire and motivate you:

Ask yourself… ‘Why do I make photos?’

From this answer, all the other answers will come easy.

The better we understand *why* we make photos, the more motivation we can give ourselves to actually shoot!

Real gratitude:

In fact, your life is great. And you feel deep gratitude for the greatness in your life.

False gratitude:

Your life is actually quite shitty, but you play the ‘sour grapes’ idea in your mind, trying to trick yourself into thinking that your (really bad) situation isn’t *that* bad.

Why is this difference important?

Well, let us say you’re in an abusive relationship. To simply say ‘oh my situation isn’t that bad, he doesn’t beat me *THAT* bad’ is unacceptable. We must not be fooled. And to have false gratitude will prevent us from actually changing our real life situation for the better.

The simple goal in life:

How can we live more?

When I am looking out, and I see some of these things, it motivates me to shoot photos:

1. Juicy colors
2. Interesting or novel scenes
3. Textures
4. Interesting looking people
5. Witnessing a scene which is unfolding before my very eyes, and within a few seconds I can make a certain photo composition which “completes the frame”.

Life with photography is far richer, more vibrant, more joyful and superior to life without photography.

If your goal is to augment your happiness in life, deeper integration with photography is supreme!

Simple personal truth I’ve discovered for my self:

A life with a gym has made my life 1000x happier, more interesting, and great than life without a gym.

What do we desire out of life? To live well. To live maximally well.

What does this mean?

There are many things which are unlimited and many things which are limited and having bounds.

Limited and bounded: the maximum extent of human life (maybe 130 years?)

Things which are unlimited: digital things, energy (in a practical form), etc.

Then the question arises: how to maximize and leverage things which are unlimited while being mindful of what’s bounded in our life?

In life, your basic needs will be met. Also, even if you acquire all the best tools, fashions, equipment, clothes, cars, watches, homes, etc … what is the end of all of it?

To me, it seems the best strategy in life is this:

Harness your body, mind, and gut as a tool to create new art works, to discover new truths which will have positive utility for mankind, and to help evolve humanity forwards and upwards!

There is no such thing as “good” breathing and “bad” breathing, and we also don’t need to force ourselves to breathe.

So why judge our photos in a similar vein? Why not enjoy photography as seamlessly and effortlessly as we approach breathing; subconsciously, unconsciously, and without force and effort?

The best photos are effortless. You shoot as you see things, with no hesitation, self censorship or judgement.

The best entertainment is challenging, enthralling, dangerous, cruel, tragic and beautiful all in one.

Disregard notions of having to make a “good” photo. Better to take a “bad” photo than no photo!

Certainly there is no such thing as ultimate truths, but it seems that our attempt to seek *some* interesting personal truths (which can be applied to a sub-section of society) is very interesting and important!

And if you cannot seek your own equals or find your equals, just go at it alone, and find your equals as you go along!

Thought:

With us men, there seems to be some sort of male hierarchy based on physical strength.

For example at the gym, the question is:

Can you deadlift over 4 plates? Can you squat over 3 plates? Can you bench over 2 plates?

This seems to be the very basic bar in terms of strength. Either you are above it, or under it.

If you are over it, you become part of this elite club. If you cannot, you are just another ‘rando’ (random) individual who is just sort of a hobbyist.

Gym as a great zen temple. Also a great place to socialize, meet new folks, shoot the shit, walk around in big areas when you’re trapped at home all day, and getting a great gym pump.

Photo idea:

Photograph really up-and-close macro photos of food.

Food is insanely interesting to photograph, to see all the valleys, shapes, textures … especially in porous materials like bread.

When looking at sourdough bread (high contrast monochrome) up close and personal, think about the fractal pattern:

Bread up close and personal is no different than a Rocky Mountain cliff from afar!

Or why IRON MAN 1 is so great:

The only way to live.

In other words:

Limits are bad.

The feeling like not having heavier weights to attempt a 1-rep max. In powerlifting, it’s always the thought of increasing your one-rep max even further is what makes it fun. If your gym had a limitation on the maximum weight, it would lack all interest! All records are there to entice us to try to break them!

The first Iron Man film: one of my favorite Marvel films of all time. Why?