How to See More Artistically as a Photographer
What is our prime worth as a photographer? Our vision. Our ability to see artistically is the goal:
…December 2020
Aesthetics First
New epiphany:
…In life, prioritize for aesthetics. Let the function take care of itself later!
Photography Christmas Ideas
Christmas is just around the corner. What gifts are best for us photographers? Some ideas:
…Beautiful Forms
What we artists delight in — a world of appearances, and the profundity and beauty of superficial forms:
…Photography as Visual Puzzles of Reality
As of late, one of my visual muses has been studying Archimedes, math, and visual proofs of mathematical equations and concept ideas.
Which made me think:
We as photographers are doing something similar … except we are trying to untangle reality, and perhaps discover and uncover interesting, deep, profound and hidden beauties in embodied reality?
Composition and framing as beautifying reality (hyper reality beauty), and also discovering interesting new visual proofs of reality?
…10 Tips How to Shoot Head-On Street Photography
Typically street photos you shoot which are head-on are more dynamic, engaging and energizing. This is how to do it:
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Why Look at Your Old Photos?
Often I forget the old photos I’ve shot in the past! To look at my old photos is almost akin to experiencing it for the first time:
…UTILITY.
What is the best? Typically that which has the most utility.
What is the most utility? That which gets utilized and used the most!
…On Becoming a More Optimistic Photographer
FREE MOTIVATION ON ERIC KIM NEWSLETTER >
Dear friend,
In today’s topsy turvy world, being optimistic is hard. But my happy thought is this:
The future world will continue to exist, and you will continue to thrive as a photographer.
Just imagine —
…What new photos have you yet photographed?
How to Study Composition
To study composition means to steal visual inspiration from anywhere and everywhere.
…How to Become a More Optimistic Photographer and Human
In my opinion, I believe it takes more skill and courage to be hopeful, joyful, cheerful and optimistic than pessimistic and nihilistic. Our goal as photographers is to have motivation to shoot until we’re 120 years old. So how does one do this?
…How to Become a More Optimistic Photographer and HumanRead More »
Hopeful Photography
Hopeful photos … the promise of a more beautiful tomorrow and day after tomorrow. Photos as the great bringer of optimistic hope and joy!
…Passion for Geometry
Henri Cartier-Bresson once said he had a passion for geometry. This mixed with his pursuit of photography is interesting — hybrid of both geometry/shape/form, and photography (instant sketches of life).
My new interest — studying Archimedes, mathematics, and projective geometry to cross-pollinate with photography and composition:
…Photographers Are Artists; Artists Are Photographers
Too long we have separated the two. No, we must integrate them.
A photographer is an artist. Artists are also photographers.
Almost everyone I know who is interested in photography has an artistic spine and bones within them. It’s simply a matter of other artists who act pretentious and try to talk down on photographers.
Photography as just another medium or media, as Aristotle said (On the Soul).
So photographers … we express our souls via the medium or media of photography?
Also—
No photograph is sacred. We can remix, reshape, glitch, filter, adapt, change, paint, sketch, or trace our photos and repurpose them as we see fit!
A type of photo “upcycling”. Photographic renewal, visual energy.
…Photographers Are Artists; Artists Are PhotographersRead More »
Archimedes Composition and Mathematical Studies
Archimedes “On the equilibrium of planes”— a fascinating look into how mathematics, art, science, design, and visual architecture are all interconnected:
…Circle Photography Composition Technique
An effective photography composition technique — circles:
…How Do You Know if a Photo is Good or Not?
For me a “good” photograph is a photograph I find personally interesting, curious and worth lingering over.
…How to Improve Your Visual Acuity
Visual acuity means “the art of seeing beautiful scenes and potentially interesting photos”. The concept behind our book “How to See”:
…8 Creative Black and White Photography Assignments for You
First sent on ERIC KIM NEWSLETTER >
Dear friends,
Some quick black and white photography assignments to get you going:
- Photograph your hand. Shoot in RAW, and increase the contrast, to see more details in your hands
- Inverse your photos: Choose some monochrome photos of yours which you like, and inverse them, to gain a more interesting view into them.
- Shoot with a flash: Monochrome and a flash renders interesting scenes. Shoot everything you see with a flash and without a flash. You can experiment with RICOH GR II Program Mode and the integrated flash, or the integrated flash on your Fuji, or even the iPhone with Noir mode with the integrated flash!
- Make a portfolio of your favorite (current) monochrome photos and upload them to your website portfolio.
- Study the masters of monochrome photography. Andre Kertesz, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Josef Koudelka, Richard Avedon.
- Experiment with RAW or JPEG high contrast for monochrome. You can download ERIC KIM PRESETS for free to experiment with.
- Exposure compensation: When you see something interesting, shoot it at -1 exposure compensation, 0, and +1 exposure compensation.
- Abstract your photos as much as possible. This means, blur your photos, shoot your photos out of focus, and make them more surreal!
Upload your favorite monochrome photos to arsbeta.com
…8 Creative Black and White Photography Assignments for YouRead More »
How to Make More Meaningful Black and White Photos
The goal … to make more personally meaningful photos. Monochrome/black and white is an effective way:
…How to Make More Meaningful Black and White PhotosRead More »
On Discovering Your Style as a Photographer
Your style in photography is always changing and evolving. As Heraclitus would have said:
…Your photos and style and creative/artistic vision is always in a stream of becoming.
How to Gain More Physiological Energy and Power
Not more ‘happiness’ or even more ‘joy’ in life … more physiological energy, power, and force!
…Photography Creativity Assignments
Simple ideas to get you going:
- Spend a day shooting photos only on your phone, and explore all the filters in the default iPhone/Apple Photos app, or the default filters in Google Photos.
- Spend a day shooting only creative selfies of yourself. Selfies of yourself in a mirror, your reflection, etc.
- If you have the urge to buy a new camera or lens, buy a new photography book instead. For new photographic inspiration and motivation, buying books not gear is the way.
- If you’re lacking motivation to make new photos, start shooting videos instead! Shoot lots of random video clips and drag them into imovie and export them as a ‘life vlog‘ of your video photograph snapshots. Best way I would describe it as “creative snapchat like” photo-videos.
- Take some photos of yours which you like, and glitch and apply fun and creative filters to your images to re-imagine them in novel ways.
- To give feedback on the photos of others is also creative. Upload your best photos and provide feedback on arsbeta.com
- If you got a standalone digital camera, choose a jpeg filter you like and stick with it for a month, as a way to cultivate an artistic style. I like high contrast monochrome and cross process filter on RICOH GR III.
Creative
The purpose of life to create, be creative, and never stop creating and iterating your creations!
…More Energy and Power
The other day, for some reason after sleeping at midnight I woke up, wide awake at 4am. Drank a few coffees and did some creative work in the morning, but for the rest of the day I felt like absolute shit and it was one of the most physiologically painful and unpleasant days I’ve experienced in a long time. But I suppose the good that came out of it was realizing:
What I truly desire is more physiological energy, physiological power to pursue my artistic, creative and philosophical ends!
My Higher Mission
To advance photography for all, not just the privileged few.
Also, to innovate in photography for the sake of opening up new opportunities, new avenues for photographers to express themselves creatively via photography. Also, photography philosophy and entrepreneurship … photography as risk taking, and life living!
What’s Your Higher Mission in Life?
…Life Without Music Would Be a Mistake
One of my favorite Nietzsche quotes. A realization —
When I am listening to music (especially with noise cancelling headphones, BOSE QC 35 Mark II), I can actually focus. My mood and physiological energy levels are improved probably 100x, and my delight and joy in life and existence is magnified to an insane degree!
Which makes me think:
Perhaps we should listen to *MORE* great music, to augment our lives and our life experiences?
Artistic Impression
What we are trying to do as artists is not to give a factual depiction of something, but the *impression* and the *feeling* of something!
For example, with hyper cars … the sensation and impression of speed and dominance, even when it is stationary!
…When I Photograph
When should you photograph? I cannot speak for you, but let me speak for myself:
…Art as reality re-packaged in a novel way!
If you desire to make more “artistic” photos, try to make photos that *don’t* resemble reality!
…Photography and Imagination
Photography is interesting when our photos can be used as a stimulus to imagine … to imagine what was *really* happening behind the scenes. Also, when we apply filters to our photos, we allow our viewers to imagine more!
…Philosophy is a Luxury
Something that philosophers of the past haven’t figured out (for some reason or another):
…To study philosophy or to philosophize about non-utilitarian things is the ultimate luxury.
I CANNOT BE IGNORED
In life and entrepreneurship, and art… the worst:
To be ignored.
Thus it seems a better position to put yourself is this:
…Create, produce, share, and be yourself insofar much as you cannot be ignored by others!
LIFE VLOG x ERIC KIM BEATS
Towards becoming a fully-realized full-stack visual artist:
Combine photos videos and also music (making my own beats).
Total independence:
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Photo Meditations
There are no rules to photography … just guidelines and suggestions. But with all suggestions in life, you can either take it or leave it!
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Virtual Reality Creativity
If you’re in a position in which you’re trapped at home and want to be creative, virtual reality may be a good option for you (Oculus Rift S + Gravity Sketch or Google Tilt Brush) as great avenues to create in 3D!
…What’s the Purpose of a Home?
I’ve had the privilege of living in many different types of living situations, homes, lifestyles (digital nomad, location independent, etc).
…Social Media Treadmill
We talk much about the “hedonic” treadmill (a life in which we are just trying to maximize our base sensual pleasures). Why don’t we ever talk about the social media treadmill — in which we just keep producing things and uploading things to get more likes and followers and social media fame, towards what end?
The Principle of Life
To create, produce and beget more life! More life via having kids, producing new food and energy, and creating new products and inventions which motivate people to do more, create more and live more!