Photography must be fun for you — otherwise it is not a worthwhile pursuit.
Category: Posts
-
HENRI NECK STRAP MARK IV
Super super fresh: the new HENRI NECK STRAP MARK IV in CRIMSON RED UNDERBELLY (for Mahogany Brown):
(more…) -
Indifference to Pain or Suffering
In life, we will experience much pain and suffering. What is the best way to approach this?
Know it is part of the game — and become more indifferent towards your personal pain and suffering, and the only time to address it is in order to *NOT* keep yourself in a disadvantageous situation.
For example, let us say you are in an abusive relationship. You will experience much pain and suffering. The smart thing — channel the pain and suffering as an intelligent signal to *GET OUT* of that relationship, no matter what. But once you’re out of the relationship and you think about the past pain and suffering, rather than feel bitter resentment (like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies) — best to just feel indifferent towards your past suffering.
What has happened has happened and the only intelligent thing to do is move forward.
Work through the pain, and fix the pain.
Let us say you get an injury– whether physical or mental. Then the goal:
Figure out what your injury is, and figure out how to ‘rehab’ it — via active physical therapy or mental therapy.
For example if you get some sort of injuries in your joints– figure out how to do active therapy (yoga, stretching, and active dynamic strengthening exercises), and then —
After rehab, you will become *STRONGER* than you were before the injury.
Like Nietzsche said:
What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.
In our words:
That which has injured me or hurt me in the past can be a positive stimulus to help me focus on becoming *STRONGER* than I was before the injury!
ERIC
(more…) -
Fun Experience
We like to test drive cars which are fun to drive. Why not also cameras which are a fun experience to shoot?
Then perhaps in life— seek for fun and engaging and thrilling experiences over the “best†ones.
Then some other thoughts: what is the most fun shoe to wear, or the shoe that allows you to have the most fun experiences? Optimizing your life or fun experiences perhaps will help you live a more interesting, fulfilling life, and to become more.
-
Create *BEYOND* Yourself
FREE MOTIVATION ON ERIC KIM NEWSLETTER >
Dear friend,
Upon much deep thought and philosophizing — I think I got it figured out when it comes to artistic and creative matters:
Create BEYOND yourself.
What does this mean? This means:
Our lives are limited and short … and thus … the goal of life is to augment ourselves in order to create beyond ourselves.
For example with materialistic matters– there is only so much equipment and gear we need. Once we have the ‘best’ tools for artistic creation… then what? It isn’t to enjoy these things for the sake of it. It is channeling and harnessing these tools in order to create things. To share things. To publish things.
This is the great upside of online publishing (especially to your own self-hosted blog or website). No gate-keepers. Nobody stopping you but you.
How to create and share beyond yourself today:
- Create your own website/blog. Easiest is wordpress.com, then next is wordpress.org (self-hosted website blog on bluehost.com).
- Once you have your own website blog, publish fearlessly.
- Realize that everything is a work in progress. This means publish BEFORE things are ready. We seem to be fascinated by rough drafts from famous writers, or even sketches of famous painters (the working sketches BEFORE the final product). Thus think — one day future scholars will find fascination with you sharing your works in publish.
- Just make it ‘80% good enough‘ and hit publish. This means to ‘satisfice‘ (satisfy + suffice) the ‘minimum viable’ concept.
- The more you publish, the more creative and fearless you will become.
Don’t have anywhere to publish your photos? Publish them today on arsbeta.com
ERIC KIM WALLET IS HERE
If you are seeking for the perfect wallet to help you shoot more fearlessly in life, ERIC KIM PHOTOGRAPHER’S WALLET is here for you >
Discover more in HAPTIC INDUSTRIES SHOP >
(more…) -
Publish Fearlessly
What can we control? Our courage. What else can we control? How fearlessly to publish. The only ‘failure’ in life is to fail to publish something because you’re afraid of negative feedback from others.
(more…) -
ERIC KIM PHOTOGRAPHER’S WALLET (SD CARD FUNCTIONALITY x FASHION)
Preview of how to use PHOTO WALLET:
SD Card functionality, and individual crimson red hand-stitching:
-
MAKE DOPE THINGS AND SHARE THEM WITH THE WORLD!
My personal impetus behind HAPTIC INDUSTRIES and everything I create here:
To create awesome, epic, and hugely practical things (which have been of huge use to me) and sharing them with others — knowing that there will be a small group of people who will also find it hugely useful, practical and life-enhancing and life-invigorating!
For example, being a photographer– creating the ideal and perfect tools *I* wish I had access to. Creating what I desire to see manifested in the embodied world.
For example, ERIC KIM PHOTOGRAPHER’S WALLET — my obsession with creating the perfect wallet for myself and all photographers.
ERIC KIM PHOTOGRRAPHER’S WALLET With almost all design decisions — design for yourself. Like the new HENRI NECK STRAP Crimson Red Underbelly for the Mahogany Brown color — I just thought:
If I made the inside of the neck pad red– that would look super gangsta.
HENRI NECK STRARP HENRI BROWN (MARK IV) Morale of the story:
Create things *BEYOND* yourself– things you desire to see manifested in the world.
ERIC KIM
(more…) -
AS MUCH AS YOU CAN TOLERATE.
How much coffee should you drink? How much should you workout? How much should you create, do, explore, travel and challenge yourself? My thought:
As much as your body, mind and soul can tolerate.
Entrepreneurship by KIM
Become the change which you desire to see manifested in the world!
Become you.
- Speed is Paramount
- TAKE IT BACK TO THE BEGINNING.
- A Life With No Risk Taking is *NOT* a Life Worth Living
- Dissatisfaction is Good
- GREATER STRENGTH, GREATER CHALLENGES.
- In Praise of the New
- Uncorrupted Desires
- You Cannot Fake Passion
- SELF-OVERGOING
- FORM YOURSELF.
- Personal Entrepreneurship
- RELENTLESS.
- PUT YOUR NAME ON IT.
- A Life of Expansion
- SELF-ENTREPRENEURSHIP
- YOU ARE THE EXCEPTION.
- Use Your Life as an Experiment to Self-Develop Yourself to Heights Never Seen Before
- Invest in New Developments
- Investing Towards What End?
- The 90%/10% Principle in Entrepreneurship
- Speed Wins
- The Philosophy of Happiness
- When to Over-Estimate, When to Under-Estimate?
- Never Stop Iterating
- Money as a Tool for Life and Artistic Experimentation
- Less But More Premium
- Mainstream vs Low-Key Success
- Why Dissatisfaction is Good
- SEEK YOUR OWN PERSONAL MAXIMAL BENEFIT INSTEAD OF COMPLAINING
- Manifest Your Destiny
- Is it Best to *Not* Communicate Your Inner Thoughts or Ideas With Others?
- CREATE THINGS YOU WISH TO SEE MANIFESTED IN THE WORLD
- How to Do More Work
- CONTROL.
- Competition is for Losers
- Change.
- Your Competitive Advantage with Insanely Fast Wifi and High Speed Internet
- Pseudo Individualism
- Natural Internal Promoting vs External Promptings
Think for Yourself.
- Survival vs Thrivival
- Become Rich
- SECRETS.
- Why it is Better to Beg for Forgiveness than Ask for Permission
- Thinking About the Past Prevents You From Thinking About the Future
- How to Predict the Future
- Tools of Mass Distraction
- So What?
FREEDOM
Never stop innovating: “Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Photography Entrepreneurship“.
Entrepreneurship Mindset
- What is Your Dream in Life?
- 8 Blogging Productivity Tips
- Why Be Normal?
- How Much Suffering Are You Willing to Endure to Achieve Your Dreams?
Put a Dent in the Universe.
-
On Becoming an Arts Photographer
When it comes to photography, there seems to be two types of photography:
- The first type of photography is more factual and depictual, which is photographing your car parking spot, or photographing your receipts for an expense report.
- Then the other category is arts creation, in which we use the camera as an artistic tool and medium, to create artworks. Us as photographers, our goal is to create art works with our photography.
Thus, don’t photograph things as they are, rather, photograph things as you feel them and experience them (personal photography).
PHOTOLOSOPHY
Discover more personal meaning in your photographic life with PHOTOLOSOPHY >
- Photos and Pictures
- Photographic Productivity > Happiness
- PHOTO WISDOM.
- The Philosophy of Photography and Life Experiences
- The Significant Moment
- Reflexive Photography
- Photograph Your Own History
- Why Share Your Photos?
- Photographic Memento Vivere
- Photography Art and Ethics
- Via Negativa Photography
- Psychology of the Photographer
- Optimize Your Life for Photography
- PHOTOGRAPHY IS A PRIVILEGE.
- How to Become a Great Photographer
- What is the Point of Photography?
- Past, Present, and Future Photos
- Reliability
- Why Share Your Photos?
- On Becoming Less Critical of Your Photos and Yourself as a Photographer
- Camera is God
- Photography Philosophy
- Photography for Mental and Physiological Health
- Photography and Health
- How You Can Become a Great Photographer
- Form and Substance
- ALL PHOTOS ARE ACCURATE, NONE ARE TRUTH.
- What Are You Trying to Message in Your Photography?
- Don’t Strive to Make Good Photos
- EVERY OPPORTUNITY IS A PHOTO OPPORTUNITY
- Photography as Your Personal Life Odyssey
- Grapher
- The Joyful Photography
- Photography 300 Years from Now
- All I wanna do is make photos and philosophize!
- First Get Happier, then Shoot Photos!
- No Artwork SHOULD Last Forever
- High Photography
- How to Photograph Your Everyday Life
- The Photograph is Not Sacred
- PHOTO MODE.
- The Visual Soundtrack of Your Life
- The Photographer is a Visual Explorer and Transformer
- Photography as the Ultimate Artistic Form of Self-Expression
- Don’t Seek to Please or Impress Others with Your Photos
- Shoot For Yourself
- Power Photography
- Creative Evolution
- The Artist-Photographer
- Photo Realism
- Perpetual Photography
- All Photography is Good Photography
- Optimal Simplicity
- Photograph.
- True Happiness in Photography
- NOW IS THE TIME TO SHOOT! #photolosophy
- Photolosophy: With Physical Proximity comes Emotional Proximity
- Why Share Photos?
- Chaos Photography
- Soul Street Photography
- Now is the Time to Shoot!
- Photolosophy 101: Don’t Photograph Others the Way You Wouldn’t Want to Be Photographed
- Photolosophy 101: Life and Death in Photography
- Photolosophy 101: Street Photography and the Art of People
- Introduction to Photolosophy
- Photography Entrepreneurship Philosophy
- Photography Philosophy 101
-
Let Your Curiosity Drive Your Photography
The photographer Garry Winogrand one said, “I photograph to see what the world looks photographed.â€
Perhaps the same philosophy in our photography is good, that is, to photograph things truly because we are curious how it will turn out. This childlike curiosity as the primum mobile, or the first motivator to our photography.
MASTER MOTIVATION
ERIC KIM NECK STRAP MARK II x Ricoh GR II x RICOH MAFIA Artwear Seek to supersede yourself and become more:
- LOVE YOUR PHOTOS.
- Abstract Monochrome Photography
- SHOOT WITHOUT THINKING.
- Just Have Fun With Photography
- Wu-Wei Effortless Motivation
- CONSISTENCY x NOVELTY
- Easily Bored?
- Face Photography
- How to Become More Self-Motivated in Your Photography
- YOUR OWN PHOTOS ARE THE BEST PHOTOS.
- On Sharing Your Favorite Photos
- UBERABUNDANCE.
- Peak Photographic Productivity
- When to Review Your Photos
- Serotonin and Photos
- The Photos You Have Yet Shot are Your Most Important Photos
- 3 Tips How to Master Photography
- Do You Like Your Own Photos?
- The Beauty of Mundane, Everyday Moments
- Reasons Why to Be Optimistic About the Future
- A Photography-Full Future
- The More You Shoot, the Better
- How Many Photos Should You Shoot Everyday?
- Why Do We Love Motion?
- Now is Your Chance to Shoot History in the Making
- Photo by Photo
- How and Why Photography Remains So Interesting to Me
- How to Conquer Your Inner Photographic Critic
- Thoughts on HDR Photography
- New Year, New Photos
- Why Exhibit Your Photos?
- Photography is Visual Poetry
- What’s the Purpose of Art?
- Why Do We Photographers Have Such a Hard Time Staying Inspired and Motivated?
- On Becoming a More Optimistic Photographer
- Philosophy of Weather
- How to Become a More Optimistic Photographer and Human
- You Are a Creative Photographer
- JUST SHARE YOUR ARTISTIC PROCESS WITH OTHERS.
- What Motivates Me to Shoot?
- How to Maximize Yourself to the Fullest
- HOW TO MOVE AND MOTIVATE PEOPLE
- Autotelic Photography
- The more I go out and photograph the world, the more interesting and beautiful the world becomes
- Why Photographers Have Such Low Self-Esteem
- ERIC KIM MOTIVATION
- Why Am I So Unmotivated?
- EVERY DAY IS A NEW DAY
- WHY ARE YOU SO UNMOTIVATED?
- Movement is Motivation
- How to Motivate Myself to Make New Photos
- Never Stop Optimizing
- How to Help and Motivate Others
- Feed On Your Own Photos; Let Them Nourish You!
- Competition is for Suckers
- A Future Without Travel
- How Google Can Improve Your Photography
- DEVELOP YOURSELF.
- NEVER STOP MOVING!
- How I Self-Motivate Myself
- Every Day the Sun is Birthed Anew
- A Life Without Photography Isn’t a Life Worth Living
- WIN.
- 8 Practical Photography Assignments for You
- Tabula Rasa, Blank Slate, Carte Blanche
- RELENTLESS
- LIFE IS THE ULTIMATE RPG
- HYPER VIGOR
- FRESH AIR PHOTOS
- WHO IS GONNA THRIVE IN TODAY’S BRAVE NEW WORLD?
- ARTISTIC OPTIMISM
- PASSION, not Discipline
- Better Bad Photos than No Photos
- The Empowering Feeling of Failure
- To Be Human is to Move
- Enjoy the Process
- Better Bad Photos than No Photos
- Why Keep Making New Art and Photos, Indefinitely?
- Photography Motivation: What if There is Nothing Interesting to Photograph?
- Move First, Motivation Later
- Motivation Follows the Action
- In Praise of Heroes
- 5 Tips How to Boost Your Creativity
- How to Have Inspiration to Take Photos in the Suburbs
- Anything that Motivates You to Move is Good!
- The Productive Photographer is the Happiest Photographer!
- Make Today Count!
- How to Break Through Photographer’s Block
- The Joyful Photographer
- The Dancing Photographer
- The Kaizen Process of Gradual Self-Improvement in Photography
- It is Your Duty to Make Beautiful Pictures!
- Making Pictures IS Happiness!
- NO EXCUSES.
- The Pomodoro Photography Technique
- The ABC of Photography
- Just Shoot It.
- How to Change the World With Photography
- How to Find Inspiration in Photography and Life
- How to Overcome Resistance
- Create Against the Past
- How I Motivate Myself to Make Photos
- Wear Your Camera Like a Necklace or Bracelet
- Have Your Photos Come to You
- How to Level Up in Your Photography
- How Not to Give a Fuck of What Others Think of You
- How to Overcome Procrastination in Your Photography
- How to Reinspire Your Photography
- What is Your Mission in Photography and Life?
- How to Overcome Photographer’s Block
- Be a Photographer Now
- How to Overcome Boredom with Photography
- Never Stop Growing as a Photographer
- Why Do You Need “Inspiration†to Shoot?
- Just Shoot.
- 5 Things to Do If You’ve Lost Your Passion for Photography
- How to Have Unshakeable Confidence in Yourself
- Don’t Give Up On Your Dream
- Don’t Waste Your Potential
- Unlock Your Potential
- Empower Others With Your Photography
- Why You Shouldn’t Follow Your Passion in Photography
-
The Simplest Creative Workflow
Simpler is better and more productive. The more you can simplify and streamline your workflow, with creative artistic matters, means more output and creative flourishing. Perhaps the more streamlined and simpler artistic lifestyle, and artistic techniques, the happier and more fully realized we can and will become.
For example, using iPhone as a creative tool not phone. Procreate, Zen Brush 2, and other arts creation applications. Or blogging from the phone — another creativity productivity hack.
Also with videos, when integrating it on your blog, best to just make it auto play on mute and loop.
Or not concerning yourself with formatting blog posts and making things look pretty. Rather, focusing on just creating it, writing it and sharing it and publishing it and getting it out there.
I’ve also discovered that voice dictation on the iPhone is one of the quickest and most effective ways to write, far faster than texting with your two thumbs. In other words, the data output of voices and speech is at least 100x compared to that of typing on your thumbs. Also, our voices and out lungs and our throats are stronger than the carpal tunnel in our thumbs.
The Art of Creativity
Re-discover your inner-child like PICASSO:
- The Artistic Impulse
- The Photographer as Painter
- Home Photography Assignments
- Creative Optionality
- All Photos are Creative Photos
- In Photography Even the Smallest Thing Can be a Leitmotif
- 5 Creative Photography Motivation Ideas
- Creative Cross-Pollination
- In Praise of Creative Repetition
- The Joy of Glitching Your Photos
- How to Master Creativity
- Creative Work and Physiology
- Enough is Never Enough.
- Become More Uninhibited
- Utilitarianism is the Enemy of Creativity
- CONQUER CREATIVITY
- ERIC KIM Thoughts on Creativity
- What Do You *Really* Want in Life?
- Creative Iteration
- In Photography, Even the Smallest Thing Can Be a Leitmotif
- The Art of Creativity
- Why Constrain Yourself in Only Color or Black and White?
- In Praise of Collaging Your Photos
- The Purpose is to Create
- Photographing With No Filter in Small JPEG
- The Impetus to Create
- On Focusing on Your Own Self Development
- WHY COME UP WITH NEW IDEAS?
- Visual Stochastic Resonance
- Future Creativity
- Eternal Re-Creation
- How I Come Up With My Ideas (Ideation 101)
- How to Be Creative During Quarantine
- Constraints are Creative
- HOW TO BE MORE CREATIVE DURING COVID
- It is All Connected.
- What is Interesting to You is Very Likely to Be Interesting to Others
- Happiness as a Means to Creative Productivity
- How I Remix My Photos in iPad and ProCreate
- Creative Productivity
- In Praise of Repetition
- The Eternal Creative Loop
- CREATE!
- The Goal is Spontaneous Creative Activity
- Ignore Your Haters.
- You’re on a Winning Streak
- Ultralight Photography
- How to see.
- CREATORS SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH.
- How to Ignore Your Inner-Critic
- How to Unlock Your Inner-Genius
- Success is Your Only Option
- How to Make Your Photos More Artistic
- Creative Lessons Rick Rubin Can Teach You About Photography
- Why I Love Shooting With an LCD Screen
- How to Shoot Abstract Photography
- How to Be More Spontaneous in Your Photography and Life
- How to Re-Invent Yourself in Photography
- How to Photograph Like a Child
- How to Be a More Imaginative Photographer
- Provoke
- Never Rust
- Limit Your Palette
- Follow Your Intuition
- Have Creative Confidence in Yourself
- How To Find Your Unique Voice in Photography
- Beginner’s Mind
- There is No Wrong Way to Shoot Street Photography
- You Can’t Control the Results, Only Effort
- On Capturing Beauty in the Mundane
- On Searching For the Maximum
- The Beauty of “Creative Constraintsâ€
- How to Stay Curious
- Enjoy the Process
Learn more: Photography >
-
MAXIMUM STREAMLINE.
The more you can simplify and streamline your life process, the better.
The best fashion as highly functional and streamlined. For example, the benefit of merino wool — streamlined living (the best material irregardless of weather conditions). Or military requirement being forest green — shows the least amount of dirt and grime when it gets dirty in the field.
Or with packing and putting away clothes — not to seek the “best†setup or the most “minimal†(often making things more minimal actually makes things more complicated)— just do what is easiest and most streamlined (often the best solution after moving is just quickly and efficiently stuffing things into drawers).
The upside of wearing the same all black outfit everyday (Steve Jobs, Mark Z idea)— streamline the clothes to maximize the artistic and creative output.
Or espresso over pour overs — far faster and more streamlined to make a good coffee in the morning.
Or the upside of having less square footage in your home — more streamlined process to find and get stuff and do stuff.
Also with creative workflow (one camera, one lens, preferably and uninterchangeable lens) to streamline your creative process and output.
High range electric cars — no need for frictionful oil changes or car maintenance stuff. If you have a charger at home, less time for gas station pit stops.
Or perhaps the upside of wearing crocs or flip-flops or sandals, the ability for you to leave the house without putting on cumbersome socks or having to tie shoes.
Or the upside of just working out with the kettlebell at home. The ultimate streamlined workout without having to leave the house or enter into a gym.
-
SUPREME SIMPLICITY.
We are seeking the supreme simplicity in life, design and aesthetics. But once you achieve supreme simplicity in all domains in your life … then what?
Then the next goal:
Create *BEYOND* yourself.
-
Zen Aesthetics
Not seeking the “best†aesthetic, but the most zen one. The aesthetic which affords you the most peace, calm, quiet and strong stoic tranquility in order to *NOT* think about the design and aesthetic. The best design as the one you never even have to think about! Via negativa aesthetics.
(more…) -
Study Great Compositions
Typically from the past. Great cinema — Akira Kurosawa (7 Samurai), classic Renaissance painting (Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael), great photographers (Henri Cartier Bresson, Richard Avedon, Josef Koudelka). Any compositions which inspire you are great.
(more…) -
LOVE YOUR PHOTOS.
The secret to boundless self driven motivation for your photography:
(more…)Boundlessly love your own photos, far more than the photos of others.
-
AS DARK AS POSSIBLE (ADAP)
Our photographic aesthetic Dionysian ideal. Perhaps also more tragedy in cinema, art as a superior form of beauty and storytelling.
The Philosophy of Aesthetics
The Philosophy of Aesthetics
- Depressing or Affirmative Art?
DISDAIN DETAIL. - Pragmatism as Anti Aesthetic
- AESTHETICS ARE ALL.
- AESTHETICS ARE THE ULTIMATE LUXURY.
- No Aesthetic is Forever
- Black is Boring
- DARKER IS BETTER.
- We Tire of The Beautiful, but Not of the Ugly?
- Minimalism as an Aesthetic and Ethos
- The Zen of Monochrome
- SIMPLICITY IS THE SUMMIT.
- AESTHETICS OVER FUNCTION
- The Desire to Banish Ugliness from Our Eyes
- Aesthetics Above All
- Simple is Sexy
- Towards a Philosophy of Aesthetics in Photography
- The Philosophy of Aesthetics
- ALL KILLER, NO FILLER.
- The Most Compact and High-Quality
- The Beauty of Imperfection
- TASTE.
- The More Obscure and Unclear, the Better.
- Cultivate Your Own Taste
- Image Quality and Great Photos
- Imperfect Photos are More Beautiful
- Do you photograph the world better, the same, or worse than reality? #aesthetics
- Aesthetics are Ethics
- Beauty over Truth #philosophy #aesthetics
- Philosophy of Aesthetics and Beauty in Photography
- Aesthetics in Photography
- Aesthetics Strengthen, Simplify, and Focus
- Not better image quality; more beautiful aesthetics!
- Why Aesthetics?
- Depressing or Affirmative Art?
-
How to Streamline Your Photography Workflow
The goal is the most streamlined photographic workflow. Simple ideas:
- Just shoot small JPEG (faster buffer speeds, faster time to upload your files, fewer issues with storage space)
- Use a preset or filter while you’re shooting in JPEG (for example, high contrast monochrome mode or cross process mode on RICOH GR III). This reduces time when it comes to post-processing. If you decide to shoot RAW, just use presets in Lightroom (FREE ERIC KIM PRESETS)
- When sharing your photos, upload and share/publish them to your own blog (self-hosted, WordPress.org) and try using the ‘Tiled Gallery’ function to best publish and share your work.
- When reviewing your photos, use the simplest and fastest software possible (for example I like Apple Photos on my laptop, faaaar faster than Lightroom Classic). If you decide to use Lightroom, I recommend the new Lightroom CC (much faster to review photos).
- When it comes to any photo matters ask yourself: “Is this going to streamline and *SIMPLIFY* and speed up my workflow, or will it complexify and make it slower and more burdensome?” For example, more megapixels, more problems.
-
Speed is Paramount
“The service is twofold greater when it is promptly rendered.†– Publilius Syrus
Perhaps the key to success or dominance — optimize for speed. For example Tesla Model S in Plaid+ mode, or Google AMP to speed up the web, or anything in photography which speeds up and streamlines your workflow. We love speed, saving time, having less lag, obstructions and fewer kinks in the pipe!
Perhaps then better to do a fast, speedy and prompt job than no job … or better to do something “poorly†and fast, than slow and never.
(more…) -
Abstract Monochrome Photography
A fun pursuit and photography assignment:
Shoot high contrast abstract photos in monochrome.
For example:
- Shoot under-exposed photos (as dark as possible). -1 or -2 or -3 exposure compensation.
- Photograph textures, light, interesting surfaces
- Look at the sky, or places with extreme high contrast
- Look for faces in gritty textures or beautiful decay (patina, wabi-sabi aesthetics).
- Look for patterns, or things which break the pattern (spot the not)
-
Personal Street Photography
Street photography you shoot for yourself– street photography you shoot for the pure joy of the activity and the experience of shooting street photography.
(more…) -
FOCUS ON PHOTO
In life, there’s a trillion things for us to pursue (money making, crypto and investing speculation, and other random pursuits). But perhaps out of all these pursuits, photography as the most interesting and worthwhile one.
(more…) -
Towards a Streamlined Lifestyle
It isn’t a “simple†lifestyle we want, but a more *streamlined* one — with fewer annoyances and blockages and “friction†which prevents you from doing what you truly desire to do in life.
-
Why Minimalism?
Minimalism because I easily bore of things and nothing satisfies me. I just strive to get the “least hateful†design, and just stick with it — even though it’s never perfect. And when it’s perfect I also easily bore of it.
Thus don’t think of minimalism from an aesthetic or ethical perspective, but a highly practical one.
“The best or nothingâ€, and if you got the best, just stick with one. Towards a “luxury†Spartan design ethos.
(more…) -
Perfect is Boring
Yes perfect exists. But once you get it, achieve it or buy it, things are boring. Thus never seek happiness, fulfillment and satisfaction from perfect — but perhaps the pursuit of perfection is the goal and the way.
-
TAKE IT BACK TO THE BEGINNING.
“I bought every V12 engine, wish I could take it back to the beginning.†– JAY Z
The purity and innocence of the beginner mind. Take yourself back to your high school self — what did you believe in and dream of, before getting corrupted by the outside external world? Internal desires, motivations and belief systems and ethos over external ones superimposed on you by others or society.
(more…) -
Curiosity.
Curiosity as the root of philosophy. A life with no curiosity is a dead life.
One doesn’t need to cultivate curiosity — one just needs to return to ones childlike curiosity about everything in the world! You don’t need to force a child to be curious — it is just his natural state of being!
Curiosity as the art of observation, and having lots of questions. Sociology as questioning social norms and the way things are traditionally done. To challenge convention as the heart of the curious individual.
-
Beauty and Interesting Photos are Everywhere
Think black and white, high contrast, textures, macro mode:
(more…) -
Life is about experiences and memories
And photography helps us capture and immortalize this!
(more…) -
Aspire
Aspire
Fly higher
Kiss the wings of God
Keep flying higher
What level are you on?Aspire
Breathe in hope
No nopes or dopes to hold you backKeep it black, simple and clean
No need to dream beyond the sheen
You’re the star, you’re the team.You’re the ultralight beam
Direct and clean
Stay focused and mean
You’ve got this, my brother and queen.ERIC KIM
-
A Life With No Risk Taking is *NOT* a Life Worth Living
Our entrepreneurial motto in life. A life with no risk taking is boring. And boredom is far worse to be feared than any other pain or suffering in life!
(more…) -
Photography is Free
Considering digital photography (or phone photography) is practically free … why not harness this phenomenal upside to your advantage and benefit?
The amazing nature of (digital) photography:
(more…)Being able to create something out of nothing, or creating value out of reality which costs you nothing!
-
Read Less, Think More
More reading means less thinking. If you want to think more, read less and stimulate your brain less.
-
Extracting More Out of Life
My personal desire and pursuit:
How to extract the maximum out of life.
Seeking maximal engagement, creation, sharing and becoming.
-
Motivation vs Feedback in Photography
I’m starting to think that what’s more important in photography than feedback and critique is motivation, new ideas, new techniques, new sights and new experiences. Thus don’t worry too much on getting feedback on your photos on how to become a “better†photographer or how to “improve†your photography, but new ways and opportunities to have fun, shoot, innovate and make new images and things!
Motivation over feedback.
-
EZ PHOTOGRAPHY
Strive to make your photography life more simple and more streamlined, easier. Easier camera settings (program, P mode, autofocus and auto ISO), and make it more fun. The easier we can make the technical settings and the easier the camera we shoot with (RICOH GR III), the more fun we can have in photography, the more we can experiment, adapt, learn and innovate in our photography!
-
Minimalism as a Motivator
Why minimalism? Not minimalism as just an aesthetic — but minimalism as reducing friction and “activation energy†in your life which means less “paralysis by analysis†decision making in order to get you out more, exploring more, doing more, adventuring more, shooting more, experiencing more, and becoming more.
Thus the goal is to simplify and minimalize all the superfluous details, to solidify and streamline the truly important and critical crucial things in your life — like your hunger for adventure, exploration, art, and photography!
Less is Better
- MINIMALISM & MAXIMALISM.
True Luxury is Less. - Easier to Subtract than Add
- Minimalism is the New Elitism
- Minimalism as Consumerism 2.0
- Why Simplify Your Life?
- Minimum Viable Technology
- Why I Hate Heavy Cameras
- Minimalist Photography
- Why Less is More in Street Photography (and Life)
- Less, But Better
- Reduce
- Purge
- MINIMALISM & MAXIMALISM.
-
ALL STREET PHOTOGRAPHY IS GOOD.
To be quite honest and frank, nowadays with the global pandemic it is a success to even leave your house.
Thus the new way to think about street photography: no good or bad street photos, it is all good.
Any street photography to get you out of the house, moving interacting with people and shooting is good. Good for your physical health, mental health, and artistic-creative health.
-
RUTHLESS ADAPTATION.
In today’s Brave New World, what is the attitude we need to thrive? Ruthless adaptation is the technique and the way.
-
Ever Expanding Abundance
What do we desire and hunger for? An ever feeling of expansion, growth, fullness, and augmentation of physiological power and well-being.
How is this achieved? Great sleep, nutrition (meat), fresh air and bright sun, physical and physiological well being and strength in your muscles, a zen stoic sense of calm, fearlessness, bravado, strong and thick black coffee in the morning, brisk walks during the day, a clear mind, and an insatiable hunger to do more, experience more, and become more.
-
Power-Expression, Not ‘Productivity’
A realization and re-interpretation or re-articulation on the concept of ‘productivity’:
It isn’t actually ‘productivity’ we want, but power-expression.
I realized this becoming a parent. You suddenly have 100 fewer hours in a day to do your ‘productive’ things. And certainly once you become a parent, your productivity will go down at least 500%.
But then– is it really ‘productivity’ we want? I say no. The biggest pain being a new parent is dealing with the loss of physiological energy (thank god for sleep training). And then what brings us joy? Not being ‘productive’, but having great physiological strength and power we can express to the world via our words, thoughts, photos, art-work, or ideas!
(more…) -
Least Activation Energy
A concept I got from my friend Jeffrey Lam:
The great thing about living in very close walking distance to a park (2 minute walk) is that it requires little to no ‘activation energy’ to go there to workout.
Also another thing I realize now I got a kid:
If I want to quickly get in and out of the house, I need the ideal shoes with the least ‘activation energy’ to quickly slip on and off (which has ended up just being simple black slippers).
Which makes me then think:
What are some other domains in life which we can best harness the ‘least activation energy’ concept to thrive more in life?
Some ideas:
- In the domain of photography, the least activation amount of energy in photography: Simple point and shoot compact camera (RICOH GR III) always in your front pocket, shooting in P program mode, small JPEG, high contrast black and white (the ‘set it and forget it‘ ethos). Autofocus. Ability to use with one hand. Being able to shoot without thinking. Any superfluous technical settings (like shooting manual, etc) as a positive detriment to your photography.
- With working out, just do the simplest workout which is the easiest for you to do. For example if you’re just stuck at home, buy a kettlebell and do kettlebell swings and lifts. Or if you go to the gym, stick to the simple and highly effective workouts (deadlift, squat, floor bench press/dumbbell press).
- With music, don’t use bluetooth headphones (having to get them to sync is always a pain in the ass). Best to just play it off your speaker. For example as I write this, its easier to just play music off my laptop speakers than trying to find my bluetooth headphones to sync it to. Same goes with playing music directly off my phone speakers (I’ve started to just play music real loud off my iPhone at max speaker setting when at the gym, so I don’t need to use headphones).
The least amount of activation energy, and the maximal amount of force expression is the goal!
ERIC
(more…) -
Just Have Fun With Photography
Let us be like children and treat our photography (play) very ‘seriously’ — just have fun with photography; this is the great way to always stay inspired in your photography and never tire of it!
(more…) -
There is nothing more interesting than a human face
Children are most drawn to human faces. We adults are the same! Lesson:
Shoot more faces!
In praise of street portraits, or photos which reveal and show the faces of your subjects!
(more…) -
ALWAYS IN BETA.
Why I always keep all my devices (iPhone, iPad, and MacBook laptop) in Beta Mode (always with the BETA version of all the operating systems) is this:
Life is more fun when you are always in beta-testing mode.
Also the underlying philosophy behind arsbeta.com
(more…) -
THE AMBITIOUS PHOTOGRAPHER.
Ambition is the great tonic of life. My hunger and desire to create the most epic images that the world has yet seen before.
(more…) -
Photography as Art Technology
The camera as a technological tool to create art out of nothing, or perhaps the only ingredient we need is embodied reality, our legs, our imagination and creativity.
(more…) -
Self-Speculation Funds
We are often taught that it is good and virtuous to invest money in our “future “, and to secure a prudent retirement future. However that notion is upholding Puritan values of self sacrifice for the greater good, not necessarily your good. I say instead to stake out a few thousand dollars into spend that money extravagantly on yourself, towards your own tools, arts experimentations and random speculations, then to spend it on other entities, stocks, funds, or even crypto currencies.
speculate in yourself, and invest in yourself. You are the ultimate good and aim.
Self entrepreneurship is the goal.
-
BLADE RUNNER (1982 Original) Cinematography Review & Thoughts vs the New Version (2049)
Something I’ve been wanting to work on for a long time:
A comparison between the original Blade Runner vs the New One (2049).
Some thoughts:
(more…) -
Photography is Poetry
Denis Villeneuve (Director of the new blade runner) said in an interview: “Cinema is poetry. And poetry is free.â€
Perhaps we should apply this philosophy to photography as well. And you are the sole Director of your photography film life experience. Your photography is free, and photography is your ultimate creative canvas.
-
The camera as an art creation machine
If photography is our art, then our camera is our arts creation machine. Isn’t the power of the camera magical? That this machine could create art objects out of nothing, perhaps all we need is embodied imagination, our legs and our hands, a little bit of creativity, and our own imagination.
-
Even a hair casts it’s own shadow
This quote from the philosopher poet and aphorist Publilius Syrus puzzled me for a long period of time. But I think I understand it at least in the terms of photography.
The general gist is that even the smallest, most microscopic, macro mode, small detail or thing can become a beautiful and great subject photograph. Morale of the story: use Ricoh GR3 and macro mode to look for more small tiny details which we might often overlook in order to make beautifully elegant simple images.
