ERIC KIM ₿

Dear friend,

As the world seems like it is going to shit, let us remember:

RIGHT NOW IS THE PRIME TIME TO BE A STREET PHOTOGRAPHER!

My thoughts:

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I think we’re afraid of the fear associated (BEFORE) you die…not the actual death itself.

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NEVER YIELD

RELENTLESS
This means you’ve never bent less
You’re focused, hyper alert
You’re strong, insular, mentally yolked.

You got no fear, only cheer. You delight in the company of your inter-pares peers. You got the faith and confidence to steer.

You drive in this game of life. The strife and pain is what makes it great.

Do you got what it takes to conquer today? AK-47— pull the trigger, aim, and spray.

ERIC

What is stoicism. Why stoicism? My thoughts:

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We are currently in a brave new world, and I don’t think things will ever “go back to the way they used to”. The world is fundamentally changed. Some of my thoughts:

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Why I think I’m so exceptional:

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In praise of photographing trees:

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Now is your time to get hyper-buff (do YouTube workout videos, lift weights, intermittent fasting, etc).

How to grow your muscles >

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Dear friend,

We are currently going through a very epic time in human history. The question:

SHOULD I be out shooting photos right now?

Some thoughts:

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Simple thought in life:

Strive to motivate yourself (to move) to the maximum, and share your ideas/thoughts with others… to also encourage them to move and motivate themselves!

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If you’re stuck at home, iPad is a great creative device– to MAKE AND CREATE new art-works! Some ideas:

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In life, you can categorize almost everything into two categories:

Things which ENCOURAGE you, and things which DISCOURAGE you.

Then it seems the secret to life is this:

Cut out things from your life which DISCOURAGE you, and ADD MORE things to your life which ENCOURAGES YOU.

For example:

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I’ve always been curious about the ‘day of the life’ of other people. Here is my attempt to share my life:

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Tolerance:

Don’t be a tyrant unto me, and I also don’t be a tyrant unto you.

A more tolerant society is a better society. But what are the caveats?

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As a photographer, now is your chance to document and capture an insanely significant period of human history. Go out and shoot!

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A thought:

During these moments of calamity, do I somehow have a duty or obligation to feel afraid and scared? If not, am I somehow a bad person?

For example, I’m currently NOT afraid, but everyone else tells me that I SHOULD be afraid.

Why SHOULD I be afraid? Perhaps it is because if I’m not afraid, then I might get infected, and spread the infection to others, and others can die as a consequence of my negligence. Thus, it seems the rule is:

You SHOULD be afraid because it is for the benefit of the greater collective.

Or in utilitarian terms:

You as an individual aren’t as important as the greater mass of people.

But is this true, or should this notion be posited as truth?

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1. Humans to exist indefinitely, 2. Expression of human power, 3. Take human evolution to the next level.

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My theory:

Pain as the driver of growth!

Or in other words:

You cannot become stronger without pain.

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What’s the point of moving? To propel yourself. To MOVE. Move forward, move upwards… move to a higher level… a new plane!

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Question:

During times of calamity, why make art?

Why make photos? Drawings? Illustrations? Videos? Music? Poems? Writings? Why make anything?

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When we call something “scientific”, we mean to say it is supreme, irrefutable, and the apex. But can science ever prove anything? No. Science can only DISCONFIRM or FALSIFY wrong notions or ideas.

So what are we to do? Best to put more focus on philosophy — which asks:

Why is this even important in the first place? Should we concern ourselves with this matter? What are the potential negative consequences or downsides if we decide to act a certain way?

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Money is motivation. Motivation literally means “to move”.

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We all seem like we’re currently in a state of pandemonium. But what are we really afraid of?

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A thought from my friend Heraclitus:

A fun and noble life goal — strive to gain immortal fame amongst mortals and mankind!

A thought:

Happiness isn’t the goal of life… but to GENERATE and GIVE BIRTH (to new ideas, new art works, and new humans!)

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The great uplifting thought:

Anything in life (if we think about physics), IS POSSIBLE!

And with digital entrepreneurship — truly anything is possible now!

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Pain and suffering as the great stimulus for life!

What is the greatest threat we currently face? Boredom.

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Now is your chance. Your opportunity. This type of opportunity only comes once in (your) lifetime!

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Not everything in life happens for a reason, but we can dictate HOW we want to make it meaningful.

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Whats the apex field of study or pursuit? Philosophy.

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ARSBETA.COM — one of my great gifts to humanity. Without my team and squad (Kevin McKenzie, Cindy Nguyen, Annette Kim, Jun Goodhouse Kim, Ben Mills, Soren Zane), it wouldn’t be possible.

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Fear as the ultimate motivator. Fear as the ultimate filter in life. Fear — knowing that you can and will (eventually) die — you don’t do no bullshit in life and only work on what’s essential to you.

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Dear friend,

Shit is hard, but remember:

You’re stronger than you think you are.

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THE FUTURE BELONGS TO GENERATORS (those whom create, generate, and procreate)!

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Not a crazy thought —

What if you could never leave your own country ever again? Could you still live a happy, meaningful, hopeful, optimistic and great life?

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The ancient greeks didn’t have any interest in traveling

Our new form of flexing your wealth and social class is travel. But what if we could never travel again? Could we still live a happy and meaningful life?

A future with closed borders?

Think the film ‘Children of Men‘. This dystopia of the future with closed borders. It ain’t impossible based on the state of the world right now.

Can we live a MORE meaningful life WITHOUT travel?

The interesting thing for myself:

Ever since everything is closed, I am actually MORE creatively productive and have been able to GENERATE MORE!

Why? So much of modern capitalism and consumerism is a distraction.

For example:

1. Coffee shops are distractions: Better to just work from your nice home apartment.
2. Better to cook your food at home. You can have more hearty meals, more meat, and get more “gains” [gain more muscle]
3. Archimedes lever: Stay in one spot, and you can move the world!

What I eat in my diet:

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What is the best way to live?

Expect the unexpected.

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Generate — genero, beget, produce, make.

As artists, it is our mission to generate. To make, to produce, to beget art works. To procreate!

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Notions of flourishing. A green shoot, a green sprout — the sign of growth!

Verdant [green and leafy and lush] pastures are good for growth. Humans like green, because it is beneficial for more food, and thus more human thriving?

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What is a steroid? It comes from “sterol” (same word as cholesterol).

Theory:

Foods with high cholesterol are good for muscle growth. Why? Increasing cholesterol increases our bodily steroid production, which increases our testosterone and human growth hormone.

Lesson:

To maximize muscular gains, eat lots of fatty meat (the fattier, the more cholesterol), the better.

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To drive: to thrust, force, act.

We need drive, we need the inner fire of being driven. Where does this come from? The desire to become stronger, to become more, to augment our ego!

The problem isn’t being “overweight”— it is about being “overfat”.

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Natty or not? Natural or not? What does this mean?

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The rules do not apply to you.

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How do I choose my photos?

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Black and white photos:

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One of the most creative things you can do while stuck at home:

Build your own website!

Register on bluehost.com and install wordpress.org. Only costs $4-10 USD a month. Cheaper than Netflix, and 100000x more productive!

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Motivation means to move. Motivate, similar to the word “motor” or “motus”.

Children are “hyper-active”. But perhaps this is good.

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Let us become like children

To move — we gotta feed our ego. My motivation to move is to augment my ego.

The ego is the primum mobile

Our desire to augment our ego is what gives us the initial urge or push to actually move and do stuff!

For example:

1. My primum mobile to blogging: The desire to flesh out my thoughts, which feeds my ego. Also the joy knowing I can be helping others also augments my ego.
2. Making videos and vlogging: I like to talk to people or share my thoughts. By sharing my thoughts, I know I make an impression on others [good or bad]. This brings me joy, and augments my ego.

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If you’re stuck at home (but can still order dumbbells or kettlebells on Amazon or online), or buy them at a local fitness store, this is a very simple workout you can do at home. Even works in my tiny apartment that is around 300 square feet.

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Growth is key. How to grow our muscles? Some thoughts:

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What is ‘respect‘? To look back at someone. ‘spek-‘, meaning to see, look, observe.

Thus when we ‘respect’ someone — what does this really mean?

Emotion: What moves us [e-moveo].

Without emotion, we wouldn’t move!

During this chaos, I like to talk to real people.

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When shit hits the fan, some thoughts.

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The brave new world of CAPITALISM 2.0 is upon us.

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Dear friends,

Okay looks like zombie apocalypse mode is fully on. If you’re working from home, here are some ideas to become more productive:

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THE GOAL AIN’T TO BECOME ANYONE ELSE BUT YOURSELF!

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If you got a Mac, iPhone, iPad, whatever — make beats! Use Garageband.

For Android guys, use “FL STUDIO”.

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Write your book! Or put together a photo book of your best images (PDF).

Download ‘iBooks Author’ for MacBook (laptop/desktop for Mac).

Make a PDF e-book of your thoughts, best photos, your life story, whatever!

Video

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Sample

MONSTER PDF [just made this].

I used iBooks Author, here is the video and screenshots:

The point ain’t for you to make it ‘good’.

Just fuck with it and have fun with it!

When we call someone selfish, what we really are trying to say is:

You are an evil person.

Why this bias?

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Whenever possible, stick to JPEG. Let me explain why:

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1. You need a “real” camera to make good photos. iPhone and android phones are legitimate cameras. They’re essentially cameras with phones attached to them.
2. You must shoot RAW. I shoot JPEG and prefer it. RAW is for suckers, if your camera has good JPEG settings. JPEG simplifies and quickens your workflow, and often cameras like RICOH GR III have PHENOMENAL high contrast monochrome JPEG filters which actually look superior to processed RAW images. Same goes with RICOH positive film color preset.
3. You must have Instagram: I deleted my Instagram a few years ago, and I’m 1000x happier, and more artistic and innovative as a result. My self esteem for my photography has gone up, and my overall mood is 100x improved as well.
4. You must travel to make good photos. I’ve made many good photos inside the house, and also in my own home town and city. My idea: take the familiar and make it exotic (instead of the other way around, what travel tries to do).
5. You must use Photoshop or Lightroom. As of late, I’ve been using the default Apple Photos app on my laptop, and I actually prefer it. Why? It’s faster, simpler, and its free and open!

Dopamine Resistance — an interesting theory about addiction and cravings. Not just food, but smartphone/internet addiction, video game addiction, porn addiction, drug addiction, coffee addiction, news addiction, etc.

Strategies:

1. Intermittent fasting
2. Avoid environmental cues which ‘trigger’ the undesired addictive behavior.
3. Stop consuming sugar (natural or fake), snacks, desserts, etc.
4. To extend fasting period in the day, do strenuous exercise or have a strong cup of black coffee.

‘Addiction’ isn’t inherently bad or evil.

I’m addicted to having fun, creating, walking, lifting weights, coffee, etc. To me, the notion of ‘addiction’ shouldn’t be a moralized one. Rather, it is all about YOUR personal life goals.

Think about your desired outcome, then work backwards.

Zen Brush 2 on iPad (and iPhone)— a new creative outlet for me. It is all about imputing my soul into my calligraphs.

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Practical:

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Physiology — dealing with growth, and natural organisms.

Let me share my personal philosophy on physiology, and why I am so passionate about it.

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When shit gets bad, don’t ask yourself:

Why is it so bad?

Instead ask yourself

Why aren’t things WORSE?

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If you wanna do video, I highly highly highly recommend (practically all) Panasonic/Lumix cameras.

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