Human artist blog / Street photography / Philosophy
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Street photography as courage. Photography philosophy as embodied life. A living archive by ERIC KIM.
To grow as a photographer is to constantly shoot more, get more feedback on your photos (arsbeta.com), and to integrate the feedback of yourself and others into your future images.
I think one of the greatest notions which have entered our psyche is the notion of ‘streaming’.
Some recent thoughts on life:
Simple photography exercises to get you going!
A thought: Focus on your physical and photographic (art) fitness in order to become a more productive photographer and visual artist.
For too long there has been a bias towards consistency. But I believe consistency is for suckers.
Practical thoughts on gear and how easily we adapt to it:
To get honest feedback and constructive critique on your photos is impossible on Facebook and Instagram. That is why we created arsbeta.com in order for you to receive and give meaningful feedback on photos:
Porsche as the best designed sports car (inspiration from my buddy Don).
Disregard your “weaknesses”; simply focus on maximizing your own potential strengths, maximizing your own power output, and unashamedly maximizing you.
I often like to photograph things because things look different photographed!
A recent realization: Don’t worry about making “good” photos. Just focus on shooting a lot (every day, and process photos every day). Perhaps this can help bring you more joy in photography and life?
Some practical photo tips off the dome (originally sent to my newsletter):
I am proud to announce that today we announce ARS Beta Version III with the brand-new and revolutionary ARS Coin feature.
I’m very self-motivated. How did I become this way? Some thoughts:
What is your personal motivating force in life? Let this propel you forward!
Something exciting is brewing at ARSBETA.COM ; keep your eyes glued.
Changing, it rests. Heraclitus I think “burnout” is often boredom mixed with physical exhaustion mixed with working on things you don’t care about.
No need to travel or escape yourself. Simply photograph and document your own life.
What would an “ideal†photography culture look like? Some of my personal thoughts:
What motivates us to keep making photos? My theory: We are never visually satisfied. This is a good thing!
I think you really love a place if you’re as happy coming as you are leaving.
The goal isn’t to be productive for the sake of being productive. The goal is to become MORE PRODUCTIVE on things which you really care about!
It rests by changing. Heraclitus I believe all change is good. And not only that, but it seems that change is where we find new sources of inspiration.
Paint with your camera. Find colorful textures and things which inspire you. Process your photos with additional contrast, tweak the colors, and paint photos which make you happy!
Practical and simple photography tips to get you motivated to shoot more!
After buying all the stuff I’ve wanted in my life I’ve discovered that the cost of ownership (maintenance, stress) outweighs the joy of actually owning something.
I’ve been making more photo galleries on this blog (via WordPress) and I feel like a new creative door has been opened to me.
A thought: What if in life you enjoyed all elements of it– the good, the bad, the difficult, and the easy?
I’m having so much fun in my photography as of late, and I wanna share some tips with you (hopefully these can help you enjoy photography more!)
With abstract photography or art; I think the secret is looking for faces in things (eyes, heads, etc).
To find inspiration to make photos, don’t worry about whether the photo will be “good” or not. Simply photograph what makes you happy, what makes you smile; what you love and care about!
A realization: Composition (and all design in general) is based on proportions.
Lots of new action on ERIC KIM YOUTUBE:
Aren’t you curious what your limit is? Aren’t you curious how far you can fly?
I’m happy, and I strive to maintain my personal happiness. But why is happiness important? What functional purpose does it serve? And in what ways is happiness overrated, or underrated?
Motivation literally means to move. Thus it seems quite simple: To be more “motivated” in life, move more!
The more bold or brazen you are, the more likely you are to make strong/interesting photos!
The happy, active photographer as the most productive and inspired:
If you’re looking to find more personal meaning from your photography or to take your photography to the next level, commission ERIC KIM Consulting to gain personal feedback on your photos, mentorship, and direction …
Fleshing out some personal thoughts: What exactly is “moodâ€? Why does it shift? Why are we sometimes in a “good†mood, versus a “bad†mood? Is mood a physiological thing? Is there an “ideal†…
For my whole photographic life, I’ve always stuck to shooting a 3:2 aspect ratio (the standard 35mm aspect ratio). But one day, I accidentally switched my Lumix G9 (Micro 43rds camera) into the native …
In life, to ‘prioritize’ literally means to put 1 thing in front of everything else. You cannot ‘prioritize’ more than 1 thing (that is why the notion of ‘prioritie(s)‘ makes no sense). If your …
A reminder to self: Always optimize for ultra-lightweight.
A thought: Don’t worry so much about your personal ‘happiness.’ Instead, better to focus on your creative productivity.
The only thing holding you back is you:
As photographers, we have it in our DNA to desire to create new photos, for all of eternity!
Personal thoughts on happiness and photography:
Virtues that I care about in my own life:
Photography is only possible with contrast: contrasting subject matter, contrast with light vs dark, and contrasting elements.
What I’m currently living with on the road and traveling with:
My ideal of the photographer: To delight in your own self-development in your photographic artistry– independent from the opinion of others.
Fresh new batch of videos out of my favorite city in the world– Mexico City:
My practical tips on how to become a more productive photographer:
There are a trillion and one reasons to become a photography blogger. Let me outline some of my personal reasons why become a photography blogger:
Practical thoughts and ideas:
Perhaps the cause of our ills in life is that our lives are TOO predictable, safe, and comfortable.
Upload your photos to arsbeta.com to get real and honest feedback on your photos (double-blind algorithm pairs you and a stranger). Otherwise when you sit down with another photographer (in real life), ask them: …
Allow your style to constantly change, but be firm in your artistic vision:
Conventional wisdom says that contradiction is bad, evil, and wrong. But what if contradiction was the source of our creativity?
To keep photography (and life) fun, never stop challenging yourself, and pushing yourself to new limits!
Today I walked around the streets of Mexico City, shooting with my Lumix G9, Leica 12mm f/1.4 Lens (24mm full-frame equivalent) x Henri Wrist Strap Pro, in 4:3 ratio, medium-JPEG (vivid color preset, with …