Flagship blog / human artist archive

Shoot
Think
Publish

Street photography as courage. Photography philosophy as embodied life. A living archive by ERIC KIM.

Human first
Camera ready
Walk more
Publish raw
Photo essay / Aug 23, 2018

Use and Abuse Your Gear!

Dear friend, A practical idea for you: if you want to shoot more, don’t baby your gear. Instead, give yourself permission to use and abuse your gear!

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Sunset over Uji, Kyoto 2017
Photo essay / Aug 23, 2018

Elevate Yourself

Elevate yourself and your own inner-wealth. Play the cards you’ve been dealt; but be clever and be sly. Don’t be shy, you got great potential, my friend. Self-mend your broken heart; stay bright, today …

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Photo essay / Aug 22, 2018

Publish Yourself

Why do we wait to get “discovered” by others? Why not just self-publish, and publish ourselves?

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Photo essay / Aug 21, 2018

Why I Love Pictures

I have a passion for pictures; all pictures! Paintings, photos, illustrations, graphic design, typography, sculpture; any visual art and all art in general!

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Photo essay / Aug 20, 2018

High Risk, High Reward

You never know whether you will make a good photo or not before you shoot it. Thus to me it only makes sense that you must just shoot a lot; and the more you …

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Photo essay / Aug 20, 2018

Creative Freedom

Dear friend, A very basic idea– what we truly desire as artists is “creative freedom” — to create what we desire without anyone else preventing us from doing it!

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Cindy car light
Photo essay / Aug 20, 2018

Placate Yourself

Placate yourself, disregard your wealth Keep careful eye over your health, stay strong and stand tall; don’t stay knelt.

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Photo essay / Aug 19, 2018

Look Behind You

“A backward glance can always lift the heart.” – Dante (The Divine Comedy) We are often told to “count our blessings” to find more happiness, joy, and satisfaction in life. I would say it’s …

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Photo essay / Aug 19, 2018

How to Never Stop Shooting

Never stop shooting. No matter how boring or uninteresting you feel like your life is; there’s always something to shoot! Some practical ideas to always stay inspired to shoot:

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Photo essay / Aug 19, 2018

SELF-RESPECT

Dear friend, Do you respect yourself? Meaning– do you trust yourself? Do you consult your own conscience before consulting others? Can you look back into your own soul, and truly see and understand your …

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Hanoi street photography manual composition lake
Photo essay / Aug 18, 2018

Street Photography Composition Manual

Dear friend, This is an attempt (an essay/assay) into making a comprehensive (yet simple) manual to street photography composition. It will be based on my personal experiences, turned into theory. Let’s begin.

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Photo essay / Aug 17, 2018

The Small Thumbnail Test

Dear friend, A practical tip to speed up your photography workflow: use the ‘thumbnail test’. Look at your photos as small thumbnails (contact sheets) to more quickly and efficiently choose your best photos!

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Eric kim bath tub sapa memento mori
Photo essay / Aug 17, 2018

Anti-Social Extrovert

Dear friend, I believe we should seek this duality in life– to be BOTH social AND solitary. Or in Kendrick Lamar’s words, an “anti-social extrovert.”

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Cindy staircase
Photo essay / Aug 17, 2018

Photography is Art

Dear friend, As a photographer you’re an artist. Never let anyone else tell you otherwise.

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Photo essay / Aug 16, 2018

Squiggly Line Composition

One of the best compositions we can integrate into our photos is the “arabesque”, which is an elegant curve shape. But in Cindy’s words, the idea of a “squiggly line” is easier to remember …

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Photo essay / Aug 16, 2018

Never Blame Anybody But Yourself

Dear friend, A random thought I had this morning– what if we never blamed anyone else, but ourself? To me, this would be one of the most empowering sentiments. Why? It means that we …

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Amsterdam girl with doll— reminds me of pieta. Amsterdam, 2015 #ricohgrii
Photo essay / Aug 13, 2018

What Photos Will Last?

Dear friend, A philosophical question I was pondering while lying in bed this morning– “What kind of photos will last, and what kind of photos will not?”

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Photo essay / Aug 12, 2018

How to Become a Famous Photographer

In ancient Greek times (according to Homer in the Iliad, and Nietzche confirms this), warriors only desired fame, glory, and to immortalize their name. They didn’t really care for riches or power, they essentially …

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Photo essay / Aug 11, 2018

Let Fear Guide You

Dear friend, I make my living teaching workshops helping others conquer their fears. To me, fear isn’t something to be destroyed, but harnessed in a positive way.

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Photo essay / Aug 10, 2018

Art is Long, Life is Short

“Ars longa, vita brevis.” – Seneca Dear friend, Our lives are short. Why waste it accumulating superfluous stuff, aiming to receive acclaim from others? I propose we should seek to make great art; art …

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Photo essay / Aug 10, 2018

Don’t Sit Still!

“He who feared that he would not succeed sat still.” – Horace The secret of success? Simple: Don’t sit still!

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