Dear friend,

In the last essay I wrote that I thought if was good to be ambitious in life. Now I want to share — how to become more ambitious.

One of the individuals and philosophers who have had the strongest impact on me include Nassim Taleb.

A philosophical question I’ve been interested in: “Why is it that ambition is considered both good and bad at the same time?”

Willem de Kooning: epic paintings, with great colors, shapes, forms, energy, and vivacity!

Bauhaus: the perfect marriage of technology, art, form as well as making functional/beautiful/practical design for the masses.

Fewer than 10 companies own (almost all) the big brands in the world. What does that mean for us as individuals, our own ‘freedom of choice’, and how we live our lives?

A thought: don’t admire things or possessions (like fancy cars, homes, watches, clothes, shoes, stuff, objects, etc). Instead: marvel at your own body; the ultimate sculpture you can sculpt yourself, without the need to be rich, or have access to expensive tools or resources!

A fun question I have been thinking of: why are aesthetics important?

What’s a “distraction”? Are there good or bad distractions? Says who?

Is having a new experience the same as re-experiencing an old experience we might have forgotten?

A thought: try to shoot photos of your loved ones on film.

Dear friend,

A suggestion in life: to life a more fun and interesting life, pursue fulfilling things which you’re personally curious about!

Dear friend,

Practical suggestion: If you want to find inspiration, motivation, or interesting new compositions to apply to your photography, study cinema!

If you’re starting in street photography, here is my free and open-source ‘MINI Street Photography Starter Kit’. For more inspiration and dopeness, see the full version: “Street Photography Starter Kit“.

Blogging: in my opinion, one of the best ways of artistic self-espression:

A small epiphany: the reason we like physical objects (bags, cars, objects, etc) is because we as humans appreciate sculpture; the way that certain objects take up space! We appreciate the colors, shapes, proportions, angles, curves, and forms, of these objects.

I’m more and more inspired by the “Arabesque” (curved) composition, especially in street photography!

A fun thought experiment: if you wanted to life the happiest possible life, and you had unlimited money and resources — how could you achieve this goal in 24 hours?

Dear friend,

What’s the ideal diet, exercise routine, etc for photographers, content creators, or artists? Some ideas:

Dear friend,

I want to share why I live a nomadic lifestyle, and prefer it.

Kurosawa, the master.

Loving life in SAIGON:

Guy Le Querrec: his work is so good, words escape me.

Announcing the new ERIC KIM CASE: your new everyday photography case which fits the RICOH GR II, 5 rolls of 35mm film (or 120 medium format film), SD cards, and everything you need!

Dear friend,

A thought: photography is great because it helps you love everyone– regardless of who they are, what they look like, regardless of their race, nationality, sex, gender, etc!

Werner Bischof: one of the original members of Magnum, and one of the greatest photographers of all time:

Epic composition lessons from Lee Friedlander:

Dear friend, if you want more inspiration in your own photography, this is my suggestion: don’t just look at the photos of others or the masters, study, dissect and analyze them!

I’ve been a diet, health, and fitness nut ever since I was a (fat) 11-year-old kid. I’m following mostly a “ketogenic” diet now, and I’m stronger, more cut, and more energetic than ever.

Composition lessons from the master, Michelangelo:

Do you adapt yourself to the world, or do you let the world adapt to you?

Never Miss the Decisive Moment.

Dear friend,

A practical life idea: anything that motivates or inspires you is a good thing!

Continued from part 1: Oh, the places you’ll go!

Inge Morath epic compositions:

ONLY IN AMERICA: Contact Sheets:

Dear friend,

The criticism that most Americans get is that we “work too much”. But what does that even mean? Is it desirable to work more, or less? Why work at all?

Joseph Beuys (pronounced “boys”) is one of the most inspirational artist-teachers of all time. Thanks to Kanye West for putting me on him (mentioned through Kanye’s Twitter):

Study art to inspire yourself to make your own art!

Inge Morath: one of the great female masters of photography, whose visual imagery I love.

Some new Kodak Portra 400 street photos:

Dear friend,

A thought: assuming you had unlimited time, resources– what would you do with all of your human metabolism, energy, and life?

Lewis Hine: sociologist with a camera who proved that photography can make positive social change!

Dear friends,

I want to analyze some compositions I really like from Garry Winogrand; and share how we can better incorporate more edgy compositions into our own work:

Dear friend,

I want to give you some practical tips and ideas on how you can shoot more photos!

Dear friend,

I talk a lot about how to make more photos and art. But a philosophical question: why make more photos?

Upcoming ERIC KIM Workshops in 2018:

Cinematography by Akira Kurosawa:

I’m studying more and more of David “Chim” Seymour‘s photos (from the 1950s), and I’m still so amazed; how intimate and loving his photos were.

Dear friend,

You’ve got no limits, and limited time
What can you achieve in your short lifetime?

Take photographs of whatever you find interesting– because you are curious to see what it will look like as a photo (as compared to “real life”/reality!)

Challenge, Innovation, and Fun: How to Progress in Your Photography and Life:

Dr. Seuss, master of composition.

DR SEUSS: thank you so much for your wisdom, guidance, and beautiful illustrations and artwork. My umma (in her rudimentary English) read you so many times to me as a child, when we were poor, living in a tiny 1-bedroom apartment in Alameda (when I was in the 2nd grade, 7-8 years old).

Why do we feel nervous or shy in street photography, and how can we overcome and Conquer it, so we never have any regrets in our photography or life?

My current photography and video/vlogging setup is the Panasonic Lumix G9 and Leica/Lumix 12mm f1.4 lens (24mm full frame equivalent), with the RODE Video Camera Microphone, and it rocks for both still photos and videos!

Dear friend, I am proud to share my first PDF photography book with you: SUITS:

To Eric:

What is the good life?
It’s that moment when my eyes meet yours
across the way, and I fall

ERIC KIM PHOTOGRAPHY Portfolio:

Dear friend,

A practical life philosophy for you: to be happier in life, seek to maximize the joy in your life!

David “Chim” Seymour was one of the co-founders of Magnum (alongside Henri Cartier-Bresson and Robert Capa/Cornell Capa), and unfortunately his life was cut short when covering a photography story in Egypt.

I believe good photos are strong both in content (what you’re photographing) and form (composition).

Why do I make photos? To change the minds, hearts, souls, and perspectives of others; while also giving me more appreciation for my own life!

As a reminder, the purpose of photography is to help us live a richer and more fulfilling life!

Spartacus: damn, I can’t believe I never saw this film before. Another masterpiece by Stanley Kubrick: for the moral message, the cinematography, love, and epicness:

The great thing about life and being alive: you can live your life however you desire, and to pursue it in a way which you find personally-meaningful and important.

Dear friend,

If you want to work on a personally meaningful project, here are some tips, advice, wisdom, and ideas I will give you:

2013-2016, Kodak Portra 400:

Cornell Capa: without him we wouldn’t have the ICP (International center of photography in NYC), and we wouldn’t have these iconic photos of JFK, and more.