How do you know when you’re making progress as a photography entrepreneur? How do you know what to write about? Some practical tips:

Dear friend,

A philosophical question: would you still take photos if you couldn’t share your photos with anybody else?

Steve McCurry: easily one of the most iconic photographers of all time.

Why do I take photos?

Seems like a simple question enough, but the simplest questions always seem to be the most complicated.

Greg Marsden: a good friend of mine, with some of the juiciest color street photos out there!

Jesse Marlow: one of the OG’s and heavyweights in the world of street photography.

Hakim Boulouiz: a former student of mine, and now an extremely influential street photographer/visual artist, and also one of the judges for the London Street Photography Festival!

Pierre Belhassen: his photos speak to my soul:

Ernst Haas: one of the color masters of photography:

A list of what’s currently in my bag for living in Saigon for two months, and general thoughts on packing for the road and photography:

You were destined to do great things my dear
God gave you two hands to steer
Your own ship in life

Dear friend,

I am super excited to share with you my newest and most innovative concept ever: an offline ‘Street Photographer Starter Kit‘, which you can teach street photography to yourself, at your own pace, all offline — via an easy-to-purchase/download .ZIP file.

Umberto Boccioni: a true genius artist, one of the forefathers of ‘Futurism‘; an art movement which emphasized speed, modernism, the city, and to me– is an incredibly optimistic/positive artistic outlook!

The phone is the ultimate camera: you can shoot with your phone, you can select (edit) your photos, you can process your photos (add presets, filters), and instantly share and process your photos! Whoever says that the phone isn’t a “real” camera; ignore them.

Dear friend,

If you’re new to street photography, or want a quick refresher: here is a quick start to a basic overview of street photography:

Inspired by Cindy, I wanted to write some ideas on how to overcome fear, especially when it is disguised as “reason”.

This post is dedicated to my friend and inspiration Josh White who taught me that photography is about a personal documentation of your life, your loved ones, and your life journey:

Brandon Phan (very good friend of mine) is one of the most innovative photographers I know: combining portraiture, landscape, travel, and poetry/collages to his photographic work:

Dear friend,

A little epiphany I had: you always have another option in life, regardless of how trapped, enslaved, or stuck you might feel!

Prototype of the new Pro HENRI Wrist Strap. Email Cindy at hapticindustries@gmail.com if you’re interested.

Dear friend, I believe it is possible to make a living from your passion. I will try to use this essay as an attempt to flesh out my ideas on how to do it– as a practical guide for you!

I was randomly surfing the web, and randomly came across the work of George Bernard Shaw, and I am super-inspired. George Bernard Shaw is probably one of the wisest, most badass, and empowering philosophers/writers/aphorists that I have come across.

Yves Vernin is a good friend of mine, and in my opinion — one of the most talented contemporary color street photographers.

Chu Viet Ha: one of the most epic street photographers, with his use of layers, color, and surrealism:

Dear friend,

How can you use photography as a tool for empowerment and positive social change?

Philip Jones Griffiths: one of the ultimate photojournalists of history:

Peter Phan is a friend and a little brother of mine, who is going to London to study Photography and Philosophy. Expect to see more of his work here, I consider his work pure poetry, and see a lot more greatness to come from him:

Photography is the best magic that exists!

Dear friend,

I am the ultimate anti-nihilist. I believe in infinite optimism, hope, and meaning in life.

1988 was the year I was born
Born to help others and to placate the masses

First batch of photos from LA->SAIGON: Shot on Lumix G9, Leica 12mm f/1.4 lens (24mm full-frame equivalent) x ERIC KIM PRESETS:

My new photographic inspiration is my 3 year old niece Amelia. She shoots photos with “Amelia TV” (her codename for her iPad mini) without hesitation, and with so much joy and wonderment!

Frederik Trovatten takes STREET HUNT through the streets of Mexico City.

>> Street Hunt Print Edition in Haptic Shop (Ships Internationally)

>> Street Hunt on Amazon

>> Street Hunt Mobile Edition

>> Street Hunt Mobile on Kindle

Very simple photography tip: Fill the frame with a certain color, certain visual element, or your subject to make a more engaging/interesting photo!

Dear friend,

A simple idea and question to ask yourself,

“Do you like to look at your own photos?”

Dear friend,

A very simple photography composition tip: Look up!

Dear friend,

A philosophical idea: to live a more epic and fulfilling life, never seek an “end”; instead, seek to create, produce, and make stuff, forever, until you die!

Dear friend,

Something I want to talk with you about (that nobody has ever really covered): is there an ideal diet, workout routine, or lifestyle which will help you be more inspired/motivated/creative as a photographer, visual artist, philosopher, or cinematographer? I think there is.

“Photography is the mother of cinema.” – Abbas Kiarostami

Today is my two-year wedding anniversary with Cindy, and wanted to reflect on love. What is love? Why is love important? How is love manifested in a relationship?

Rest in peace Abbas; your legacy and images live on!

Honeydew eyes
I’ll follow you
Into the depths of the ocean blue

Gilles Peress: a photographer who I admire. He shoots with his heart, and seeks to use his photography as a tool to enact positive change in the world. Not only that, but his compositions are magical.

Dear friend,

A simple thing to improve your life in all shapes and forms: smile!

Dear friend,

After studying a lot of cinema, and doing random long walks in the park here in Saigon, while also studying the work of Gilles Peress (His Iran series), I had a huge epiphany on why I love street photography so much: the ability for me to make beautiful pictures/visual-art, in a random, chaotic, unpredictable setting (the streets), chat with people (strangers, and open up my heart to them), to travel and see the world, and have fun compositional-visual puzzle games!

I just finished watching ‘Full Metal Jacket‘, and have a lot of food for thought. Warning: the film is extremely graphic, and there are a lot of spoiler alerts ahead.

Dear friend,

An empowering thought: realize that in life, you have the power to dictate your own purpose in life!

In life we are told to be “balanced”. I agree — but realize, we can achieve balance in life with asymmetry!

Let’s dive deeper into the rabbit hole with MATRIX:

One of the most elegant compositions we can incorporate into our visual artistry: the arabesque (curve):

Dear friend,

A realization: in life, distraction is the enemy— nobody/nothing else.

Dear friend,

Only photograph what you love or what you’re passionate about.

Practical tip: Study human anatomy to better understand the human body, to make better photos of people/portraits!

Purple: Royal, elegant, bold, timeless:

Pink: Feminine, youth, bold, bright:

Orange: relaxing, the color of food, the color of skin, fresh, energizing:

Dear friend,

A revelation: to find more joy and happiness in life, produce more!

Dear friend,

A practical life philosophy: Do You.

Practical tips to make better black and white photos:

Dear friend,

Currently in Saigon, and pondering– how can you live the best possible life, and what does that even mean?

Dear friend,

Don’t miss your chance to take your street photography to the next level at my upcoming Singapore Conquer Your Fears in Street Photography Workshop (July 21-22, 2018):

Dear friend,

I just finished re-watching the MATRIX; and oh man, this movie is so epic– not only in terms of the concept behind the film, but the ‘pop philosophy’ sayings are pretty good as well. And the cinematography is pretty solid as well.

Hustle hustle hustle
Keep shaking your creative tree; make the leaves rustle

I think as photographers we want real and honest feedback on our photos, thus I created ARSBETA.COM with my friend Kevin (CTO) and Cindy (COO):

Here are my favorite street photography quotes from the masters of photography:

Inspired by CINDYPROJECT, I want to meditate on the concept of ‘The Photographic Moment’.

Lumix G9 + 12mm f/1.4 Leica Lens x ERIC KIM PRESETS:

Dear friend,

The best advice I can give you to thrive as a photographer in today’s digital age: OWN YOUR OWN PLATFORM, which means: make your own photography website/blog, and make sure you own the FTP, the backend, and the open-source platform!