ERIC KIM ₿

Fuck my selfish needs,
all I care about are my virtuous deeds.

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Why shoot like everyone else, when you are a unique, idiosyncratic individual, with unique life experiences, different from everyone else?

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I just finished skimming some of Edward Gibbon’s “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” (through some quotes), and have some valuable lessons I want to share with you:

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Dear friend,

Why is it that we compare ourselves and our photography with others?

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Dear friend,

I want to write you a letter on how you can unlock your inner-genius.

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Dear friend,

All of us lack confidence in ourselves— how can we learn to have more confidence, and belief in ourselves?

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The mind is like the universe. It constantly expands, infinitely.

So be like the universe; keep creating. Keep opening the minds of others.

Keep expanding your mind. Your mind, creativity, and abilities are infinite.

Have the ambition to live 300 years, even though you won’t. This will keep you hungry for the rest of your life, until your dying day.

Always,
Eric

Learn how to be more creative >

Dr. Dre — the pioneer of ‘gangsta rap’, and currently worth close to $700 million dollars, after his sale of ‘Beats’ to Apple, certainly knows a thing or two about hustling.

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Just read (some) of Edward Gibbon’s “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” via passages. Here are some takeaway points, and life lessons I learned:

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Dear friend; if you have a shitty camera (or what you perceive a shitty camera) — yet want to make better photos, this is for you:

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I’ve been getting a lot of inspiration from minimalist album covers as of late:

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Why is it that the beginners are always asking the experts for their opinion?

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Which photos are really important to you — and why do you decide to shoot them?

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I was reading Horace’s advice to his friend on poetry, and he said that we should focus on knowing how to order our lives correctly, instead of being overly-obsessed with how to order our verses.

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I just read Hesiod’s Work and Days; and found lots of great practical wisdom on working hard and hustling.

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‘Poetry, created and invented for the delight of our souls, if it comes ever so little of the summit, sinks to the bottom.’ – Horace

Do your photos delight your own soul?

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Dear friend,

I wanted to write you an essay on how I come up with ideas:

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Dear friend,

If I started street photography all over again; this is the advice I would give myself:

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Dear friends,

I just made a new free PDF ebook: “Leica Manual” — a culmination of everything I’ve learned shooting with a Leica/rangefinder.

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Dear friend,

You were given a gift as a child.

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Don’t entertain a high opinion of any other person (besides yourself).

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A list of stuff I wish I knew if I started photography all over again, at age 18.

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If you have photographer’s block, or lacking inspiration to shoot— set a timer for 25 minutes, and do nothing but photograph for those 25 minutes.

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Close your eyes and imagine,
what you are capable of.

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Dear friend,

Be like King Midas— turn the shit of life into gold.

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We currently live in Elysium — the heaven on earth.

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Dear friend,

If your dream is to make a living from your passion; I will try to give you the tools necessary to accomplish it.

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What if we lived a life where the only affirmation or criticism we got was from ourselves?

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I’ve been thinking a lot about the difference between a ‘generalist’ photographer, versus being a ‘specialist’ photographer.

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Dear friend,

I’ve been thinking a lot about composition— what it is for, and why it is important in photography:

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I think a good street photographer is like a hybrid between a boxer and a ballerina.

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Dear friend,

What is your limiting factor in your life and creativity?

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Dear friend,

I want to share some practical tips on how I photograph:

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I was walking on the streets, and I saw an advertisement for the new Samsung Galaxy Note smartphone that said: “Think big.” What if we embraced the opposite— and “think small”?

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Photography is as easy as A,B,C:

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‘I labor to be concise.’ – Horace

Let us work hard to make our photos short, and to the point:

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Dear friend,

One of the lessons I’ve learned is that in order to make more beautiful photos, we should seek to “make” (not “take”) photos.

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Dear friend,

There is nobody more important to photograph than our loved ones.

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“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.” – Steve Jobs

Life is short— why do we keep saying “yes” to “opportunities” we don’t really want?

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Would you want to be immortal?

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Memento mori,
what is gonna be my life story?

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Dear friend,

I think that photographers often over-obsess with cameras, gear, and lenses — but we never think about the most important tool when it comes to our photography; our shoes.

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Dear friend,

How do we overcome our fears, and build self-confidence, and build up our self-esteem?

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If you were a giant, could an ant hurt you?

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Be like Nike — just shoot it.

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“Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it shall be opened unto you.” – Jesus

I remember hearing this saying as a kid. It empowered me.

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Many wise people have said in the past— true wisdom is knowing yourself, not others.

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Another thing I would like to give the middle-finger to: sexism.

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What motivates you to make a photograph? Or what motivates you not to make a photograph?

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I have the wrong impression that if I somehow bought a new camera, a new gadget, or gizmo– I will somehow become more creative.

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I’m the first to admit that I’m addicted to GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome), Gear, and Equipment.

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Dear friend,

What if you lived a life where you knew in your heart that success was your only option?

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In Western society— we are always to do more busywork just to keep us busy for busy sake.

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What kills you makes you stronger.
Fuck that Nietzsche shit, you’re bulletproof like body armor

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Zeros and commas,
we need more dollas

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Dear friend,

I think what we should aim for in our photos is to evoke a feeling— a mood. What is on our minds. How we feel.

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Pixel-peeping is an interesting phenomenon– something that I used to be a victim of.

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How to get more followers on Instagram:

1. Follow as many other people you can, hoping that they will ‘follow back’
2. If someone doesn’t follow you back, unfollow them. After all, you don’t want your follower/following ratio to look unbalanced.
3. #Hashtag the shit out of your photos. The more hashtags, the better. Don’t forget to leave additional comments on the bottom of your photos to add more hashtags.
4. Go on Google and search for services to get you more followers.
5. Whenever you meet someone in real life, tell them to follow you.
6. Like and comment as many other people’s photos, so maybe they can follow you back.
7. Upload a photo everyday, or else you might actually lose followers.
8. Cross-promote: Tell your Facebook friends to follow you on Instagram. Tell your Twitter followers to follow you on Instagram. Tell your YouTube followers to follow you on Instagram. Use every social media channel to remind them to follow you on Instagram.
9. Get people with a lot of followers on Instagram to mention you on their Instagram.
10. Check your phone every 5 minutes, because the more you check, the more likely you are to get more followers. It is the ‘law of attraction.’

I am guilty of many of these.

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Fuck racism.

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Whenever you ask someone for a favor, you pawn a bit of your freedom.

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Lines from man-made designs and nature:

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Dear friend,

Fortify yourself with your camera (sword).

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Dear friend,

I am a slave of my devices.

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My buddy Chris Dillow is the most inspirational tinkerer I know. I asked him, ‘How do you stay so curious?’ He told me:

Assume you can do anything.

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Limitless,
Full-on creative bliss

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The word “petty” comes from the word petit— or small.

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I got really inspired by the music video: “Bounce Back” by Big Sean. Here is a break-down of some color-combinations and palettes in the film:

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Assume you can do anything you put your mind to,
through all the fires and tribulations you’ve come through

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Dear friend,

I will share some thoughts on how to level up in your photography:

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Dear friend,

My idols growing up were people who hustled. People who pulled themselves up from their bootstraps. People who didn’t have much, but were able to empower themselves, with their own resourcefulness.

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