Tag: inspiration
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How to Innovate in Your Photography
You can download this essay for free as a PDF or Microsoft .DOCX file. Dear friend, I wanted to write you a personal letter on innovation. Not to say that I am the most innovative person (I’m not), but in the hope that I can hash out some of my personal thoughts on creativity, pushing…
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2 Lessons Tennis Has Taught Me About Photography and Life
Dear friend, I want to share a story with you. It is an important life lesson that I learned from Greg Lowe, my tennis coach from high school. Okay let’s start from the very beginning. I was a sophomore (or perhaps freshman) in high school (Castro valley high in California), and I heard that there…
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You Can’t Control the Results, Only the Effort
“You can’t control the results, only the effort.” – Ryan Holiday Ryan Holiday is a guy I admire very much he’s about my age, and has accomplished a lot. He’s a best selling author, practicing stoic (highly recommend his book, “The Obstacle is the Way), passionate blogger, and overall down to earth guy. I read…
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On Capturing Beauty in the Mundane
Dear friend, I want to share you with excitement a new idea that I got, from William Eggleston. The concept is quite simple (and I know I have shared this with you in the past) but it is this: Street photography is all about capturing beauty in the mundane. Almost a year ago, I ordered…
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On Searching for the Maximum
Read as a Google Doc. — “Over the last 10 years, what has interested me in taking photographs is the maximum — the maximum that exists in a situation and the maximum I can produce from it.” – Josef Koudelka I just finished the second day of my workshop here in Stockholm, and after an…
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How to Overcome Excuses in Street Photography
Bercy Park / Paris, 2015 A photo posted by Eric Kim (@erickimphoto) on Jun 25, 2015 at 3:16pm PDT Getting my laptop stolen recently has been the best thing that happened to me recently. Let me explain why. Not having a laptop the last week, I’ve been making all these excuses not to blog and…
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Video: How to Overcome Photographer’s Block
Inspired by the recent free e-book I wrote: “How to Overcome Photographer’s Block,” I also made a video (for those of you who prefer audio as well). For audio, you can listen below: Podcast links Direct download Podcast episode All podcast episodes Read more to see all the topics I cover, as well as the…
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Free E-Book: How to Overcome Photographer’s Block
I am excited to announce that I just finished writing a new book titled: “How to Overcome Photographer’s Block.” If you have ever felt lack of motivation, inspiration, or direction– this is the book for you! If you’re in a creative rut, learn how to break out of your “photographer’s block” with this comprehensive and…
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Be a Photography Shark: Keep Swimming or Die
In “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron, I came across this interesting idea: that creativity is like a shark. If sharks stop swimming, even for a minute, they will sink to the bottom of the ocean and die. A lot of things in life are about momentum– about creating positive habits, that allow us to achieve…
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Photos You Should vs Must Take
I just finished reading an excellent book on art, creativity, and following your passion titled: “The Crossroads of Should and Must” by Elle Luna. The original idea was written on Medium here, and then blew up on the internet. The premise of the idea is this: in life you are pulled between things you “should”…
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Take at Least 1 Shitty Photograph Everyday
I am currently reading “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron— an interesting book that links creativity, spirituality, and overcoming your artistic self-censor. I know a lot of photographers who are perfectionists or have a lot of self-doubt. This causes them to not pursue their dreams of becoming a photographer. Not becoming a full-time photographer, but…
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The Only Way to Become Indifferent to Criticism: Become Indifferent to Praise as Well
I love attention. I hate criticism and negativity. I want everybody to love me, to love my photography, and my writing. Contrary to popular belief, I actually have very thin skin when it comes to criticism. I pour my heart and soul into my work— whether that is my blogging, my photography, or teaching. But…
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Free E-Book: On Being an Artist and Photographer
Dear streettogs, I am excited to share that I have a new free e-book to share with you guys: “On Being an Artist and Photographer“. The chapters include: Chapter 1: How to Succeed and Survive as an Artist and Photographer Chapter 2: The Role of the Artist and Photographer Chapter 3: How to Express Yourself as…
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How to Break Out of Your Comfort Zone in Art and Photography
I think one of the most exciting things about being an artist is following your curiosity, passion, and to pursue a life-long path of learning. Continuing from my “Akademie x Lessons in Art and Life” series, here are some lessons I learned from the Raqs Media Collective in how you can constantly transform yourself through…
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How to Have a Creative and Flexible Mind as an Artist and Photographer
Continuing my series on “Akademie x Lessons in Art and Life”, I thoroughly enjoyed an essay titled: “Me and Marcuse” by Michelle Grabner. She exposed me to a lot of new ideas that I want to explore below on the following topics: what art is for, the importance of filtering images, undoing and re-doing your…
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How to Express Yourself as an Artist and Photographer
Continuing the lessons I’ve learned from “Akademie x Lessons in Art + Life”, I want to share some thoughts I’ve learned from Carol Bove, one and the artists and “tutors” from the book. Carol expresses ideas on self-expression, what work means to her, time and information management, as well as uncensoring and finding yourself. I…
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How to Succeed and Survive as a Photographer and Artist
I am currently reading: “Akademie x Lessons in Art + Life”, which is probably one of the most inspirational art/life books I’ve picked up as of late. It is a beautifully printed and bound book, folding open like a school instructional manual. I personally never went to art school. I entered college as a Biology…
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Remember: Street Photography is Supposed to be Fun
One thing to remind myself: street photography is supposed to be fun. If you’re not having fun, why are you doing it? We all have the stresses of everyday life that we have to deal with. We have to deal with stressful commutes, unreasonable bosses, difficulties at home, drama with friends and family, and financial…
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Play the Cards You Are Dealt in Life and Photography
I have been re-reading a lot of stoic philosophy recently, especially “Letters from a Stoic” and “On the Shortness of Life” by Seneca, and “The Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius. One of the biggest things that I have re-learned is that for true happiness, we should focus on appreciating what we currently have, rather than what…
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Photography Quick Links: February 2015
(A.g.’s note: Photography Quick Links is a new initiative I want to do here on the blog. These are links I have personally read and sifted through. This is by no means a definitive guide but for those news stories or news articles regarding photography [but will try to concentrate it to street of course]…
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Just one more photo
My mom recently came back from an epic backpacking trip through Nepal for about 28 days. She is an incredible woman. At the age of 59, she was able to withstand the freezing cold, the difficulty of breathing in high altitude, and the challenge of keeping her motivation up for nearly a month in which…
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Ask Eric Kim #2: “How To Discover Interesting Scenes in Your Familiar (thus Boring) Home City?”
Hey streettogs, to continue with my “Ask Eric Kim” series (any questions you had about street photography, business, marketing, social media, etc.) I put a question out on Facebook regarding what questions you had (so I could try my best to help out and offer some ideas): Kai Kienzle asked the following: “How [do you] discover interesting scenes in your familiar…
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How to Fight “The Resistance” in Street Photography
In “The War of Art”, the author Stephen Pressfield talks about “The Resistance” — and how it is the biggest obstacle to all of our artistic pursuits and endeavors. We can encounter “The Resistance” in many ways in our life. We encounter it when we want to start our own business (and we have thoughts…
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How to Avoid Boredom in Street Photography
One of the most exciting ways to live life is to avoid boredom. By following what makes us curious, passionate, and have fun create meaning in our life. I think one of the great ways to guide our work in street photography is to avoid boredom.
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The “One Street Photograph a Day” Challenge
I think one of the most difficult things as a photographer is to stay inspired. How do we stay inspired to shoot everyday– when the boredom and monotony of everyday life sets in?
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How to Overcome Obstacles in Street Photography
I just finished a new book: “The Obstacle is the Way” by Ryan Holiday. The book is a huge source of inspiration for overcoming challenges– and using them to your advantage. In-fact, Ryan uses the quote from Marcus Aurelius for the title of his book: “The obstacle is the way” meaning that if it weren’t…
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10 Tips How to Unleash Your Creativity in Street Photography
(Above photograph: Hong Kong, 2011. Eric Kim) One of the most influential books I have recently is titled: “Imagine: How Creativity Works”. It was a book I was recommended by my good friend and fellow street photographer Brian Sparks. It outlines studies done on creativity, creative people, and the actual science done on the subject.…
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101 Inspirational Street Photography Quotes
(Above Image Copyrighted By Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos) Charlie Atkinson: So for this weeks post I thought I would share my favorite quotes from some of my favorite photographers as well as a few others that can be applied to photography as well! They are also not in any particular order, this post is by me as…
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The Most Touching Story I Heard in a Long Time: Mattias Leppaniemi Taking a Photograph of a 88-year Old Swedish Woman
I was shooting with my good friend Mattias Leppaniemi, and he is currently working on a project on the elderly in Stockholm. He took a nice photo of this 88-year old Swedish lady, and had a really sweet story to tell. She told him that him taking a photo of her really made her day…
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Breathtaking Street Photography of New York City by Stanley Kubrick in the 1940’s
Long before director Stanley Kubrick directed influetial films such as Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange and The Shining — he took incredible street photographs in New York City since he was 17. He worked until the 1950’s for Look Magazine before he decided to pursue filmmaking. Keep reading to check…
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Mike Peters and The American Dream by Ollie Gapper
In this article I was fortunate enough to be able to conduct an interview through email with NY-based photographer Mike Peters. His style of street portraiture is one that has been attempted many times by many names, but never quite to the extent or success of Mike’s work. He is consistent and his work flows…
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16 Great Examples of Street Photography Without People by the Community
Hey streettogs, thanks to everyone who read this week’s post on how to shoot street photography without people and submitted their best images to my Facebook fan page! Congratulations to everyone who made the final cut next week. Tell us which photos you liked best, and stay tuned for our next assignment! Keep reading to…
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11 Inspirational Examples of Shadow Street Photography
Last week on my Facebook fan page I announced the street photography assignment of the week which was “shadows“. I got all of your wonderful submissions on my Facebook fan page, and chose the best here to feature. I hope you enjoy all the images below and stay tuned to Facebook page where I will…
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13 Inspirational Examples of Travel Street Photography
Recently on my Facebook fan page and Twitter, I asked you to send in your favorite street photographs taken while traveling. Check all the images below to see inspirational images from all over the world! Make sure to follow me to stay updated with the new weekly assignments. Read more to see all the other…
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The 13 Most Inspirational Street Photographs in the Rain
On my Facebook Page and Twitter I asked the community to send in their best street photography photographs in the rain. I chose the best, and also dug up other inspirational images on Flickr as well. Congratulations to everybody who got their images featured. Read more to see the other inspirational images.
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The 30 Most Inspirational Street Photographs on Flickr
Recently I asked on Facebook and Twitter for your best street photographs on Flickr. I reviewed the entries carefully, and chose the 30 most inspirational street photographs that showed either exhibited the decisive moment, the beauty of everyday life, or powerful imagery. Congratulations to everybody that made the final cut! Read more to see the…
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An Inspirational Lesson Learned About Street Photography
Note: I got this email from aspiring street photographer named Tasos. It was quite inspirational and eye-opening. I thought I would share it with you guys! The other day I was out, and as usual I had the camera with me. I took a photo of 2 gentlemen. It was a great learning experience. I…
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Inspirational Street Photography Quote of the Day: Weegee
“People are so wonderful that a photographer has only to wait for that breathless moment to capture what he wants on film” – Weegee
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Inspirational Street Photography Quote of the Day: Robert Doisenau
“The marvels of daily life are exciting; no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street.” – Robert Doisneau
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3 Tips How to Quit Making Excuses and Shoot More Street Photography
Every street photographer needs to take more photos. Street photographers (and many other types of photographers) don’t go out and shoot photos nearly as often as we should. In an ideal world, we should be outside every day, trying to capture the beauty of everyday life. Whenever photographers say, “I don’t have enough time” or…
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How to Get Started with Street Photography Part I
So if any of you guys are interested in street photography, the question might be on your mind: “Where do I start?” Well, for starters you need a camera. The most important step is actually going out and taking photos . If you are new to photography, all you might have is a point-and-shoot (a…
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No Excuses – Street Photography 101
Another huge obstacle you will face as a street photographer (and a general photographer) is that at times you are not going to feel a lack of inspiration to go out and take photos and let your camera collect dust on your shelf. Although it can be healthy to put down your camera at times…