{"id":25922,"date":"2015-11-25T12:45:56","date_gmt":"2015-11-25T20:45:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=25922"},"modified":"2015-11-25T13:19:35","modified_gmt":"2015-11-25T21:19:35","slug":"how-to-start-your-own-photography-blog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/25\/how-to-start-your-own-photography-blog\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Start Your Own Photography Blog"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo
Photo by Johnny Lu. Downtown LA, 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dear friend,<\/p>\n

I am writing this as a practical instructional manual in terms of how to start your own photography blog. Note that none of this is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153truth\u00e2\u20ac\u009d or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153rules\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u201d these are simply guidelines that I wish I knew when I started a photography blog. I will share some tips, pieces of advice, and lessons which can help you practically when starting a photography blog.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Why start a photography blog?<\/h2>\n

First of all, only start a photography blog because you want to. Not<\/em> because you feel like you \u00e2\u20ac\u0153should\u00e2\u20ac\u009d create a blog because everyone else is.<\/p>\n

Funny enough\u00e2\u20ac\u201d a blog is kind of a dated thing now. All the young kids are now on Instagram and Snapchat\u00e2\u20ac\u201d it is rare that young people make blogs anymore.<\/p>\n

So don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that blogs are a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153fad\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d they are forms of self-expression and communication which are here to stay.<\/p>\n

Interestingly enough\u00e2\u20ac\u201d apparently 90% of the web is now powered by WordPress (commonly known as a blogging platform, but now most major websites like the NY times, etc run on it).<\/p>\n

So why start a photography blog?<\/p>\n

Well\u00e2\u20ac\u201d start a blog if you must start a blog. If you have something you really want to share with the rest of the world, and you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to be a slave to a platform (ie. social media apps).<\/p>\n

My experiences blogging<\/h2>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been blogging for over a decade now (I started blogging first on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Xanga\u00e2\u20ac\u009d when I was 16 years old) and now I am 27 years old. To be frank, blogging hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t changed much in these last 10 years (except the addition of new widgets, more powerful customization, and the conquering of Google of teh interwebz).<\/p>\n

I first personally started to blog because I wanted to share some of my ridiculous ideas and musings. I also enjoyed to write.<\/p>\n

My high school blog was pretty bullshit\u00e2\u20ac\u201d it was me ranting and raving about random high school drama. Funny enough, I went by the moniker \u00e2\u20ac\u0153ekizz\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (my friend Aaron made it up for me in middle school; a combination of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Eric\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Kim\u00e2\u20ac\u009d) and it was my other more confident, self-assured (and very rude) online persona.<\/p>\n

I started my photography blog (originally erickimphotography.com<\/a> was a photo blog), and I posted a photo everyday. I did this starting 18 years old (when I first got into college). When I was 18, my mom got me my first point-and-shoot digital camera (Canon powershot) and I wanted to somehow share the photos with the world. At that time, Facebook didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t exist, and there wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t an easy way to share images at the time. So the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153photoblog\u00e2\u20ac\u009d platform (essentially an online gallery where you can post photos on a daily basis) was the only way to do it.<\/p>\n

I posted consistently everyday to keep myself motivated, and also to share all of the photos I was proud of. At the time I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t track \u00e2\u20ac\u0153stats\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and I never got any comments\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I simply posted because I enjoyed the process.<\/p>\n

Over time, I started to get interested in street photography. I remember the day that I changed my website title from \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Eric Kim Photography\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Eric Kim Street<\/em> Photography.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I would say from that point I got really serious about street photography (at age 20).<\/p>\n

When I was 20, I was frustrated because there wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t any websites on how<\/em> to shoot street photography. In-fact, I had no idea what the genre was. So a lot of my personal learning was based on trial-and-error, and many of the lessons I learned were from my close photography friends.<\/p>\n

When I was 22 years old, I just graduated college and started working full-time. I always wanted to start a blog (specifically on street photography) since I knew that there were a lot of other people on the internet (like me) who wanted to learn the practical<\/em> side of street photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201d how to shoot without getting punched in the face, what to look for, technical settings, and how to compose better photos.<\/p>\n

Thus my blog was born. I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t sure what platform to use\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but it seemed at the time WordPress was a better option than Blogger (as I was able to self-host my own blog via the open-source WordPress.org<\/a> platform). Thank God I did this\u00e2\u20ac\u201d because now Google has (more or less) deserted Blogger, and WordPress has taken over the world. In this fact, I just got lucky\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and I am also glad that I self-hosted my own blog<\/strong> (meaning I installed their blogging software on my own website server, which gave me 100% control over my content, and also gave me the power to customize my own site as I saw fit). So quick lesson of the story; if you can afford it, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t use free services<\/strong> (otherwise you relinquish control of your content).<\/p>\n

Anyways, I started the blog out of a hobby and a pure love for the genre of street photography. I woke up everyday about an hour before work (around 7:30am) and blogged for about an hour, before biking into work and starting my job at around 10am. Sometimes I would be \u00e2\u20ac\u0153in the zone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of writing, that I would get to work late (10:30am). During my lunch hours, I would brainstorm ideas for new articles (and sometimes wrote for 30 minutes with my little netbook at the local Starbucks) when I had a good idea. When I got home after work, I would sometimes answer emails on my street photography-related blog email, and use that time to upload photos from other photographers, to share their images on the blog.<\/p>\n

All of this was a compulsion. I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t do it because someone was forcing me to do it. Rather, I did it for the pure joy and love of it.<\/p>\n

How I first started blogging<\/h2>\n

I also tried to be consistent. I blogged (more or less consistently for about 2 years+) every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday without fail (2010-2012). I would say this is how I was able to build up my audience, as they knew that there would always be new posts available then.<\/p>\n

Monday were for practical street photography \u00e2\u20ac\u0153tips.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Wednesdays were for featured photographers. Fridays were \u00e2\u20ac\u0153community-oriented\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (I shared photos based on weekly shooting assignments). All of these were the factors that helped bring more eyeballs to the blog.<\/p>\n

I would say that it was a bit stressful at times\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I would wake up super-early on those days, or sometimes I would stay up late to get those posts out. Sometimes it gave me anxiety not<\/em> to share a post\u00e2\u20ac\u201d because I knew that people were depending on me.<\/p>\n

However at the same time now looking back\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think you should ever force yourself to blog. After all, life is stressful enough\u00e2\u20ac\u201d why add another stress?<\/p>\n

I also heard the unfortunate statistic that 99.9% of blogs die after the first month. The secret to having a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153successful\u00e2\u20ac\u009d blog isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t to get millions of followers. The secret is to simply not let your blog die.<\/em><\/p>\n

The only thing I admire (now) in bloggers (any bloggers, whether tech, photography, or general) is their longevity. If they are able to blog for a decade+ (Leo from zenhabits.net<\/a>, Tim Ferriss from the 4 Hour Workweek<\/a>, and Blake Andrews<\/a> (street photographer and prolific blogger)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I got mad respect. Because they really do it for the love.<\/p>\n

There really is little (to no) money in blogging itself. Trust me, you will never make millions on just Google Adwords alone (unless you are the top .01% of websites on the internet). I am fortunate enough to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153monetize\u00e2\u20ac\u009d my blog by teaching street photography workshops. Leo makes his living (I believe mostly) from his \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sea Change\u00e2\u20ac\u009d online membership program. Tim Ferriss has already made a shitload of money from investing in internet companies\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and he only blogs and makes podcasts to help empower others. Blake Andrews also does it for the love (he makes his day-living as a radio DJ).<\/p>\n

Why should you<\/em> start a blog?<\/h2>\n

What is the impetus that drives you<\/em> to start your own photography blog?<\/p>\n

First of all, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take yourself too seriously. A blog is fun because it doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to be serious. I would treat it as a personal playground\u00e2\u20ac\u201d for you to share photos, ideas, links, and other random musings. My first blog posts weren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t about street photography, but just random snapshots of me and Cindy eating deep-fried cheese curds in Wisconsin. I only discovered my \u00e2\u20ac\u0153voice\u00e2\u20ac\u009d after probably a year of solid blogging. And still every year\u00e2\u20ac\u201d my voice changes. I feel the blog is in constant flux\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I am no longer the same human being (I curse more, am more reflective, more consumerist, more mindful, have more experience) and if I saw my 18-year-old self again, I would slap myself upside the head and give myself some (very important) life lessons.<\/p>\n

Secondly, I think it needs to be a passion. Why? Everything that you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a deep-rooted passion for will eventually die out.<\/p>\n

What do I mean by \u00e2\u20ac\u0153passion?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I mean the fire that burns within your soul\u00e2\u20ac\u201d that drives you to live, to love, and to share your wisdom with others. I think passion is something that you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really describe\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you either have it or you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. I believe it is a product of the environment in which you grew up in (I read a shitload of books as a kid, those 1000+ page Star Wars tomes when I was 10 years old) and writing was always an enjoyable activity (I always liked my English classes). Not only that, but my Dad had a love of film (I watched a lot of classic avant-garde films growing up; I remember watching \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcSchindler\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s list\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 when I was 11 years old) \u00e2\u20ac\u201d perhaps this informed my photographic vision. My mom was also an avid photographer (I have some of the best photos of me as a kid). Apparently my uncle was a professional photographer, and my grandfather was really into photography. Oh yeah and my Dad was really into reading and the English language\u00e2\u20ac\u201d he was the first of his entire family to immigrate to the states (and I learned later he was very well-read in Nietzsche and other classic philosophers).<\/p>\n

A good way to discover what your passion is to ask yourself this question:<\/p>\n

\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153If tomorrow I had a billion dollars transferred to my personal checking account, and no longer had to work for money, what would I do with my time<\/strong>?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I think the wrong question is to ask yourself, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153What will I do with the money.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d The right question is what will you do with your time<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I have been asking this question a lot to my friends and family, and have been very surprised what they told me. Some of them told me that they would dedicate their lives to charity (helping impoverished children in developing countries). Others told me that they would just read all day (my friend Joon). Others told me that they would work as animation artists (or travel the world and take photos). The really sad thing? A lot of my friends had no idea.<\/p>\n

And that is damn depressing\u00e2\u20ac\u201d when you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in school (as a kid) you have so many dreams, ambitions, and passions. But then standardized testing comes out and stomps out all of your dreams. You are no longer told to imagine, dream, be creative, be yourself, be unique, and change the world\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you are told to shut up, sit down, listen to the teacher, pass your exams, get into a good college, get a good job, buy a nice car, a 3-bedroom house in the suburbs, start a family, go to church every Sunday, save enough for retirement, send your kids to private school, retire when you are 65, travel the world, then die.<\/p>\n

Fuck that.<\/p>\n

Do what you want<\/h2>\n

No matter your situation in life, you have unlimited opportunity and potential to do whatever the fuck you want.<\/p>\n

If you want to really travel the world\u00e2\u20ac\u201d the question you want to ask yourself is, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153How bad do I want it<\/em>?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d To be frank, you can travel the world on a shoestring (less than $500 a month) in Southeast Asia or India (if you stay in hostels and eat cheap street food). Now if you have a family and kids\u00e2\u20ac\u201d that is a different story (but then again, a lot of families grow up in poverty with 5+ kids, and somehow all their basic needs are met).<\/p>\n

But I am starting to realize that you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need to do something rash and quit your job to live out your dreams. Sometimes just a two-week travel abroad can change your perspective about life (often traveling is just you trying to escape the misery from your life\u00e2\u20ac\u201d travel itself is not the goal).<\/p>\n

The stoic philosophers have taught me that happiness isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t getting everything you desire in life\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but rather, how to best make the use of the life you already have. So if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re born into poverty, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t goad after the wealth of the rich\u00e2\u20ac\u201d see what you can do within your limited needs to create art.<\/p>\n

If you have an iPhone (no other camera)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you can make really fantastic art and photography with it (look at @koci<\/a> on Instagram). You don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need a fancy DSLR. Even if you have a DSLR (entry level) your equipment is more than sufficient. I personally recommend a Ricoh GR II to anyone who wants a more \u00e2\u20ac\u0153serious\u00e2\u20ac\u009d camera for street photography (it is a point-and-shoot digital camera with an APS-C sensor that costs $550) \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and fortunately most of us with \u00e2\u20ac\u0153full-time jobs\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can afford it).<\/p>\n

You have no limits<\/h2>\n

The fantastic thing about the internet and technology is that you no longer have limits.<\/p>\n

I also feel that the photography blog is the best way to share your photos with the world.<\/p>\n

Why?<\/p>\n

Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook, Flickr\u00e2\u20ac\u201d all these online sites are owned by companies. Effectively when you upload your photos to these sites, they own your content. Not only that, but I feel these social media sites are just games. You try to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153game\u00e2\u20ac\u009d the system of Flickr by trying to get on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Explore\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (by adding a ton of tags, and uploading at the right time). You try to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153game\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Instagram by getting more followers by mass-following a ton of people, and hoping that they \u00e2\u20ac\u0153follow back.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d For Facebook, not all the photos you upload are seen by everybody (they are filtered by what Facebook thinks is relevant).<\/p>\n

A photography blog gives you direct access to your audience.<\/p>\n

Another thing I regret not doing earlier\u00e2\u20ac\u201d focusing on email newsletters\/mailing lists (rather than trying to get more social media followers). Why? An email is instantly deliverable\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and will be guaranteed (more or less) to enter the inbox of your follower. As much as we hate email, it is here to stay. Email has been around the longest, is the most stable, and still is (unfortunately) the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153least bad\u00e2\u20ac\u009d way to communicate online. And if you are like me, you probably compulsively check your email every 30 seconds or 2 minutes.<\/p>\n

Tools to get your photography blog started<\/h2>\n

First of all, if you can afford it\u00e2\u20ac\u201d please please please self-host your own photography blog (meaning you should pay for a monthly web server and your own website domain).<\/p>\n

I personally use 1and1.com<\/a> (I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like them, but am now married to them). I would recommend bluehost.com<\/a> (used them for client websites and blogs, they have a \u00e2\u20ac\u01531 click WordPress Install\u00e2\u20ac\u009d which is awesome).<\/p>\n

Regardless of what you use, you are going to install the WordPress.org<\/a> framework to your website server. This is essentially the backend you need to host all of your photography-blogging content. It is kind of like the dashboard of your car (WordPress also powers the engine).<\/p>\n

They call WordPress a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153CMS\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (content management system)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d meaning, it looks pretty as a user. It is very very easy to customize how your blog looks, performs, and there are tons of plugins and themes you can download.<\/p>\n

In terms of themes, I recommend the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Genesis\u00e2\u20ac\u009d WordPress framework\u00e2\u20ac\u201d which is a paid premium blog template which makes customization (and themes) really clean, simple, and easy.<\/p>\n

I also recommend you to get a simple domain (firstnamelastnamephoto.com)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d because if anyone ever Googles your first and last name, your photography blog will be more likely to pop up.<\/p>\n

What if I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t afford a photography blog?<\/h3>\n

First of all, once again\u00e2\u20ac\u201d if you are in the west, you can afford a photography blog ($10 a month, about the price of 2 Starbucks coffees a month). You are probably too stingy (I used to hate paying for online services, because I thought they should all be \u00e2\u20ac\u0153free\u00e2\u20ac\u009d). But once again, if you use online products which are free\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you are the product<\/strong> (meaning, the company owns your content, sells your personal data to third-party companies, and they have the power to change their platform whenever they would like). $10 a month is a small price to pay for your freedom.<\/p>\n

However if you really really can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t afford that for some reason, I just recommend using WordPress.com<\/a>. My friend Josh White hosts his site on WordPress.com (his site is jtinseoul.wordpress.com<\/a>)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but the problem is having your reader have to type in the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153.wordpress.com\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a bit of a pain in the ass. Better to have your own domain (www.yourfirstnamelastnamephoto.com).<\/p>\n

Another piece of advice I would give to you starting off\u00e2\u20ac\u201d these are things you shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t<\/em> do to your blog:<\/p>\n