{"id":26400,"date":"2015-12-24T12:45:19","date_gmt":"2015-12-24T20:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=26400"},"modified":"2015-12-24T12:45:19","modified_gmt":"2015-12-24T20:45:19","slug":"what-i-want-for-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2015\/12\/24\/what-i-want-for-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"What I Want For Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Anaheim,
Anaheim, 2015 #cindyproject<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What do I want for Christmas?<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I want a hug. I want a kiss. I want an embrace.<\/p>\n

I want good cooked food with my family. I want to be fully present in the moment.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to worry about my email, my social media accounts, or any sort of external worries.<\/p>\n

I want inner-peace; inner-zen.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to care what others think of me\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I want to start to value my own opinion of myself more so than others\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 opinions of me.<\/p>\n

I want to lie down. I want to look at the sky, appreciate the beautiful sun above me.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want another camera.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want another \u00e2\u20ac\u0153device\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in my life to complicate my life. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more shit to charge.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need a fancy BMW or Benz.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more 0\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in my bank account.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more clothes to clutter up my (already cluttered) closet.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need words of praise.<\/p>\n

I just want to enjoy the moment\u00e2\u20ac\u201d laughter with family, good food, the smell of Vietnamese food in the air, and to perhaps take a few photos to document the moment.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need a new iPhone.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need a new digital Leica.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more friends.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more followers.<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need anything\u00e2\u20ac\u201d just the love of my family, my close friends\u00e2\u20ac\u201d all other things are superfluous.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

What do you want for Christmas?<\/p>\n

I wish you peace, love, and tranquility. I wish you to appreciate your own photos, and to not care about what others think about your work.<\/p>\n

I want you to make photos that make you proud and happy. I want you to print your photos, share them with your family, and to give them to those you love.<\/p>\n

I want you to frame your own photos (cheap IKEA frames are fine)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and show off your own art, rather than collect the art of others.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I want you to be like a child\u00e2\u20ac\u201d to explore the world in 2016 like you had no bullshit or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153theory\u00e2\u20ac\u009d holding you back.<\/p>\n

I want you to take photos like the first time you picked up that instant film camera.<\/p>\n

I want you to take photos like there were no tomorrow.<\/p>\n

I want you to drink lots of coffee (preferably black, and also preferably espresso).<\/p>\n

I want you to spend time getting feedback from colleagues and friends you trust.<\/p>\n

I want you to disregard labels in photography, and to start your own vision in photography.<\/p>\n

I want you to not<\/em> worry about post-processing, or how to get more social media followers. I want you to learn how to choose your best work, to edit your photos ruthlessly, to remember that photography isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t about making good photos\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but to enjoy your life.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I want you to immerse yourself in all different forms of art. I want you to hit up a museum, to hit up a photography exhibition, to surround yourself with jazz & classical music, and for you to invest your money in experiences, not stuff.<\/p>\n

I want you to save that $1,300 you plan on buying a new camera, lens, or whatever\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and use that money to go on a round-trip ticket somewhere, to buy a shitload of gas and food and road-trip across your country, or to invest in photography books that you will re-read over and over again.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I want you to make your photography more personal. I want you to not care about the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s opinion of you.<\/p>\n

I want you to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153do you<\/em>\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d focus on your own happiness and then extend that happiness to others.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want you to be dissatisfied with all the wonderful things you already have in your life.<\/p>\n

We don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need more<\/em> things to clutter up our life. But we do need to appreciate what we already<\/em> have more.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

If you haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t bought your loved ones a present for Christmas yet; buy them a massage on Groupon, buy them a photo-book, buy them a Southwest gift card for them to travel, buy them a photography class, buy them tickets to the museum, or buy them a lovely meal at a local restaurant.<\/p>\n

Give the gift of love, attention, and care to your loved ones.<\/p>\n

It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need to be expensive. It just needs to be meaningful and from the heart.<\/p>\n

All other things are superfluous.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and even if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not religious\u00e2\u20ac\u201d give your family a big hug for me, and spend time with them 100% (without being distracted by uploading your Christmas food to Instagram or Snapchat). Listen to every word they say, and cherish every moment.<\/p>\n

Oh yeah and make a few photos and document all that.<\/p>\n

Make photos that are personal to you\u00e2\u20ac\u201d memories that you will appreciate, and don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t upload it online. Keep it for yourself.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n

Happy holidays y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all.<\/p>\n

Here is a gift for you; a new Black-and-white preset (optimized for the digital Ricoh GR)\u00e2\u20ac\u201d should work well on all cameras.<\/p>\n