{"id":67704,"date":"2017-10-21T07:07:47","date_gmt":"2017-10-21T14:07:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=67704"},"modified":"2017-10-21T11:00:55","modified_gmt":"2017-10-21T18:00:55","slug":"why-you-must-not-call-yourself-a-photographer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2017\/10\/21\/why-you-must-not-call-yourself-a-photographer\/","title":{"rendered":"Why You Must Not Call Yourself a Photographer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Eric<\/p>\n

Dear friend,<\/p>\n

A practical word of advice: don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t call yourself a photographer. Rather, call yourself a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153visual artist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, or better yet\u00e2\u20ac\u201dan \u00e2\u20ac\u0153artist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d or better yet, a child.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

EMPOWER YOUR VISUAL ARTISTRY WITH HAPTIC TOOLS ><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

OPEN SOURCE<\/h2>\n

DOWNLOAD PDF: Why you must not call yourself a photographer<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

1. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t restrict yourself<\/h2>\n

\"Eric<\/p>\n

This is my thinking:<\/p>\n

The term \u00e2\u20ac\u0153photographer\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is too restrictive. A tree doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t classify itself as a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153tree\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d rather, it just focuses on growth. A tree continues to strive for more nutrition, digging her glorious roots deeper into the crimson earth. She draws more oxygen and nitrogen from the air. She synthesizes the materials from nature, and grows stronger, bigger, with more muscular trunks, and longer branches. She keeps growing, steadily, slowly, and without end.<\/p>\n

2. Why do you like to make pictures?<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

You are a visual artist. You are fascinated by the visual world. You probably were once interested in painting or drawing as a child. Perhaps you also liked to play with play dough \u00e2\u20ac\u201d making your own clay statues. Perhaps you liked to create your own cities with LEGO\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u201d in your own image.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A photographer is someone who uses a camera to capture reality, and make visual art. Therefore, our ultimate aim isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t to make photographs, but to make visual art \u00e2\u20ac\u201d via<\/em> photography. In other words, photography is the path unto becoming a visual artist. And photographs are just another medium or channel to express your visual artistry\u00e2\u20ac\u201d via making pictures.<\/p>\n

3. Avoid the fate of Henri Cartier-Bresson<\/h2>\n
\"Hands.
Hands. Paris, 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Henri Cartier-Bresson<\/a> never wanted to be a photographer. He saw photography as merely \u00e2\u20ac\u0153instant sketches\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. What (I think) he really wanted was to be a painter. Early on his career, he studied painting. He also wanted to label himself as a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153surrealist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d but was discouraged by Robert Capa<\/a>\u00e2\u20ac\u201d who said that the term would hurt his \u00e2\u20ac\u0153commercial viability\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n

\"Hands
Hands of a 92 year old woman. Hanoi, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Anyways, going back to HCB, he struggled his entire life to make visual art with photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but I think he was never truly satisfied. He kept trying to paint with his camera, and not feeling quite \u00e2\u20ac\u0153there\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u201d even after decades. Finally, he gave up photography, and retired to painting and drawing for the rest of his life. Sad story, his paintings and drawings were never as good as his photographs.<\/p>\n

4. Combine all your visual artistic visions<\/h2>\n
\"My
My leg. Saigon hotel, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The reason why I bring up Henri Cartier-Bresson is to tell you what to AVOID in your life\u00e2\u20ac\u201d a lifetime of pursuing the wrong thing.<\/p>\n

Of course, you like to make photographs. But once again, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t limit yourself to only photography. I think this will hurt your long-term creative opportunities.<\/p>\n

\"Swans.
Swans. Kyoto, 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

William Klein<\/a> did photography, painting, fashion, typography, and design. He has remained prolific his entire life.<\/p>\n

\"Face
Face mask. Hanoi, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Richard Avedon<\/a> created a bridge between the fashion, commercial, and photographic \u00e2\u20ac\u0153fine art\u00e2\u20ac\u009d world. Avedon refused to let external society define him \u00e2\u20ac\u201d he decided to define himself through his own style of photography.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Spread from LEARN FROM THE MASTERS BOOK<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Josef Koudelka<\/a> (whom I consider the true<\/em> master photographer of all time, more so than Henri Cartier-Bresson<\/a>) has refused to do photographs that wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t true to himself. He has pursued his singular artistic vision himself, living like a nomad without a home, in poverty, selfishly pursuing his own photography and art. And his photographs transcend photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201d they are like raw and visceral zen paintings, with life, drama, warmth, emotion, and soul embedded into the stitching of his photographs.<\/p>\n

5. Never stop playing<\/h2>\n
\"\"
LEARN FROM THE MASTERS BOOK<\/a> by HAPTICPRESS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a visual artist, you have so much to play, explore, and learn. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t just make photographs, paint pictures. Draw, sketch.<\/p>\n

\"LEONARDO
LEONARDO DA VINCI x ERIC KIM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Make digital pictures via photoshop, illustrator, or procreate app on iPad. Draw in a notebook, or on printer paper if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re bored at work, or at (even more boring) meetings.<\/p>\n

6. Stay true to your own artistic vision<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

To be a true visual artist is to find aesthetic joy in all<\/em> of the visual world. To find joy in color, shape, form, texture, and aesthetic joy in looking at people, architecture<\/a>, nature, the organic, and inorganic.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Above all\u00e2\u20ac\u201d trying to make pictures according to YOUR own personal view, perspective, or opinion of reality.<\/p>\n

As a visual artist, you decree what is beautiful and deserves to be looked at. You are a JUDGE\u00e2\u20ac\u201d a judge of the aesthetically beautiful, sublime, and divine.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Consider, whenever you are about to click the shutter and make a photograph, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re judging the scene. You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re judging the frame, and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re judging what to include in the frame, and more importantly\u00e2\u20ac\u201d what to exclude<\/em> from the frame.<\/p>\n

7. Discover your own personal truth, only for yourself.<\/h2>\n

\"Welcome.<\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m still on a personal journey and state of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153eternal self-becoming\u00e2\u20ac\u009d through art, life, and philosophy. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t listen to me, this is all advice for myself\u00e2\u20ac\u201d which might, or won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help you.<\/p>\n

My ultimate opinion is that you should have your own opinion about what you do, what you think, how you live your life, and how you express yourself as a visual artist.<\/p>\n

\"Poetry,<\/p>\n

Be strong, and never lose faith in yourself.
\nERIC<\/p>\n

EMPOWER YOUR VISUAL ARTISTRY WITH HAPTIC TOOLS ><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dear friend, A practical word of advice: don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t call yourself a photographer. Rather, call yourself a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153visual artist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, or better yet\u00e2\u20ac\u201dan \u00e2\u20ac\u0153artist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d or better yet, a child.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":67657,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67704","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-posts"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/FDD79F9A-AC7C-4DE0-B2E5-FD460E9EA333.jpeg?fit=619%2C537&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67704","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67704"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67704\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67713,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67704\/revisions\/67713"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67704"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67704"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67704"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}