{"id":68075,"date":"2017-10-30T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2017-10-30T16:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=68075"},"modified":"2017-10-29T14:28:07","modified_gmt":"2017-10-29T21:28:07","slug":"how-to-master-your-own-aesthetics-in-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2017\/10\/30\/how-to-master-your-own-aesthetics-in-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Master Your Own Aesthetics in Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Cindy
Cindy with umbrella. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the first steps to mastering photography for yourself: master your own aesthetics (how your pictures look and feel).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Take Your Photography to the Next Level with an ERIC KIM WORKSHOP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Helicopter.
Helicopter. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Photography is very personal. It is for you.<\/p>\n

You want to make pictures that bring you joy. The first step towards that, master your own aesthetics \u00e2\u20ac\u201d how your pictures look and feel.<\/p>\n

For me, I like to look st my own pictures. I know if my picture are good if I look at my own pictures, and I get excited from them.<\/p>\n

Never stop evolving<\/h2>\n
\"People
People in elevator. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To master photography for yourself is to always keep yourself excited. To constantly grow in your aesthetic, style, and visual artistry.<\/p>\n

If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not busy growing in your photography, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re dying.<\/p>\n

Aesthetic creative constraint<\/h2>\n
\"Man
Man with hand over face. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My simple suggestion: to focus on elevating your photography aesthetic, keep the same camera, lens, and post-processing style for a certain project, or period.<\/p>\n

For example, all the pictures here are from street photos I shot in Tokyo, 2017 \u00e2\u20ac\u201d all with RICOH GR II<\/a> and JPEG<\/a> with ERIC KIM PRESETS<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This is a good example of a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153creative constraint\u00e2\u20ac\u009d you can give yourself in photography. By limiting your aesthetic, you can focus on making unique pictures, with different compositional styles, and to take creative risks while<\/em> keeping your photographic aesthetic and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153look\u00e2\u20ac\u009d consistent.<\/p>\n

You are a director<\/h2>\n
\"Man
Man walking up stairs, and looking nack. Dynamic diagonal lines and composition. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Movie directors shoot different types of films, with different storylines, genres, and different aesthetic looks. A director will choose different (or the same) equipment, film, for different movie projects.<\/p>\n

What is important: each film must have the same aesthetic, mood, emotion, and feel from the beginning of the movie until the very end<\/strong>. If the aesthetic isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t consistent, the film will be a failure.<\/p>\n

\"Woman
Woman walking past blue background. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For example, Akira Kurosawa<\/a> did all of Seven Samurai in with a similar spare soundtrack, with the same actors, the same mood, all (of course) in black and white.<\/p>\n

\"Akira
Akira Kurosawa film poster. Tokyo, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For another film (RAN), 1985<\/a> Kurosawa shot it all in color\u00e2\u20ac\u201d and deliberately used the color aesthetic in a way that created the visual artistry in the film. It would have not made sense if he shot some of the film in color, and some of it in black and white. The mood and storyline wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have made sense.<\/p>\n

Yet, as photographers, we all make the mistake of mixing black and white and color within the same project.<\/p>\n

For my personal projects, I keep the aesthetic consistent within each project. I like both black and white and color, but within the project, I keep it consistent.<\/p>\n

For example, CITY OF ANGELS<\/a> and DARK SKIES OVER TOKYO<\/a> is all black and white. SUITS<\/a> is all color.<\/p>\n

Why are aesthetics important?<\/h2>\n
\"Tokyo
Tokyo flash. Woman with umbrella. Ginza, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To me, aesthetics are important because they convey a mood, feeling, and emotion to the viewer.<\/p>\n

In philosophy, aesthetics is the study of beauty\u00e2\u20ac\u201d what makes something beautiful or ugly.<\/p>\n

We like art, and we like to look at pictures which bring us joy. Generally we all have different definitions of what is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153beautiful\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to us, according to our visual palette and taste.<\/p>\n

For example, some of us prefer to look at high saturated color pictures (some of us like our food seasoned very strongly, with spicy spices) and others of us like more silver-gelatin monochromatic images (maybe seasoned with a little bit of salt and pepper, and olive oil).<\/p>\n

The important thing:<\/p>\n

\n Know what is your personal taste. Never let anybody dictate your aesthetic taste. Dictate your artistic and aesthetic taste for yourself.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For example, if you like vanilla ice cream\u00e2\u20ac\u201d why would you let someone who likes (only) chocolate ice cream to call you an idiot for liking vanilla? You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not dumb for liking vanilla\u00e2\u20ac\u201d you just prefer a different taste.<\/p>\n

Some of us like mint ice cream, some of us like pistachio ice cream, some of us like cookies and cream, some of us like burnt caramel, some of us like gelato, others of us like frozen yogurt. You cannot force someone to prefer the same taste as you do\u00e2\u20ac\u201d similarly, never let anyone superimpose their artistic tastes unto you.<\/p>\n

You are the Master<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

To conclude, realize…. you are the ultimate master for yourself. You are the only master for your own photography.<\/p>\n

If you have learned photography from the masters, yet feel constrained negatively by your masters\u00e2\u20ac\u201d learn to KILL YOUR MASTERS IN PHOTOGRAPHY<\/a>! Only a fool would let his or her flight be held back by a golden chain and ball.<\/p>\n

Learn the fundamentals and basics for your photography from your teachers, but don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t intend to be their slave forever. Leonardo da Vinci<\/a> started off as an apprentice, learning the fundamentals from his master. But then, he broke from his master, and then pursued his own artistic vision.<\/p>\n

So friend, never stop having faith in yourself, and your own unique artistic vision.<\/p>\n

Fly high,
\nERIC<\/p>\n

Take Your Photography to the Next Level with an ERIC KIM WORKSHOP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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