Search: philosophy

I think to make better photos; seek to make more simple photos.

Dear friend, I’ve gained a lot of inspiration from ancient Greek and Roman Mythology. Life and death In ancient Greek/Roman Mythology — they talk a lot about the underworld, ruled by Hades (hell). To me, I don’t believe …

Dear friend, I want to write you a letter on how to be patient. First of all, I am actually a quite patient person. I’m not sure where I learned it from, maybe my mom. But regardless, I …

Dear friend, I wanted to give you a little guide, or manual, that you can keep with you— as a source of inspiration, motivation, or any source of ideas. First of all, this is all written as advice …

Leonardo da Vinci was the ultimate ‘autodictat’ (someone who taught himself everything). He had no formal schooling, yet he didn’t let that get in his way. He was the world’s keenest observer— he would just look around himself, …

Dear friend, I had the thought today— what exactly is the point of making photos? 1. Why do you make photos Eric? Let me start off by examining myself: Why do you make photos, Eric? I make photographs …

Dear friend, I think a lot of us are finding inspiration: Here is what works for me: 1. Inspiration is simple First of all, I think you can find inspiration anywhere. You can find inspiration in a child …

Dear friend, I want to write you a letter on how to conquer your fears in art. 1. What is an ‘artist’? First of all, I think to be an artist is to just have belief in your …

Dear friend, I’ve been really into the soul lately — in terms of how we can integrate it into our photography and life. 1. Why the soul? In life, I’m becoming more spiritual. I’m finding more appreciation in …

Dear friend, I know there are times that we lack confidence in ourselves as photographers and artists; but how can we overcome that lack of confidence? 1. Death threats on the blog I’m going to make this a …

Dear friend, I’ve been thinking a lot about the philosophy behind compression — to make things into a smaller size. Small is beautiful First of all, I believe that small is beautiful. Smaller is easier, less stressful, and …

Dear friends, “How to Shoot Street Photography” is a new free ebook which will give you all the information how to start shooting street photography.

Dear friend, One question I asked myself for a long time (when I had a full-time job) was this: “Should I quit my full-time job, and pursue my passion full-time?” Fate helped me First of all, I was …

I believe I am what I do, what I own, and how I live my life. This is a personal breakdown of me, Eric Kim:

Dear friend, I wanted to share some of my personal thoughts on how to capture a soul in a photograph. 1. Why capture a soul? So when I say capturing a soul in a photograph, I don’t want …

“Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it shall be opened unto you.” – Jesus I remember hearing this saying as a kid. It empowered me. 1. Ask, and it …

“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do men light a lamp and put it under a bucket, but on a lamp stand; and it gives …

“Tomorrow we’ll sail the wide seas again.” – Horace I see life as a journey. Along this journey of life, we face storms, uncertainty, pirates, and attacks. No matter how skillful we are as a captain of a …

Writing is fucking hard. Far more unnatural than writing, photographing, or any other artistic form. 1. Writing is just expressing your soul It has taken me a very long time to hone my writing skills. I’ve been writing …

I was reading Horace’s advice to his friend on poetry, and he said that we should focus on knowing how to order our lives correctly, instead of being overly-obsessed with how to order our verses. We can apply …

The Art of Art INSPIRE YOURSELF with HAPTIC. Self Motivation THE WILL TO ART. FULL STACK STIMULI ALWAYS IN BETA. Anything Which Entertains You Is Good. Flex Your Own Art! A Life of Artistic and Creative Leisure Creating …

Dear friend, I’ve been really into poetry lately — and think there is an interesting cross-over between poetry and photography. 1. What did I learn from the ancient poets? First of all, studying the work of the ancient …

I admit– I’m a lazy photographer. Most of the time I’m not out on the streets. Most of the time, I’m going from coffee shop to coffee shop, espresso to espresso. Sometimes cappuccinos: Funny thing though — the …

Read: “The Works of Horace” I’m really into the poet Horace– who mixed moral philosophy and poetry: Here are some of my personal notes for myself, which I hope will give you some ideas: 1. Let the world …

I always like cross-pollinating creative ideas. For example, I am inspired by the zen-like philosophy of Rick Rubin, who sees himself (not) as a music producer, but a music reducer: Some inspirational ideas from the music producer Rick …

I see the human soul as a diamond in the rough. We are born with a diamond, but it is raw, tough, and rare. But with enough care and love, we slowly chip away at the imperfections. We …

ERIC KIM DIET PHILOSOPHY Why Eat Meat? Unorthodox Workout and Diet Tips I’ve Learned After 10 Years of Self-Experimentation Intermittent Fasting and Ketogenic Diet for Photographers and Content Creators Ketogenic Diet for Photographers Ketogenic Diet Is There an …

COMPOSITION by KIM In pursuit of making (greater) compositions! THE ART OF PHOTOGRAPHY COMPOSITION VIRTUAL REALITY COMPOSITION The Game of Composition Technical compositions Composition Studies Philosophy of Composition Aesthetics Master composition for yourself: Photography Composition Concepts Street Photography …

Why wake up in the morning, and live our lives? I had this thought when walking Cindy to her archive here in Hanoi. At first, I thought about writing on how to live. But better yet— we should …

Dear friend, I want to write you a letter on not giving a fuck of what others think of you: You were born for greatness First of all, why do you care what others think of you? I …

Thucydides Horace Seneca Marcus Aurelius Epictetus Publilius Syrus Heraclitus Edward Gibbons See all philosophy >

Dear friend, A lot of us labor to be ‘original’ in our photography— but realize, everything in photography and life is a remix: One of the biggest benefits I had studying history was this — understanding the root …

Dear friend, One of my dreams when I started off in photography was to somehow make a living with my photography. I grew up pretty poor, so I knew that I didn’t really need much to be happy. …

Dear friend, I wanted to write you a letter on how I found my passion in life: 1. Define ‘passion’ for yourself First of all, many of us are trying to find our passion in life. But the …

Dear friend, I wanted to write you an essay on how I come up with ideas. 1. Read old books As a blogger, I’m always trying to come up with new ideas. Let me share some personal techniques, …

Dear friend, I was really inspired by this notion of ‘techno-zen’ that I read in Steve Job’s biography by Walter Isaacson. Pretty much the concept was this — Steve Jobs studied Zen Buddhism, and tried to apply his …

The philosophy of technology: Life in Airplane Mode How to Achieve Techno-Zen Don’t Be Suckered by New Technology The Best Technology Subtracts

Dear friend, I know a lot of fellow writers who are struggling. If you’re a writer who has writer’s block, frustrations coming up with ideas, need practical tips, tools, and strategies— I hope this letter will benefit you: …

‘A soldier’s skill is not at fault if he receives the death-blow through his armor.’ – Seneca Dear friend, I wanted to write you a letter emphasizing the importance of you to focus on your actions — not …

Dear friend, Every day, we face fears of exile, war, political unrest, and death. But no matter how bad shit may seem, know that everything will be alright. I know this sounds all rosy, but I want to …

Dear friend, I wanted to give you some practical ideas, and thoughts on how you can make money with your street photography: First of all, consider why you want to make money with street photography. Do you want …

Download PDF Text File (.txt) .docx Google Docs The Art of Photography Dear friend, I want to share you practical tips, insights, and advice on how to be a more ‘artistic’ photographer. 1. Is photography art? Yes. For …

Dear friend, Unfortunately — I’ve met a lot of people who lack self-esteem. Many of us lack self-esteem because of our upbringing. Some of us had our dreams crushed when we were kids. Some of us had abusive …

Dear friend, All of us lack confidence in ourselves— how can we learn to have more confidence, and belief in ourselves?

Dear friend, Street photography has taught me so much about living and how to become a better person. I wanted to use this opportunity to share some personal lessons — things which have both helped my photography, and …

Dear friend, Photograph your loved ones like they’re going to die, and photograph your dead lines like they’re still alive. The gist of this letter is that I want to share my personal experiences photographing my grandfather’s funeral, …

“A task once begun is (more than) half done”. – Seneca Dear friend, One of the hardest things to do in life is to start.

Everything photography: Street Photography 101 » The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Street Photography 70 Street Photography Tips 15 Street Photography Techniques Entrepreneurship » How to Do What You Love for a Living Should I Follow My Passion For a …

In life, photography, and our personal self-growth; let us seek forward progress. When we are climbing up a hill, we need to learn forward. If we are a world-class skier, we need to lean forward. Agile animals lean …

Never buy the first generation (anything) technology (no matter how innovative or life changing it may seem). As humans we have a bias to the new. We love new things, products, ideas, and innovations. But the problem is …

Dear friend, Why is it that we are so interested in making money from our passion — photography? Is it because that somehow making money from our passion shows that we are “successful”? Is it because we have …

Dear friend, I want to use this opportunity to reflect on 2016— and share some of my personal experiences this year, my learning points, and my joys: Events My 2016 schedule looked something like this: GPP in Dubai …

What do we crave in life? I feel most of us crave the following: freedom from worry. We are all slaves to fear. We buy things because we think it will protect us. We network with higher-ups, because …

Dear friend, Most of us always complain that we are always too busy. We all strive to have more leisure, relaxation, and peace in our lives. But why do we always let others barge into our free time, …

No matter how rich we are, we can never inhabit more than one room at a time, or sleep in more than one bed at a time. Which made me also realize— the beauty of the “1 camera, …

Dear friend, I want to write you this letter on the importance of living — not just photographing. What isn’t the point of life? First of all, we make the common mistake that thinking that photography is the …

Dear friend, I once read the proverb— “If you give a man a fish, you can feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, he can feed himself for a lifetime.” The point of …

Dear friends, “How to Shoot Street Photography” is a new free ebook which will give you all the information how to start shooting street photography. I have included a PDF and .ePub format. The benefit of download the .ePub format …

If your life were a smartphone battery (without a charger), would you let anyone drain it? We all know those people — people who just want a little bit of your time, who want to “pick your brain”, …

In life, we only have a limited “bandwidth” for doing things. We have a limited bandwidth in terms of our time, energy, and focus. Once we are “maxed out” — we can’t do anything. Our activities halt to …

A lot of people think that “happiness” is always feeling pleasure. For me, I think the “supreme blessedness” (as the Stoic philosophers say) is about not having pain (mental or physical). We can’t always control whether we are …

Dear friend, I wanted to write you a letter on the benefit of doing — rather than “thinking.” Don’t theorize I see a lot of arm-chair philosophers, thinkers, and academics— who simply analyze, theorize, and think. But many …

I have been testing the Olympus Pen F and 17mm f/1.8 lens in Dalat, Vietnam for the last few days, and I am blown away.

I love things which are timeless. Timeless design. Timeless philosophy. Timeless friendships. Things that don’t change over time — or if anything, get better with time. Classics never die. Avoid the new Generally what is new and trendy …

“To own nothing is the beginning of happiness” – Diogenes Freedom is owning nothing. Not having anything to worry about. The more things you own, the more things you need to maintain, and stress out about. Everything is …

We often think that more information is better. In reality, more information can be toxic. The more information you have, the more misinformation you often have. The problem is that information consumes our attention. Most information is noise, …

Nobody knows how to live— but we know exactly how we shouldn’t live. When are we most not living? I think we are not living when we are being passive. When we are being entertained. When we are …

Dear friend, If you’re a diamond, you can only be cut by other diamonds — aka, materials that are as strong as you (if not stronger than you). In life, many will try to hurt and harm you. …

“What physician is angry with a crazy patient?” – Seneca If you were a doctor, and you had a patient that was sick, would you be angry at your patient? In life, imagine yourself as a doctor. And …

Be adamant about what is important to you. The word ‘adamant’ comes from this fictional material called ‘adamantine’ — which was seen in ancient times as untamable, and indestructible, and invincible. That means in life, don’t compromise what …

“The beginning is the end.” – Heraclitus I started as a beginner photographer, gained experience, and now I’m going in reverse— trying to become a beginner photographer again.

Dear friend, If you’re new, start here: Photography 101 » Street Photography 101 » The Art of Photography » Entrepreneurship 101 » Personal Photography » All Photography Articles » Motivation » Composition » Cinematography » Soul Photography » Smartphone Photography » Equipment » Philosophy Articles » Stoicism » …

Open-source videos: Download my most popular videos (2GB): Download videos (Dropbox) Download videos (Google Drive) Download videos (Direct Download) See all videos on YouTube >

Entrepreneurship by KIM Become the change which you desire to see manifested in the world! Become you. Think for Yourself. FREEDOM Never stop innovating. Entrepreneurship Mindset Put a Dent in the Universe.

Dear friend, I’m one of the very few blessed people in the world who does what they love for a living. For my entire life, I’ve always believed in the idea that if you followed your passion, you …

I’m a huge fan of “tinkering” — just playing around, figuring out how things work, breaking things, and learning along the way. How to become a tinkerer When I was a kid, I tinkered for fun. I remember …

What is “true pleasure” in life?

Unfortunately, there is a lot of necessary work we need to do in life in order to stay alive. We need to put in the 9-5 to pay the rent. We need to fulfill (some) family and social …

Designer watches, bags, and cars — is this true luxury? No. These are just false luxuries. The only real luxury is time. The only real luxury is freedom. The only real luxury is your attention. Avoid false luxury …

‘**When I shall die, let it be doing that I had designed**.’ — Ovid (‘Quum moriar, medium solvar et inter opus.’) You never know when you will die — why risk the chance of dying when you’re doing …

Most of us live in fear— fear of not being able to pay the rent, fear of not feeding ourselves, or fear of not providing for our families. Over 2,000 years ago — Jesus told us to not …

If you’re new to photography, consider this your free guide: