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Dear friend, I have been thinking a lot about the aesthetics of photography — why is it that grain is beautiful, especially with film?

Dear friend, What do you want out of life? What is your purpose for living? What really puts your heart on fire? When do you feel the most enthusiastic? When do you feel the more alive? When do …

In baseball and life, is better to get one home run, instead of two doubles. Every time you click the shutter, you are swinging a bat. The more you swing the bat, the more likely you are to …

I’m a big fan of Zen/Taoist, Eastern philosophy. Even though I am very pro-American at heart (in terms of our love for risk-taking, for individuality, and for freedom), I see a lot of negatives of the American/Western line …

Dear friend, For those of you who follow this blog — you know that I am a big fan of “stoic” philosophy — essentially how to be a badass in today’s unpredictable, chaotic, and insane world. Stoicism Stoicism …

I think children are the best photographers.

What is the first mission of an entrepreneur?

“Just do it.” – Nike The only way to become a better photographer is to shoot photos; there are no shortcuts. Focus on action If you want bigger muscles, you need to lift heavy things. If you want …

When we are beginner photographers— we want to go “pro”. But what if the secret to creativity, happiness, and “success” was to stay a beginner? Beginners often have the right idea Honestly, when I was a beginner— I …

“I build the cars I like. If people wished to buy them, well, that could possibly be arranged.” Ettore Bugatti It is impossible to know whether others will like your photos or not. But it is easy to …

Dear friend, I want to share you a secret; nobody wants to look at your photos.

Why shoot like everyone else, when you are a unique, idiosyncratic individual, with unique life experiences, different from everyone else? The world wants you to be vanilla. The world doesn’t want you to stand out. The world wants …

We talk about the evils of “G.A.S.” (gear acquisition syndrome). But what if we embraced the opposite — G.A.S. (Gear Allergy Syndrome)? Allergic to spending money What if we become allergic to spending money on the superfluous? Not …

We all want more money. But no matter how much money we have, we always want more. I always thought to myself: if I wanted to be happier, I needed to earn more money. But in reality — …

GAS: (Gear Acquisition Syndrome): wanting to buy new cameras, because you feel like your photos aren’t good enough, because your camera isn’t good enough: Why Does Image Quality Matter? Why Are We So Obsessed With the “New New …

In the sect of “Stoic” philosophy, Musonius Rufus is one of the lesser-known philosophers. Yet his wisdom was practical, which dealt with day-to-day living, how to deal with pleasure, wealth, and hard work. Below are some lessons that …

“Information is not only power; it’s simply everything” – Kanye West For me, I exist to create information, or to improve upon it. I see “information” broadly — as articles, videos, blog posts, my genes (my future children), …

“I’ve been woken from enlightened man’s dream / Checkin’ Instagram comments to crowdsource my self esteem.” – Kanye West I’m a victim to caring too much about what other people think about me. It’s easy to (as Kanye …

I believe that photos are best created from subtraction. Just like how a sculptor makes a statue.

Imagine you’re at a fancy steakhouse. And there is fat on the edges of your steak. What are you “supposed” to do? Cut out the fat, and eat the meat. What is the meat/fat in your photos? For …

Imagine a boat at sea, that is swaying in the ocean. Without an anchor— it would float away (and possibly be captured by pirates).

Dear friend, One new word I’m trying to integrate into my life is “ultralight” — reducing weight in my life. Physical weight, emotional weight, and spiritual weight. “Heaviness is the root of lightness.” – Tao Te Ching I’ve …

“Expert counting uses no beads.” – Lao Tzu Truly rich people don’t count the money in their bank account. They know that they are wealthy — because they don’t even worry about how much money they have. People who …

Photography is only worthwhile because it gives us excitement, passion, and enthusiasm about the world. Once we’ve lost a sense of wonderment and awe in our photography and life, what is there left to strive towards? My niece …

Don’t photograph with your mind, intellect, or camera. Shoot with your soul. Use your emotions to guide what to photograph and what not to photograph. Make images that reveal your own inner-soul to your audience. If someone looked …

Life is a hassle.

We are always trying to fill ourselves up. What if we sought emptiness? A cup is only useful when it is empty. A room is only useful to store things when it is empty. Your mind can only …

The only thing that separates “successful” people and “unsuccessful” people is grit, tenacity, and endurance. If you want to succeed in your business, art, or life — you need to put in a lot of work. That takes …

When we go to an all-you-can eat buffet, we overload our plates with too many different types of food. This often leads to indigestion, regret, and an upset stomach. What if we limited ourselves in the buffet of …

I have lost hundreds and thousands of photographs over the years, due to hard drive failures, forgetting to backup my images, or by accidentally deleting photos (before transferring them). This has lead me to a lot of regret, …

No matter where we live, it will be boring. How can you make better photos? Not by going to extraordinary places, and photographing extraordinary people and things. Rather, embracing the ordinary place you live, and making extraordinary photos …

When I was 20, I was dissatisfied with my photography. I felt like I was being limited by where I lived. I thought if I wanted to become a better street photographer, I needed to live in Europe …

You were destined for great things. If you want to achieve greatness in your photography, you need to be bold. But how can you build boldness in your life? I am borrowing many of these ideas from the …

If you are drawn to interesting people, faces, and subjects, I recommend you to shoot street portraits!

We all think that upgrading our cameras, getting newer cameras, with more megapixels, with more features, functions, and bells & whistles will make us better photographers. What if the opposite were true? That by downgrading our equipment — …

Why is it that we always try to over-complicate things? Why do we need to try to add complexity? Why do we make things more difficult than they need to be? I’m very stupid The best acronym that …

When it comes to street photography, sometimes your subject will ask you: “What are you doing?” Do you know how to respond? What are they really asking you? A lot of people who ask you, “What are you …

I love spontaneity in photography. Photography is the most fun when it is effortless, and doesn’t require for us to think, or “try.” I feel photography is the most enjoyable when we are in a state of “flow”, …

What is the difference between a “so-so” photograph, and a great photograph? For me it is simple — you just want to have a “cherry on top” in your photograph (a small detail which elevates a good photo …

Most of us are always trying to make really good photos. Yet most of the time, we don’t. We get frustrated. We give up. We no longer feel enthusiasm or passion in our photography. What if the secret …

I consider “urban landscapes” as a sub-genre of street photography. But it is tricky — what differentiates a great “urban landscape” from just a snapshot of a building? In this guide, I will try to offer some tips, …

About a year ago, I attended a Magnum workshop with David Alan Harvey. The #1 take-away I got from his workshop was this: be more selective of your scenes, but when you find a good scene, shoot the …

“The fool adds one thing a day. The wise man removes one thing a day.” – Lao Tzu For me, the most important trait for success in today’s world (and in the future world) is having the ability …

“Nothing in excess” – Solon It recently occurred to me — everything in excess is horrible for us. I don’t know how to moderate myself I love meat. But after visiting a few all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ’s, I always …

Never stop shooting: EXTREME DIFFERENTIATION MY NEED FOR STRONGER VISUAL STIMULI ERIC KIM PHOTOGRAPHY INSPIRATION How to be Inspired Eternal Creation in Photography How to Create Mood in Your Photography How to Find Inspiration Why Do You Need …

PHOTOGRAPHY EDITING The art of choosing your most meaningful photos you care for: Recursive Photography Editing EDITING 101 How to choose the photos you truly care for: WORKFLOW IDEAS HOW TO BECOME MORE EFFICIENT AT CULLING YOUR PHOTOS …

Heraclitus was one of the wisest “pre-Socratic” (before Socrates) philosophers. Many of his sayings were lost in history, but the best bits were preserved. I see Heraclitus as a mix between a Zen Buddhist/Taoist and modern philosopher. His …

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (I could never pronounce or correctly type his last name) is one of the psychologists who has had the biggest impact on me. His biggest idea is this concept of “flow” — or being in the …

A while back, I read “Money: Master the Game” by Tony Robbins. Surprisingly, it was a fantastic read. Not only did I learn practical things about investing, but I also learned the value of money — and the …

Out of all the Stoic philosophers in history, Epictetus was certainly one of the brightest ones — as well as the ones that walked the walk (in addition to talking the talk). Epictetus was known to have a …

Jeff Bezos (if you don’t know) is the CEO and founder of the behemoth Amazon. I personally am a huge Amazon fan. Amazon has made my life so convenient, stress-free, and has helped free up time for me …

MONEY 101 How to Become Rich Money for What? Reverse Lifestyle Creep #moneynotes Money isn’t Real Money Thoughts Don’t do it for the money What is the Practical Utility of Money? Why Save Money? Less Money, Less Problems …

I grew up pretty poor. I had a father who was a chronic gambler, a mom (who was pretty much a single mom) who worked menial jobs. I grew up not knowing whether my mom would be able …

The individual who has influenced my life the most is Seneca. He was the Roman stoic and philosopher whose letters, writings, and thoughts have influenced centuries of thinkers. He was the ultimate “doer” — he talked the talk, …

STOICISM 101 Become invincible: The Stoic Masters Learn from the master stoics: See all philosophy >

EK LIFE Empower yourself in life: See all philosophy >

ONLY IN AMERICA: My culmination of my visual street sociology from 2011-2016: OPEN SOURCE Download this free open-source photography PDF book below: Direct Download (45MB) > MY VISION OF AMERICA ONLY IN AMERICA is my personal vision and …

Free Book: The Street Portrait Manual How To Get People to Say Yes When Shooting Street Portraits Videos on street portraits Photos of street portraits

Having photographed my grandfather’s funeral, I am 1000x more grateful for life. To be alive, to use my life to wander, explore, make meaningful connections, and to make art!

Dear friend, I am proud to share my first PDF photography book with you: SUITS:

Travel Photography Ideas How to Review, Edit, and Select Your Photos after a Street Photography Travel Trip My favorite cities Mexico City is Paradise Travel Photography 101 Traveling as a Means to Discover More of Yourself Via Negativa …

Free and open-source photography ebooks to empower you: PHOTOGRAPHY MASTERCLASS PHOTOGRAPHY ENTREPRENEURSHIP MANUAL by ERIC KIM STREET PHOTOGRAPHY MANUAL by ERIC KIM THE PHOTOGRAPHER by ERIC KIM The Photography Manual The Art of Street Photography 100 Lessons From …

For inspiration, learn from these contemporary titans: Ayrton Senna Einstein Buckminster Fuller Frank Lloyd Wright Mark Cuban Jay-Z Dr. Dre Pablo Picasso Steve Jobs Elon Musk Kanye West Jeff Bezos Jiro Ono Tony Robbins Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Social Media 101 Social Media is a FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) Machine We Are the New Social Media Slaves Data Rules Everything Around Me (DREAM) Unquantify Yourself Create Your Own Social Media Platform Empower yourself with social …

The Philosophy of Happiness Happiness thoughts:

The Art of Creativity Re-discover your inner-child like PICASSO: How to Become a Creative Barbarian CREATIVE BARBARIAN VLOG The Art of Featured Photos Remix Your Photos In Praise of Creativity EXTREME PRIDE. How to Conquer Creative Stagnation CREATIVE …

ZEN THOUGHTS Philosophy >

Purchase “The City of Angels” (Amazon USA) >> (Only a few remaining) Purchase “The City of Angels” (International Etsy) >> Dear friends, Cindy and I would love to share with you our latest creative collaboration: “The City of Angels” by …

Street Notes is your personalized guide and journal for you to develop your photography skills and to re-inspire your creative process. Each photography assignment will help you to build your confidence, break out of your comfort zone, and …

HAPTIC makes creative tools to empower visual artists. From educational tools, art platforms, to camera equipment, HAPTIC is driven by a spirit of experimentation and creative collaboration. We are a majority women led, family operated industry, and have great pride …

HENRI Never Miss the Decisive Moment. Discover all of the camera straps made by HAPTIC INDUSTRIES: NEW Henri Wrist Strap Pro (with pad) Buy in Haptic Shop > Buy Phantom Black on Amazon > Buy Crema Brown on …

Eric Kim is a photography teacher currently based in Berkeley, California. If you’re new, start here. Current Projects Here is what I have going on as of Thursday, Oct 29, 2015, @ 6:38am: “Learn From the Masters” iPad/iPhone ePub …

Reviews of my Past Workshops Chris London Introduction to Street Photography Workshop 2014 Gary Tyson Hong Kong Introduction to Street Photography Workshop 2014 Mike Evans London Introduction to Street Photography Workshop 2013 Charlie Kirk Tokyo Street Photography 101 …

FREE ERIC KIM STOCK PHOTOS A collection of free, open-source photographs for you to use for any purpose: DOWNLOAD .ZIP (350mb) Dropbox Download > Google Drive Download > Learn more about ERIC KIM Free Stock Photographs > Mini …

Dear friends, family, and loved ones, help support our honeymoon by buying an experience we won’t forget in Mexico City by making a donation below. You can use your debit card, credit card, or PayPal account: Or you …

Photolosophy: Photography Philosophy Course Download all the course content for PHOTOLOSOPHY below: Introduction (830mb) Street Photography (2.6gb) Personal Photography (1.8gb) Entrepreneurship (1.5gb) Audio (100mb) Presets (40mb) Transcripts (29kb) I am currently compiling all of the videos, e-books, and …

If you’ve found value in any of the free and open-source articles, e-books, or videos on this blog, consider showing some love by leaving a donation below. Your support will help support the community. Thank you so much for …

PHOTOGRAPHY 101 Dear friend, If you’re new to photography, start here: Photography is Everything! Photography Tips Photography Articles Photography Techniques Everyday Photography Color Photography 101 Photography Philosophy Photography Inspiration The Fundamentals of Photography Photography Equipment » How to Take …