Physiology Thoughts

Something I have cared for a lot ever since I was a fat kid in New York, was diet health physiology and everything in between.

Ever since I was 11 to 12 years old, fat with a triple chin, I have literally experimented with every single diet out there, save this nonsensical vegetarian and vegan trend.

Why does this matter?

I met this cool guy the other day, at the Phils coffee shop in downtown Culver City, named Sodi (his website is https://stedmanhalliday.com/).

We had an interesting chat about how fitness is so critical, especially with all of these silicon valley tech utopists who just think of their body as an afterthought.

I vibe with Stedman Halliday because how many different reasons.

First, the focus on recovery as a first thought is a good one. For example, another day when I was really really tired and exhausted, instead of just taking a shower like I typically do, I filled up the bathtub with really really really really really hot water, and had a really really hot bath. It seems that the trend is towards ice baths, ice plunges etc., but also, I think taking insanely hot baths is also a good idea.

Why? To be able to tolerate an insanely hot bath, literally on the edge of boiling hot water, is also an effective bodily turbo charger. To me it is like my MacGyver way of harnessing the power of the hot sauna, without having to go to the gym.

In fact, maybe having a bathtub might be one of the greatest luxuries in your living situation. Rather than thinking of taking a really really hot bath as a frivolous luxury, maybe we should think of it almost like drinking more coffee or caffeine.

Food

Currently what I am doing, and what I have done ever since I was living in Vietnam in 2017, which is almost 6 years now, is simple:

Intermittent fasting throughout the day, this means no breakfast, no lunch, only one massive 100% carnivore dinner.

During the day I only drink tapwater, black coffee, that’s it.

And when I break my fast and eat dinner, which could arrange anywhere in between 6 PM and 10 PM, I strive to eat at least 4 to 5 pounds of beef or lamb.

Achilles and Chiron the centaur

Another great thing I have learned from ChatGPT is how great wonderful and effective ChatGPT is, at least 1 trillion times better than Google. In fact, my current thought is short google; ChatGPT is at least 1 billion times more insightful and accurate in terms of being able to accurately Find information about anything.

For example, a simple heuristic:

The best calling card is now, not to tell people to Google you, but instead, to ChatGPT you!

Why? I’m starting to have this low-key suspicion that Google is doing some sort of behind the counter deals with individuals, and somehow tweaking they are all rhythm for subjective ends.

However with ChatGPT, it is less biased, less meddling.

For example, get ChatGPT on your iPhone or iPad, just pay the $20 for the subscription model, you could cancel it anytime, and just ChatGPT:

Who is ERIC KIM?

The new phrase:

Just ChatGPT me bro!

My thoughts and experiments

I think the biggest issue with diet health physiology and nutrition is that people are so subjective, and also, there is far too many politics, ethics and morality behind it.

For example, I never trust anybody who says:

Don’t eat meat, it’s bad for the planet!

What? Do you know what else is bad for the planet? Your Amazon prime subscription, Netflix, YouTube, your iPhone and iPhone Pro, your MacBook pros, your Tesla, your Range Rover etc.

Simple heuristic:

Never trust nobody who makes commentary about the planet and has either a Netflix subscription, Amazon prime subscription, or owns a car, any card, irregardless of gas or electric. Or watches YouTube. Or has an iPhone, iPhone Pro, and has Instagram Facebook, etc.

Honestly it is all bad for the planet.

My immortal and ethical thought is this:

Don’t do what is “best for the planet“, do what you believe is best for you.

Is the planet made for men, or is man-made for the planet?

Body shaming?

I have observed a funny reverse trend; man is not permitted to walk around, topless in public, show off his body and muscles, and also, not allowed to wear short shorts, or show off his crotch bulge.

I find this highly paradoxical, because nowadays, women are permitted to show off all their body parts! Even nowadays in LA, seeing a woman wear some sort of translucent white shirt or tank top, nipples popping through is not really a big deal anymore. I think this is a good train; there’s this weird quote for men and women that this is seen as a taboo, yet, it seems that most men watch pornography and secret, just ask somebody for fun, “When you turn on Google incognito, what do you really look at?”

Or—

What do you think of Maria Ozawa?

Or,

What do you torrent on Pirate Bay, when you turn on your VPN?

The logic of 100% carnivore diet

Some nuances:

First, what is it that Achilles was fed as a child by his personal trainer, Chiron the Centaur? Legend has it that he was fed entrails, which included bone marrow, hearts, and other offal matter.

I also have an orthodox theory that cholesterol, dietary food cholesterol, is a natural steroid.

I believe the new ones here is critical, because people make this foolish calculus:

If I consume more dietary cholesterol, cholesterol in my food, then my blood HDL, bad cholesterol blood levels will go up, and I will eventually have a heart attack and die.

Also fat –

if you consume more dietary fat, or saturated fat, you will put on more body fat.

However, this ain’t true. I think the big issue is that in today’s world, or modern day English, the semantic lexicon issues is confusing.

Just try it out!

Whenever I get to Korean barbecue, all eat Korean barbecue, my favorite food items to consume include all the innards; beef large intestine, beef liver, beef, beef tongue, etc.

People say that eating meat is “bad for you“, but what about organ meats? Just think about that.

Training thoughts

So the question is this; what is the best way to train?

My personal thought is towards some sort of Indian spartan, ancient Greek notion. The thoughts I’ve been thinking:

How did or how would the ancient Greeks or Spartan train?

First and foremost, they’re very very interesting thing is that most depictions of these great heroes and demigods is not having super super big chests, therefore the simple thought is that perhaps benchpress is a bad idea.

What is more notable about their physiology and stature?

First, how upright they stand. Second, they never have a shirt on. Third, how massive their legs, back, and shoulders are.

My recent experimentations with training include heavy sandbag training; I ordered a 400 pound sandbag on the roguefitness.com website, and I just been going to the local park and filling it up with playground sand.

Second, Farmer’s Carry. I ordered these farmers carry handles on Titan.fitness, and it is very interesting! The skill is not just picking it up, but walking with it.

For example, it is one thing to lift 4 plates, it is another to farmers walk and carry 4 plates for the distance.

Another thing I have observed about lifting a heavy sand back off the floor, crouching down picking it up, shouldering it, or holding it to my chest with my fingers intertwined, and walking it for a long distance is it really strengthens my triceps, my fingers and my grip and hand strength, my foot strength, my feet, as well as my abs, obliques, and back. In fact I felt more sore carrying around I have sandbag than I did atlas lifting 1000 pounds at the gym.

Train like atlas

One of the big innovations I did while I was in Orange County was my notion of the atlas lift; loading up the barbell with as much weight as you can, and just lifting up and standing up. No squatting involved.

In fact, it looks like that my training style is starting to trend more towards a strongman concept; just lifting really really heavy stuff, and doing it in a more old-school way.

For example, atlas stones. To be able to just lift up a very very very very heavy boulder, and presumably throw it at somebody, is an interesting idea. This is what Achilles did; in some of the fight scenes of the Iliad, Homer would write:

Achilles would lift up a massive stone, that which barely two strong men could lift, throw it at his enemy, and the boulder hit their hip, and black death descended upon them.

Also something I have been observing is that perhaps heavy sandbag training is a good idea because it is “safe”, and also, more accessible. Anyone could buy a cheap sandbag on Amazon, and then just go to a local playground and fill it up with sand.

Now what?

Ever since moving to LA, I’ve become more and more reticent to join the gym. Why?

First, I prefer to be outdoors.

Second, I don’t like wearing a shirt.

Third, hygiene.

Working out at the park, in a parking lot, in your garage, or outside is not ideal, but, it is more interesting and innovative.

A simple thought is to just troll amazon, Titan.fitness, or the roguefitness.com website and buy a lot of fun weight lifting equipment! My simple thought is only procure equipment that you could easily throw in your trunk, because it is fun to be able to just put in your trunk, drive to your local park and work out there.

Now what?

Some more thoughts:

Bear lifestyle: Apparently bears walk 50 miles a day. What if we humans did the same?
Photography health and fitness is all connected: why? If you do not feel well, you’ll have no in motivation to make photos. My very simple thought is that first, focus on your health and wellness, and then the guitar will come naturally! Even a simple thought is being able to do a deep “as to grass“ squat is beneficial in photography, to get all the angles.
If you work in cinema, or cinematography, it seems that handling these camera rigs is insanely arduous and also very physical. If you look like a bodybuilder, and had the strength of a demigod, or look like a strong man, or look like ERIC KIM, certainly wouldn’t this help you be a more capable camera operator?

Photo assignments

Here this is where I think shooting selfies of yourself, topless if you’re a man, or in the sports bra for women is a good idea, because Vitar is a good way to keep you motivated and on track with your fitness diet health and physiology.

These are my very very very very very simple suggestions: mostly via negative.

If you want to lower your body fat percentage, simple things to do which include:

Don’t need breakfast or lunch, only dinner. During the day drink lots of tapwater, black coffee with nothing added, or green tea.
Just experiment; don’t need any fruit or vegetables, starches, leafy greens, etc. No nuts.
Experiment with 100% carnivore diet, or maybe 100% organ meat diet. Only beef heart, beef intestine, either large or small, beef kidneys, beef liver, beef tongue. If you don’t like organ meats, just eat 100% breast-fed ground beef, get it at Costco or Aldi or somewhere cheap. The percentages which taste good are 80/20 or 75/15– I like the wagyu ground beef at Costco.
Quit alcohol, weed, beer, drugs, EDM, festivals, bars, restaurants, etc.
Quit almond butter, avocados, whole grains, fruits, fruit juices, fake sugar supplements, real sugar, starches, coke, Coke Zero, pre workout powder, protein powder etc.

When you break your fast aim for 5-6 pounds of meat a dinner.

How to channel your wellness?

Then the simple thought is once you are very well, how do you wish to channel your wellness?

Ultimately, I don’t think it is fitness for the sake of fitness, but rather, the fitter and stronger you become, the more adept you will become as a thinker, writer, creator, photographer etc.

Think more, become more.

START HERE

Also

Books

Photo ideas

Zen photography assignment: strive to make the most minimalistic Zen photo, and upload your best Zen photo to arsbeta.com

ChatGPT experiments

I love AI. Download ChatGPT to your iPhone or iPad, and upgrade to the paid subscription, an experiment with it for a month.

Upload your photos to it, and ask ChatGPT to give you feedback on your photos, or you could upload three photos, and just ask it which of the three he thinks is the best.

Don’t miss out on AI; this is the biggest thing to hit the planet ever since the Internet!

Diversify

Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket, it is good to have many different baskets. Why? If there is a single chokepoint or a single point of failure, this is not good.

I think the best way to think and approach things is just assume and predict and know that sooner or later, it will break, go down, become inaccessible, etc.

A simple thing that you could do with websites is this: how many different mirrors of your website, on different platforms. For example, build wordpress.org websites on Amazon web services, build it with blue host.com, ionos.com, The only thing I would probably not build on is Google, which always deprecates their old technology, and has a bias to discontinue products.

Also WordPress.com, maybe even Tumblr.

Propagate all the platforms!

Think islands, web, webs, multiple redundancies.

Train with EK

Random — if you live in LA and want to train with me, just shoot me an email at eric@erickim.com

Stoic training, stoicism and physiology?

Another fun idea that I have is that maybe there is in fact a link between stoicism, physiology, and also bodily training.

Why?

First, let us consider our physiological response to stressors environment etc.

Example, when I get angry, it is a physiological response. I feel the cortisol and stress entering my face, and enlarges my eyeballs, I get a huge shot of adrenaline etc.

Therefore, my simple thought is if you want to become a true stoic, the training must be physical, physiological.

Also, fear. What is fear? Fear is also manifested as adrenaline, as well as stress hormones, chemicals in your body, etc.

To conquer fear, and to become a true stoic, I believe it is all about mastering your physiology, mastering your stress hormones and responses etc.

It is all about training

ASKESIS an ancient Greek, the same notion of aesthetic, or aestheticism is rooted in the notion of training. As guesses, becoming harder, becoming stronger

Even our best friend Frederick Nita says ultimately the goal is to become the hammer, the diamond. To not be soft and yielding, but to create, become harder.

Why is it that softness is considered a virtue in today’s world?

A funny observation that I’ve made is that in today’s world, to be soft, yielding, open minded, flexible etc. is seen as a virtue. Yet I find this very paradoxical and little bit contradictory in the sense that it is all context dependent;

For example, racism, Nazis, holocaust deniers, anti-Jewish or anti-Semitic or anti-African-American people; shouldn’t we be maximally intolerant to these people? A zero tolerance rule here is good.

My personal thought is that in order to become more virtuous, we actually must become harder. To become more unyielding, to become more strict, and more harsh.

For myself, even though there is a lot of things about Korean culture which I deem as bad, one of the good things that come out of Korean culture is that the man is expected to be hard, strong, stoic, never showing his emotions or feelings etc.

Why do I believe this is a good thing?

Certainly if you grow up in America, sooner or later you’re going to naturally learn to be open minded, flexible, etc. So I think that we also need the antipodes; do not just be soft and yielding and flexible, but also to become harder and stronger and more staunch.

“Never say no more than once, if you really mean it” – NASSIM TALEB

Physiology Thoughts

Something I have cared for a lot ever since I was a fat kid in New York, was diet health physiology and everything in between.

Ever since I was 11 to 12 years old, that with a triple chin, I have literally experimented with every single diet out there, save this nonsensical vegetarian and vegan trend.

Why does this matter?

I met this cool guy the other day, at the Phils coffee shop in downtown Culver City, named Sodi (his website is https://stedmanhalliday.com/).

We had an interesting chat about how fitness is so critical, especially with all of these silicon valley tech utopists who just think of their body as an afterthought.

I vibe with Stedman Halliday because how many different reasons.

Food

Currently what I am doing, and what I have done ever since I was living in Vietnam in 2017, which is almost 6 years now, is simple:

Intermittent fasting throughout the day, this means no breakfast, no lunch, only one massive 100% carnivore dinner.

During the day I only drink tapwater, black coffee, that’s it.

And when I break my fast and eat dinner, which could arrange anywhere in between 6 PM and 10 PM, I strive to eat at least 4 to 5 pounds of beef or lamb.

Achilles and Chiron the centaur

For example, a simple heuristic:

The best calling card is now, not to tell people to Google you, but instead, to ChatGPT you!

Why? I’m starting to have this low-key suspicion that Google is doing some sort of behind the counter deals with individuals, and somehow tweaking they are all rhythm for subjective ends.

However with ChatGPT, it is less biased, less meddling.

For example, get ChatGPT on your iPhone or iPad, just pay the $20 for the subscription model, you could cancel it anytime, and just ChatGPT:

Who is ERIC KIM?

The new phrase:

Just ChatGPT me bro!

My thoughts and experiments

I think the biggest issue with diet health physiology and nutrition is that people are so subjective, and also, there is far too many politics, ethics and morality behind it.

For example, I never trust anybody who says:

Don’t eat meat, it’s bad for the planet!

What? Do you know what else is bad for the planet? Your Amazon prime subscription, Netflix, YouTube, your iPhone and iPhone Pro, your MacBook pros, your Tesla, your Range Rover etc.

Simple heuristic:

Never trust nobody who makes commentary about the planet and has either a Netflix subscription, Amazon prime subscription, or owns a car, any card, irregardless of gas or electric. Or watches YouTube. Or has an iPhone, iPhone Pro, and has Instagram Facebook, etc.

Honestly it is all bad for the planet.

My immortal and ethical thought is this:

Don’t do what is “best for the planet“, do what you believe is best for you.

Is the planet made for men, or is man-made for the planet?

Body shaming?

I have observed a funny reverse trend; man is not permitted to walk around, topless in public, show off his body and muscles, and also, not allowed to wear short shorts, or show off his crotch bulge.

Or—

What do you think of Maria Ozawa?

Or,

What do you torrent on Pirate Bay, when you turn on your VPN?

The logic of 100% carnivore diet

Some nuances:

First, what is it that Achilles was fed as a child by his personal trainer, Chiron the Centaur? Legend has it that he was fed entrails, which included bone marrow, hearts, and other offal matter.

I also have an orthodox theory that cholesterol, dietary food cholesterol, is a natural steroid.

I believe the new ones here is critical, because people make this foolish calculus:

If I consume more dietary cholesterol, cholesterol in my food, then my blood HDL, bad cholesterol blood levels will go up, and I will eventually have a heart attack and die.

Also fat –

if you consume more dietary fat, or saturated fat, you will put on more body fat.

However, this ain’t true. I think the big issue is that in today’s world, or modern day English, the semantic lexicon issues is confusing.

Just try it out!

Whenever I get to Korean barbecue, all eat Korean barbecue, my favorite food items to consume include all the innards; beef large intestine, beef liver, beef, beef tongue, etc.

People say that eating meat is “bad for you“, but what about organ meats? Just think about that.

Training thoughts

So the question is this; what is the best way to train?

My personal thought is towards some sort of Indian spartan, ancient Greek notion. The thoughts I’ve been thinking:

How did or how would the ancient Greeks or Spartan train?

What is more notable about their physiology and stature?

First, how upright they stand. Second, they never have a shirt on. Third, how massive their legs, back, and shoulders are.

Second, Farmer’s Carry. I ordered these farmers carry handles on Titan.fitness, and it is very interesting! The skill is not just picking it up, but walking with it.

For example, it is one thing to lift 4 plates, it is another to farmers walk and carry 4 plates for the distance.

Train like atlas

In fact, it looks like that my training style is starting to trend more towards a strongman concept; just lifting really really heavy stuff, and doing it in a more old-school way.

Achilles would lift up a massive stone, that which barely two strong men could lift, throw it at his enemy, and the boulder hit their hip, and black death descended upon them.

Now what?

Ever since moving to LA, I’ve become more and more reticent to join the gym. Why?

First, I prefer to be outdoors.

Second, I don’t like wearing a shirt.

Third, hygiene.

Working out at the park, in a parking lot, in your garage, or outside is not ideal, but, it is more interesting and innovative.

Now what?

Some more thoughts:

Bear lifestyle: Apparently bears walk 50 miles a day. What if we humans did the same?
Photography health and fitness is all connected: why? If you do not feel well, you’ll have no in motivation to make photos. My very simple thought is that first, focus on your health and wellness, and then the guitar will come naturally! Even a simple thought is being able to do a deep “as to grass“ squat is beneficial in photography, to get all the angles.
If you work in cinema, or cinematography, it seems that handling these camera rigs is insanely arduous and also very physical. If you look like a bodybuilder, and had the strength of a demigod, or look like a strong man, or look like ERIC KIM, certainly wouldn’t this help you be a more capable camera operator?

BECOMING A ZEN PHOTOGRAPHER

One of the books that I wrote which I’m the most proud of is my Zen Photography book, which I finished in the Vietnam, at the wonderful LA VIET coffee cafe compound.

I think the reason why I love my Zen Photography book, and why it has resonated with so many people is that it is honest, interesting, and insightful.

I have some general thoughts about how to become a zen photographer — the first is focusing on the zen photography aesthetic and ethos.

The second one is very simple: delete all of your social media accounts. Delete Instagram, don’t use it. Delete comments, delete statistics, disable them all.

This is where I still recommend using wordpress.org over wordpress.com. it seems that wordpress.com, which is run by automaticc— they always find a stealthy way to try to include statistics and stats into everything.

With wordpress.org, you can disable comments, disable stats, disable at all.

No feedback

If you really really really really really want to become a zen photographer, the strategy is to structure things in such a way in which you’re not exposed to any feedback.

Also, I think the reason why I’ll never put Seneca in organized sports is that the focus on numbers, games, winners and losers is a bad one. I would rather just take him to a park, like Calvin and Hobbes just play Calvin Ball; just make up the game as you go along. And ultimately the sport in the game isn’t even that important, what is more important is your courage physicality strength and physical capacity and capability.

Zen aesthetics

First and foremost, I don’t think it’s actually necessary to shoot black-and-white. I personally prefer it, but you can still do it in color! Just keep the color super minimal.

For example, I really like the photo curation done by the Apple Photos team, there is this fun little dynamic photo exhibition gallery thing in front of the Apple office in Culver City on Washington, the compositions are beautiful; simple, elegant and flowing.

iPad Pro photographer?

Just shoot on your iPad!

Very funny thought that I have which I really love about shooting photos on the iPad, the iPad Pro 11 inch, with those stupid accessories is it almost feels like you’re shooting photos on a large format 8 x 10 camera, but done in modern-day times.

Certainly the image quality isn’t the best, but compositionally it is fun and interesting and I enjoy doing it a lot!

How to shoot more zen

Simple thoughts include just on one camera, one lens. Whether it is integrated or interchangeable doesn’t really matter.

A simple thought I have is with the lenses, or the camera set up, opt for the most minimal, the most lightweight compact setup. For example on my Lumix G9, I recently bought the Panasonic Lumix 14 mm of 2.5 pancake lens, and I love it! The more compact, smaller and lighter your lens… the more you shoot the happier will be etc.

Also, a simple suggestion is just purge all of your camera equipment. My friend Stan Hudecki did this with his stuff, giving it away to family members, or people in need. Good vibes.

In 2015 I did the same, also purging almost all of my camera equipment, just giving a way to friends, family members etc. The reason why I like giving away camera equipment is that it could have greater utility for somebody, rather than just the annoying thing of having to sell it. I actually don’t like to sell stuff because it is too much work. Having to coordinate, negotiate, it is all such a pain in the ass.

Other zen thoughts

When you go on a photo walk, or go out to take photos, a simple thought is just leave your phone at home. While I think the iPhone is a great tool for photography, it is just too distracting.

Also another tip what I personally do is whenever I take Seneca to the park, I always lock my phone in my glove compartment, and I play with him at the park in order to not get distracted.

I think the biggest enemy and today’s world is being distracted. Imagine shooting photos on your iPhone, getting all these stupid notifications while you’re shooting etc. The simple thought you could do instead is put it in airplane mode when you’re shooting, but the downside is also that you might be tempted to turn off the airplane mode.

The future is standalone digital cameras

When I was in Mexico City, my student Chris Chung had the compact digital medium format Hasselblad camera, and I liked it a lot. Why? It was simple minimalistic and aesthetic, and also, because digital medium format is lower, I think it forces you to slow down.

My pragmatic thought is digital medium format is great; I really love the Pentax 645Z, and I think it is actually a more interesting idea to buy a digital medium format camera instead of buying a digital Leica M camera or a Leica Q camera, which is essentially a low-key Panasonic Lumix camera. How do you know? The Leica Q1 camera uses Panasonic Lumix batteries! Proof is in the pudding.

Also apparently Pentax put out a new black and white only DSLR camera, I think this is the most interesting camera in the market.

Zen photography assignments

For an entire day, only shoot photos in macro mode
Delete your Instagram
Start your own WordPress.org website, just use bluehost.com or Ionos.com
If you already got a website, see if you could disable the comments and statistics
Put on website blocker extensions on chrome or Safari or Firefox which block gear review websites and rumor websites
Don’t follow any photography related websites or blogs or YouTube channels. All of them ultimately just want to get you to buy more equipment, whether cameras or lenses or other stuff
If you should color photos, try to experiment only capturing one photo at a time. Only blue, only red, only yellow etc.
When you’re out shooting and composing your photos, strive to make the edges and the background as simple as possible.
Diagonal composition
Triangle composition

Upload your best photos to arsbeta.com

Happy Halloween!

See if you could apply this Zen photography aesthetic to your Halloween photos! Make the photos as simple as possible, folks on details, and use the flash.

Arsbeta.com for your best photos

Upload

Zen tech?

The more lenses you got on your iPhone the worst. Nowadays my thought is whenever I see anybody with three lenses on their iPhone, it looks kind of silly.

Greater flex to have just the normal iPhone with 2 lenses (2 is enough, just like kids or kidneys or lungs), or better yet, an iPhone SE — with just one lens!

Also a simple thought: every day uninstall at least one app from your phone or iPad or whatever… Better yet uninstalled two apps from your phone every day!

Also, manually go into your iPhone notifications panel and disable all of the apps notifications which include text messaging etc. the only one I enable is FaceTime, in case that my mom Cindy or my sister need to contact me.

Zen tools

EK HAPTIC SHOPPE >

Zen thinking

I am more afraid of the man who has trained one move 1000 times, than the man who knows 1000 moves – Bruce Lee
Even a hair cast its own shadow — Publilus Syrus
Better to use chatgpt to search for information instead of google, because you don’t have to deal with ads!
Never read nothing that has an advertisement in it, which is all of you too, magazines, books which promote products or services etc.
Just own one type of currency or one type of crypto. For example, I’m just invested in 100% bitcoin. It is either all or nothing, I’m also interested in chain-link, but yet have found a strong enough reason to dissolve all my bitcoin into chain-link. Proof of reserves however is a good idea.
Just one wife, spouse or girlfriend: it seems that polygamy is too much stress. Better to just have one spouse, one wife, one girlfriend etc. More zen.

Think more:

START HERE

BECOMING A ZEN PHOTOGRAPHER

One of the books that I wrote which I’m the most proud of is my Zen Photography book, which I finished in the Vietnam, at the wonderful LA VIET coffee cafe compound.

I think the reason why I love my Zen Photography book, and why it has resonated with so many people is that it is honest, interesting, and insightful.

I have some general thoughts about how to become a zen photographer — the first is focusing on the zen photography aesthetic and ethos.

The second one is very simple: delete all of your social media accounts. Delete Instagram, don’t use it. Delete comments, delete statistics, disable them all.

With wordpress.org, you can disable comments, disable stats, disable at all.

No feedback

If you really really really really really want to become a zen photographer, the strategy is to structure things in such a way in which you’re not exposed to any feedback.

Also, I think the reason why I’ll never put Seneca in organize sports is that the folks on numbers, games, winners and losers is a bad one. I would rather just take him to a park, like Calvin and Hobbs just play Calvin ball; just make up the game as you go along. And ultimately the sport in the game isn’t even that important, what is more important is your courage physicality strength and physical capacity and capability.

Zen aesthetics

First and foremost, I don’t think it’s actually necessary to shoot black-and-white. I personally prefer it, but you can still do it in color! Just keep the color super minimal.

For example, I really like the photo creation done by the Apple photos team, there is this fun little dynamic photo exhibition gallery thing in front of the Apple office in Culver City on Washington, the competitions are beautiful; simple, elegant and flowing.

iPad Pro photographer?

Just shoot on your iPad!

AI THOUGHTS.

AI-THOUGHTS-9 Download

Played around with ChatGPT 4 this morning, and was very impressed. DALL-E 3 is also a great addition.

AI THOUGHTS >

Why Photographers Still Matter

I’ve observed that ChatGPT as well as DALL-E is very fascinating, and also great for creativity.

However, an interesting nuance I have discovered:

The images that they could produce however, is still limited to illustrations, vector images, drawings and paintings etc. It cannot yet make a realistic looking photograph.

I think there is something very very beautiful about the photographs, why? Capturing a moment in time I think is our great joy. Also some simple pragmatics include the ease of printing out photos, and being able to mount them on your wall or inside a frame, something that does not require batteries, charging, LCD screens etc.

The best way to think about AI is that it is essentially like Siri

All of this nonsensical talk of artificial intelligence going to take our jobs in our creativity is silly. Why? The reason people like to do art is because it is fun!

A simple thought is I don’t really think that artist should chase making money, instead, we should do it for autotelic purposes, fulfilling some sort of inner joy in ourselves!

I think the only real reason why people seek to make money through their artwork or photographs is because they are seeking some sort of external validation and legitimacy to what they do. However, this is not a wise path because it means that you are a slave to the nod of others.

How should we think about AI?

The best way to think about AI, open AI, ChatGPT etc. is that it is a complement to us, and an augmentation of us, rather than a replacement.

If AI can give us a creative nudge, it is good!

I’ve also discovered the upside of AI, technology etc. is that it opens up our minds to certain opportunities would have otherwise not thought of. Exposing or introducing unorthodox thinking to us.

For example, I think it is useful to think of Google Maps as AI. Why? Technically Google maps uses artificial intelligence to map out the quickest path from us to get from point A to point B. I love Google Maps as well because it has taken me down some strange routes, which are actually very interesting. Routes I would have never otherwise discovered or thought of up myself.

For example, in order to avoid traffic on the 5 or 405, Google maps has routed me through some sort of side streets and industrial centers, which are actually visually very interesting for me

Automate the boring stuff

This is very very popular online course on udemy titled “automate the boring stuff”. The basic idea is that perhaps the reason of technology is that it helps us eliminate tedious, time-consuming tasks in our everyday life.

Example, my insane joy with the instant pot as well as the air fryer (chefman). Why? It is like having a cooking slave; to be able to instant pot food insanely quickly and effectively is such a great joy, instead of having to tediously cook it myself and monitor it. Do you remember that old commercial, “set it and forget it?” Yeah that’s good.

Or, my great passion and gratitude towards having an in unit washer and dryer. Can you imagine how tedious it was back in the day having to wash wring and dry it yourself?

What are the tedious things we could cut out of photography?

Photography is great, but I have observed that there are certain tedious things. For example, having to trudge through all of our photographs in order to choose the best one. This is a huge issue, because let us say that you shoot 1000 photos a day. Technically photography is my profession, and even I don’t have enough time to go through and review all my photos in a single day! My simple vision for the next generation of arsbeta.com is simple:

Drag and drop, from your iPhone or iPad, or even laptop, quickly drag and drop or select 1000 photos, and ARS BETA AI can help you cool down to your best photo or three photos or 10 photos etc.

Essentially there would be some sort of slider, which would actually enable this to be possible. For example, the slider filter could allow you to cull down to 100 photos, 50 photos, 25 photos etc.

If you can help me build this shoot me an email at eric@erickim.com

Why AI?

I think by far, the most useful use case of AI would definitely be in regards to tedious driving in stop and go traffic. For example, I think the only reason to get a Tesla isn’t for all of that electric car stuff, but rather, the promise of a car that can use the noise of driving on the 405 or the 10 during rush-hour traffic. Or even tedious stop and go traffic when driving around Los Angeles local.

AI to help with voice dictation?

Perhaps one of the greatest innovations I’ve discovered is being able to use voice dictation on my iPad Pro, without a stupid keyboard, and be able to be out and about and walking around to voice dictate my thoughts into IA WRITER.

Why is this so great?

First, I hate being indoors, I prefer to be out and about, walking in the direct sun. I could do this with my iPad Pro, the 11 inch, currently using the M1 processor.

I’ve noted that the reason why I love the iPad Pro so much is that the voice dictation transcription quality and accuracy is at least 1000 times better than using my iPhone SE. I’m not sure if this has to do with the M-series processor over the A-series processor, or whether maybe the iPad Pro has better microphones.

Irregardless, I think a huge benefit to writers and thinkers is voice dictation, and the AI behind it. I believe that open AI had this new concept called “whisper“, which allows this as well.

For example, everyone seems to suffer from “writers block“, but nobody suffers from “talker’s block”.

Photo ideas

Download the iOS ChatGPT app on either your iPhone or iPad or both, and subscribe to the ChatGPT plus, which cost 20 bucks a month. Once you have done that, adjust the slider to ChatGPT four, and note that in the bottom left corner you could upload photos directly to ChatGPT! Type in and ask ChatGPT what it thinks about your photos, and rate your photos.

Or if you want real human responses, upload your photos to arsbeta.com

My new focuses?

Reading the Elon Musk Walter Isaacson biography, many big lessons, one of them being is this; simply predict and anticipate the very critical future concerns.

For example, to me I am very interested in crypto, cryptocurrency and crypto technology, stuff on the Internet and blockchain, as well as AI. Why? It is cool interesting and sexy!

CRYPTO
AI

Not only that, but it seems that if you are passionate enough, you don’t gotta pigeonhole yourself into just one thing. Do it all! Isn’t Elon Musk CEO in about seven or eight different companies?

Fitness and food

erickimfitness.com — everywhere I look, and everybody I talk to, it seems that everyone is a little bit clueless about health and nutrition. It is something that I have always been passionate about, ever since I was a fat 12-year-old kid.

I think also the biggest issue is things which bemuddle fitness and health, namely steroids, performance enhancing drugs, “natural“ testosterone boosters, the multi billion dollar supplement industry, protein powder and creatine, pre-workout powder, caffeine and fake sugar supplements which make you fat.

Also, this strange trend towards veganism “plant-based” diets. I think there is too much weird ethics and morality and anti-masculine sentiment behind it all; rather than thinking critically, without all of this prejudice and propaganda from these vegetarian vegan plant-based corporations.

Do you know James Cameron, the guy who made Titanic avatar and funded all of these pro vegan documentaries? Apparently he owns a $1 billion pea protein powder plant somewhere, just follow the money, this is a big financial and media conflict of interest. He is also apparently best friends with Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is definitely the most influential fitness person of them all. Let us also not forget that when Arnold what is in his prime, he also admits to taking steroids.

Photo thoughts

I think we should rejoice and be glad that the future of photography is still very bright for us!

For example, I’m currently living in Culver City and it seems that Apple is opening up a bunch new offices here! Also, I always walk by the Apple office on Washington, and they have this very very very cool photo exhibit thing on LCD screens, all these lovely photos shot on iPhone.

Why do people buy iPhones?

People buy iPhones, or have a motivation to upgrade their iPhones primarily for photography. I think the reason why iPhone pro titan is lackluster is that the average person doesn’t really care about weight, or even materials, they simply will only upgrade their iPhone or iPhone Pro because they want a better camera.

Also, take note: ain’t nobody use their iPhone to shoot cinema. Nor does anyone aspire to use their iPhone to shoot cinema. What do we want our iPhones for? To shoot photographs!

Now what?

Street photography is the best photography, street art is the best art. Any more time we can spend on the streets, the better.

I was talking to a guy at the park yesterday, Tony, and he told me a fun fact which may or may not be true; that bear is apparently walk 50 miles a day! It probably isn’t true, it had me thinking; could I walk 50 miles a day if I wanted to?

Also, if you simply walked around all day, 50 miles a day with your camera, certainly you would witness many photo opportunities!

What is the best camera to do this with? Of course you could just use your iPhone, or your Ricoh GR camera, or your Fuji, or your Sony, Leica, LUMIX whatever. I think less than the camera component is the walking factor.

The big reason why it is so critical to be able to walk much and have a light camera and a compact camera is that it will assist you to just walk more! I have your camera discourages you from walking a lot, even recently on my Lumix G9 I bought the Lumix 14 mm F2.5 pancake lens and I love it! It has reduced the weight of my camera by at least 10X, and as a consequence, I just shoot more and explore more.

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Happy Halloween!

Photo assignment: this Halloween go out with your camera, and shoot some fun photos with the flash! You can experiment also using the external flash, on camera flash, have fun with the angles and slow shutter speeds. Upload your best photos to arsbeta.com

Shoot it at night, and smile and have fun with people, and also offer to send people the photos! When you take a photo of somebody or ask or whatever, just compliment them on their costume!

Upload

Happy Haptic!

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What next?

It seems that ultimate leisure is physical. To me so fascinating because street photography allows us to kill many birds with one stone.

My personal opinion is that street photography may be the most physical form of activity of them all.

Also, the reason why I am also so enthusiastic about street photography is how many birds you can kill with one stone. Let us note how street photography affords us an opportunity to just be out of the house, out in public walking around, as well as opportunity to talk to strangers and other people who interest us, also, visiting and seeing places and traversing new streets and spaces, and also, the great joy of interacting with the real world, embodied reality!

For a lot of these people who like to play video games, Diablo, World of Warcraft, etc.… It seems that ultimate aspiration is to be out and about in public! Isn’t that the whole “open world” concept? Even the new Elden ring game, which Elon Musk is apparently a big fan of, is also all about this open world concept in which you are not relegated to a single place, but rather, have the power and freedom to go anywhere you want!

New futures?

My friend Rinzi Ruiz had a simple adage that I follow:

Follow the light!

Nowadays considering that I prefer to be topless, and walking out and about in public, my greatest passion is to be in the direct sun. With the direct sun I get the greatest amount of energy, power, and hype and motivation. To me the sun is the ultimate stimulant.

It’s still strikes me as bizarre that a lot of people would instead prefer to be indoors, watching some sort of unnatural media without direct exposure to the elements! Isn’t the greatest joy of life to enjoy the sun?

If you’re concerned about skin cancer or whatever, just put on a lot of sunblock, wear a hat and some long sleeves and long pants. I still think it is good to get direct sun exposure.

Also, it seems that the noveau privilege in today’s world is having a full body tan, and also being highly muscular.

What next?

Photography is an infinitely beautiful and complex game, and one of the things I love most about it is our ability to explore.

The best use of our money time and resources I think is to travel, be out in the real world, and also, explore. For example, when I think about all of my world travels, all of these great and phenomenal experiences that had during my time in Japan, Osaka and Tokyo and Kyoto, Vietnam, Saigon and Hanoi, Korea, Seoul Busan, in Dubai, and all around the planet… traveling transform me, uplifted me, and really opened up my mind and my universe.

Can I still be a productive photographer without traveling?

Of course: I think the big secret is living somewhere which allows for maximum walking. For example, a simple thought; if you walked 50 miles a day, and always had your camera with you, certainly you would witness a lot of food opportunities, wouldn’t you?

A simple life optimization suggestion that I have is it is better to rent in an extremely desirable, pedestrian friendly neighborhood then to own a less desirable neighborhood.

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Other random thoughts

I went to the Peterson automotive museum with Seneca, and we loved it! If you live in Southern California, definitely check it out.

Some car thoughts:

CARS, CULTURE & THE SELF.

CAR THOUGHTS

Just went to the Petersen automotive museum, some thoughts:

How I found out about it?

I suppose one of the big upsides of living in LA, Los Angeles, is that there are so many epic and great things here. For example, I was just randomly driving down Fairfax one day from the gym, and I saw this insanely big building, with great curved white stainless steel and red architecture. I was curious what it was and I saw that it was the Peterson automotive museum on Google maps. I thought to myself, maybe one day I could take Sen here.

Pro tip:

When you’re driving and you see something interesting on the road or the freeway etc. and you’re not sure what it is, just take a screenshot of it on your phone, and revisit it later.

Perhaps this is where great architecture makes a great impression; I first I had no idea what the structure was, it was only later when I looked into it that it was actually an automotive museum.

***

Iterate

So finally the other day, after Sen took a quick nap in the car, I thought that it might be the best time to take Sen to the museum.

To me, after touring the whole place with Sen, some thoughts:

I suppose the good thing of going to museum was that after seeing all these cars in real life, I no longer feel the desire to own any of them.
The second thought which is useful is to think and consider these cars as art objects. That is, it ain’t cars for the sake of movement or driving, but something else.

Cars and culture, America, and Los Angeles?

Several things. First and foremost, in America, whether we like it or not, we are a car culture. For example let us consider that much of our economic powers and prosperity came from the automotive industry, Ford and GM, etc. Apparently even back in the day if you’re living in Michigan or Detroit and you drove a Toyota or a Japanese car, people would physically assault you or even physically vandalize your car.

How and why do cars matter?

Well first of all, this is tricky; cars are great because they allow you to do basic things like go to Costco, buy groceries, drive to the park which is otherwise too time consuming to traverse by foot, and with public transportation, it seems that if it isn’t convenient enough, people want to take it. Certainly COVID-19 did not help at all.

Is there a public transportation future?

I do not think so. Why? What people don’t seem to understand is that it is not about transportation or mobility, it is a matter of fashion, pride, individualism.

For example, it doesn’t really even matter how rich or poor you are, I think the best way to think about it is that your car or what car you drive is almost like your externalized avatar, your ego, your own self impression of yourself.

For example, I think vanity is fine. Everyone wants to distinguish themselves through what car they drive, what they look like, etc. I think for the most part this is a healthy and good thing. Perhaps the big problem though is ultimately, a car will never show your individualism. Why? if your car is not a custom car, ultimately you will look like someone else.

For example, almost any and every modern day card, unless you drive a very very very obscure car, someone else will have a similar make or model as year. For example, it doesn’t matter whether you drive a Lamborghini or a Ferrari, someone out there will also have a similar car to you.

The solution

I have a very very very very very simple solution. I think the best car to drive, in today’s world, almost irregardless of where you live is a simple old-school white Prius. I really like the year 2010 model, and up. Why? The good thing with the 2010 model is that there are no stupid LCD screens that pop up or touchscreens which distract you.

Secondly, these things last forever, and also, I actually really like the body styling the 2010 Prius model. The generation before it looks too much like a bubble car, and the generation after it, looks like a strange half assed effort.

The brand new Prius is very very cool, but still I am suspicious because considering that it is a totally new design, they will probably discover some issues with it. And also once again, all this unnecessary tech.

The car as your creative canvas?

Also the fun thing about just getting an old used car is that you can fuck it up and you don’t really care that much. So for example, this 2010 white Prius that I inverted; I have been having a lot of fun spray painting it, spray painting the rims, Touching up the paint here and there, badging it and modifying it etc.

Also, I think ultimately ultimate privilege is convenience, and living more streamlined. This means being able to live a maximally productive, efficient, streamlined life.

Even being in LA, finding electric chargers is a pain in the butt. And also it takes too long. The amazing thing is my Prius, the last month, I literally only filled it up once, and just going to the close by Arco, it only cost me 40 bucks!

Become the Lamborghini or the Ferrari?

Some other funny thoughts: study and observe and deconstruct the bodies style and the ethos of these cars, and figure out how you could integrate it into your own own bodily physiology.

For example, I really like Lamborghini cars for how wide and low to the ground they are. And how they look like fighter jets. so then the practical thought is why not try to transform your body to look the same?

Or, people who buy these huge pick up trucks, lift them up, or the Overlanding vehicles. Instead of buying a rugged car, why not strive to make your body more rugged? More effective interesting and also way cheaper!

Training

I have never really met anybody with an impressive car who also had an impressive looking body. Car shows an auto shows are funny, because the question is this; who are you more interested in, the owner or the car? My friend Don Dillon laughed and said of course the car!

When you step into the mall or the gym, nobody has any idea what car you drive

Anybody who drives an impressive car, what they do not understand is this; once you go inside the gym or the mall, nobody has any idea what car you drive. You become naked.

How do cars matter, how don’t they?

First and foremost, nobody wants to be sedentary inside a car, irregardless of how expensive or nice the car is. Why? From a pure physiology perspective, sitting down and being sedentary is bad.

The best option is instead, to be out and about in the real world, open fresh air, using your legs. Even a lot of guys who get really really really really successful end up getting into bicycle racing and riding instead? Why? Technically when you’re riding a bicycle, it is almost like you’re in a convertible, as you get fresh air all around you. Second, riding a bicycle is just plain fun! I don’t really believe of bicycle riding from a pure “exercise“ philosophy; there are much better ways to exercise that don’t involve sitting on your butt. And once again, the reason why I think riding a bicycle purely for “exercise“, isn’t good because you are still sitting on your butt! Even though you are pumping your legs.

A funny thing that Seneca has been doing is he got a free balancing bicycle without pedals, and he just walks it around! This seems to be a good idea because he is still able to walk himself around.

Walking lifestyle?

A very simple life thought and strategy is this: better to rent in a very very very desirable neighborhood, which allows for maximum walking, instead of owning or buying a house even in “good” neighborhood?

Even from a pure productivity perspective, I am far happier and more productive being able to just walk everywhere, instead of having to rely on the agency of driving a car.

Now what?

Some simple thoughts:

First, rather than aspiring to buy that new desirable car, better instead to think of modifying and transforming and customizing the car you already got. Figure out how creative you could become!
Instead of buying a Tesla, better to gain his mindset. I recommend downloading and reading the Elon Musk biography book by Walter Isaacson. Just buy it in the iBook store, and read it on your iPhone or iPad. Or if you drive a lot, maybe it is a good idea to just get it as an audiobook!
Think hybrid. I still think in today’s world, even though gas and petroleum is bad for the planet, the ultimate car is still some sort of hybrid car. Whether it be hybrid, plug-in hybrid, etc., or just a straight up hybrid. One concept I actually found very interesting is this notion of a turbo hybrid; I have no idea how it works, but apparently I think it is available on the new Kia Sportage car, as well as the new Toyota Crown car?
If you live in LA or Southern California, or plan to come down here, definitely check out the Peterson automotive museum! I think if you are into cars or car culture, you’ll probably gain at least one creative idea.
Instead of wasting all that money on a car or your car, better instead to think and consider spending that money on insanely great food instead. Eat more organ meats, 100% grass fed beef, 100% grass fed lamb, bone marrow, which is essentially the demigod food of the gods, cheek, tongue.
Whenever you see a nice car, always try to look through the car window and give a good stare to who is actually driving the car. Become less interested in the car, become more interested in the person driving the car.
I still think it is a fun idea to try to psycho analyze people, car behavior, why people drive searching cars etc. I am still fascinated by this concept, “Tell me what car you drive, and I will tell you who you are.”
Think American. Am I the only liberal I know who is still pro America? Let us not forget that Tesla is technically an American car company! I’m also still really big into Ford, I really really enjoyed the Ford versus Ferrari film. In fact, I think it is a harder flex to buy that new Ford Mustang, the one that looks like a supercar, instead of buying some sort of loser Lamborghini or loser Ferrari. American muscle is supreme.

Tesla innovation

A lot of things unravel here. One idea is studying Tesla Elon Musk is from a design and production and innovation perspective— I gained some great ideas from it.

First, one thing that I learned from the Peterson automotive museum which was insanely inspiring was seeing a deconstructed Tesla. It is so insanely innovative.

One idea is how Elon and his team innovated and discovered new ways of merging the unit frame body and the production as well as the batteries. The more you can merge the two together, the better.

I think ultimately there is an underlying philosophy behind it all. Some innovation thoughts:

Merge the components
Consolidate
Delete, delete, delete
Start from a blank slate and canvas
Think first principles
Question all of the rules and regulations
Have a supreme disregard for authority
Never compromise on design
Think 1 trillion, $10 trillion industry. 1T, 10T.
Legitimately care.

I think one thing that people don’t get about Elon Musk is that I think there is a strange thought that some people are just money hungry. With Elon this is not the case. I think that your mission must be so insanely critical to you, you are willing to sacrifice everything to obtain it.

Never stop thinking

http://erickimphilosophy.com

And

erickim.com

AI THOUGHTS

Played around with ChatGPT 4 this morning, and was very impressed. DALL-E 3 is also a great addition.
AI THOUGHTS >

Why Photographers Still Matter

I’ve observed that ChatGPT as well as DALL-E is very fascinating, and also great for creativity.

However, an interesting nuance I have discovered:

The images that they could produce however, is still limited to illustrations, vector images, drawings and paintings etc. It cannot yet make a realistic looking photograph.

The best way to think about AI is that it is essentially like Siri

All of this nonsensical talk of artificial intelligence going to take our jobs in our creativity is silly. Why? The reason people like to do art is because it is fun!

A simple thought is I don’t really think that artist should chase making money, instead, we should do it for autotelic purposes, fulfilling some sort of inner joy in ourselves!

The best way to think about AI, open AI, ChatGPT etc. is that it is a complement to us, and an augmentation of us, rather than a replacement.

Automate the boring stuff

This is very very popular online course by udemy titled “automate the boring stuff”. The basic idea is that perhaps the reason of technology is that it helps us eliminate tedious, time-consuming tasks in our everyday life.

What are the tedious things we could cut out of photography?

Dragon drop, or from your iPhone or iPad, quickly dragon drop or select 1000 photos, and ARS BETA AI can help you cool down to your best photo or three photos or 10 photos etc.

Essentially there would be some sort of slider, which would actually enable this to be possible. For example, the slider filter could allow you to cull down to 100 photos, 50 photos, 25 photos etc.

If you can help me code this shoot me an email at eric@erickim.com

Why AI?

I think by far, the most useful use case of AI would definitely be in regards to tedious driving in stop and go traffic. For example, I think the only reason to get a Tesla is in for all of that electric car stuff, but rather, the promise of a car that can use the noise of driving on the 405 or the 10 during rush-hour traffic. Or even tedious stopping go traffic when driving around Los Angeles local.