ERIC KIM.

  • CHU VIET HA ERIC KIM FUJIFILM SAIGON STREET PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP TALK VIETNAM

    VIDEO FILE

    TOPICS COVERED:

    1. COMPOSITION
    2. PHILOSOPHY
    3. WHY?
    4. MOTIVAITON
    5. TECHNIQUE & APPROACH
    6. SELF VALUE
    7. OPEN MINDEDNESS
    8. CHILD’S MIND
    9. ‘SUCCESS’?
    10. COURAGE
    11. HAPPINESS
    12. INSPIRATION
    13. HOW TO SEE
    14. NEW PHOTOS
    15. SOCIOLOGY
    16. WHY I LOVE PHOTOGRAPHY
    17. WHY I LOVE VIETNAM
    18. DETAILS
    19. EVOLUTION
    20. USE YOUR KIDS!
    21. MALL STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
    22. STREET PHOTOGRAPHY AS AN ETHOS AND APPROACH
    23. THE SUCCESS TRAP
    24. HOW TO BECOME A ‘BETTER’ STREET PHOTOGRAPHER
    25. HEALTH
    26. HAPPY PHOTOS
    27. MOOD
    28. FLASH
    29. MUSE
    30. AESTHETICS
    31. MYSTERY
    32. NOW WHAT?
    33. CREATIVE SCREENSHOTTING
    34. YOU NEVER KNOW!

    PODCAST

    AUDIO

    PDF GOOGLE DRIVE

    DROPBOX PDF

  • HAPTIC ARMOR HAS ARRIVED.

    Dear friends, with great pride and joy I am insanely pumped to share the official launch and release of HAPTIC ARMOR, MARK I. I truly believe this to be a fabric and a lifestyle revolution:


    Why?

    Life is too short for inferior fabrics. HAPTIC ARMOR is forged and engineered to be the most supreme fabric, the fabric to conquer them all.

    How?

    The science and technology behind a HAPTIC ARMOR lies in our unique HAPTIC WEAVE pattern; a three dimensional octagonal weave, which maximizes surface area, well also reinforcing strength.

    The philosophy is this:

    How can we take and utilize the worlds best linen in the world, the supreme raw linen from Lithuania, forge it with cutting edge South Korean technology, to make a sublime cloth?

    Cloth talk

    I want everything I own to be part HAPTIC ARMOR. In my clothes, my everyday lifestyle etc.

    Distinguish yourself

    It seems apparent to me that the elite refuse to wear basic fabrics. The elite wear linen, wool, cashmere.

    And now that the hot and humid summer is upon us, with the relentless sun, how can you continue to venture, explore, and journey further? HAPTIC ARMOR is your solution.

    Skin in the game

    I am currently 35 years old, and I’ve been on the road ever since I was 21. 14+ years on the road, nomading around, lots of time in airplanes, in foreign hotel rooms and Airbnb’s, and out of all of it, what have I gleaned?

    All of it all, I have discovered that clothing is critical. Nowadays the only clothing I wear is linen, merino wool, nothing else.

    When you travel and if you’re on the road, you can’t take your Lamborghini with you, you can’t take your Tesla with you, you can’t take anything with you. An interesting philosophy that I have is that when you’re traveling, your clothes almost become like your mini house. Let us consider that your clothing protects you from the elements, infuses you with self-esteem and confidence, and also pragmatically, it is illegal to go outside naked.


    HAPTIC ARMOR

    It is my personal ambition that with HAPTIC ARMOR, you can venture further, more courageously. With less heat, less weight, less annoyance with having to launder your clothes while on the road.

    A simple observance that I have made is that linen is even better at drawing moisture away from your body, even superior to merino wool!

    This phenomenon is called “hygroscopic”— that when you’re wearing HAPTIC ARMOR, if you sweat, HAPTIC ARMOR will naturally absorb the sweat away from your body, and absorb into the three dimensional haptic weave pattern, and then due to its increased surface area, it will dry instantly when you’re out in the sun.

    The result is you are not sweaty, and also your clothing is not drenched.


    Suitable for all climates

    HAPTIC ARMOR is suitable during the relentless summertime, but also practical in the fall and winter time. Linen is naturally elegant, and effortlessly simple.

    Linen is also insanely strong and robust, and with our unique octagonal HAPTIC 3D WEAVE pattern, it will be able to withstand any sorts of puncture wounds, and metaphorical arrows.

    Nothing lasts forever

    Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Nothing last forever. It is doubtful that HAPTIC ARMOR will last 1000 years.

    However, why not try? We only got 19 suits of HAPTIC ARMOR left in stock, seize your destiny now!

    ORDER HAPTIC ARMOR NOW >


    Where in the world is ERIC KIM?

    Currently going to be a month here in Saigon Vietnam. Housesitting for a friend in an insanely epic high-rise apartment. Floor to ceiling windows, great amenities, etc.

    Some turbo thoughts:

    1. First, Cindy has made the interesting observation that at least in Vietnam, our spending power is at least 30X. Example, we can go to an all you can eat Korean barbecue restaurant or even an all you can eat shabu shabu restaurant, for only around eight to $10 USD! We also made the funny observation that in theory, this is even cheaper than ordering meat and cooking at home! Plus the upside is that we don’t have to clean up when we’re at a restaurant.
    2. Coffee here is insanely good: And if you ever visit Saigon Vietnam, go to 96B, our favorite coffee shop here. I rate the coffee there at least 100X better than any third wave coffee I’ve discovered in the states, even in Australia! What is the secret? A tighter source. The beans are grown locally here in Vietnam in Dalat, and also roasted and crafted here. The result? Insanely fruity and fragrant. Even the robusta here is phenomenal!
    3. I still prefer the states: a very nice epiphany that I had is that even though life here is insanely good, ultimately, I still prefer the states. Why? First and foremost, crypto and cryptocurrency. While I was here in Vietnam, I actually had some weird difficulty and strange error messages when trying to load up my crypto assets. Funny enough, I think I’ve made a fatter profit off of my speculative crypto and bitcoin speculations than I have ever in all of my photography workshops combined.
    4. Also, the pollution in Vietnam is actually really bad. When Cindy and I lived here in around 2017, while the pollution in Hanoi was bad, it wasn’t that bad in Saigon Now, the pollution actually feels pretty unbearable. For example, I can’t even go outside for too long without choking on the pollution here. This is an interesting epiphany, as what it means is that even though you have all the worlds best amenities, without fresh air, none of it is worth it. Now I think I understand why the rich mainland Chinese people are buying up property in Vancouver and other places, in order to escape the relentless pollution back in the mainland.
    5. Perhaps California banning gasoline cars is a good idea — why is California so overpopulated? Even though there are lots of bad things about California, my thought is the reason why traffic in LA California Southern California etc. so bad is actually because everyone wants to live there. Also, the thought of banning gasoline cars is a good idea, because although generating electricity via sustainable sources is a little doubtful, at least it directly stops the injection of pollution fumes into the air. In fact, once again after experiencing the pollution here in Saigon, it almost feels unethical to purchase a brand new gasoline powered car, even a hybrid. Why? As Elon Musk said, even a hybrid car is 100% reliant on gasoline. How about the Prius prime brother plug-in hybrids? Fuck it, just go 100% electric. 30 miles on an a plug-in Prime Prius electric charge is hilarious.
    6. Sustainability and the planet? Certainly humans can live even in polluted areas. It will not directly kill you, at least not in the short term. However the downside is that it makes every day like to life living terrible. Nobody wants to live in the mall for the rest of their lives.

    Photo Updates

    This month while in Vietnam I am doing two free photography talks, one in Saigon this weekend and another in Hanoi next weekend with my friend Chu Viet Ha.

    Will try to see if I can get it recorded and will share with you later.


    Camera thoughts?

    Currently looking at the camera landscape, everything seems uninteresting to me.

    Car thoughts?

    It seems that if you want a car or a new car, the most economical is to just buy used Prius.

    For a new car, just buy the cheapest base Tesla model 3. Or if you plan to lease, just lease the cheapest price Tesla model Tesla model 3.

    Crypto thoughts

    For any recent crypto developments, the chain link blog seems to be the best resource. However, some nuances:

    1. There is no web 3.0. Whenever you see anything written with Web 3.0, don’t trust it.
    2. I see a great future ahead for AI.
    3. International money: while bitcoin may still not be the future, it seems to not be totally bad of an idea. Why? My frustration being here in Vietnam, from any normal ATM machine, it is difficult to withdraw more than $100-$200 USD a day. Insanely annoying.

    Future developments?

    1. If you want critical and honest feedback on your photos, upload it to arsbeta. I am still shocked and amazed, even building it three-four years ago, the platform is still insanely robust!
    2. Why? am I a genius? Building why app before ChatGPT was announced? Thinking of the idea almost 3 to 4 years ahead, in 2017?

    New ideas

    My new current idea is regarding photo selection and curation. For example, let us say that you shoot 1000 photos a day. Having some sort of AI assistant help you cull through the photos seems like a good idea.

    HAPTIC DRIP

    HAPTIC SHOP: CONQUER IT ALL.


    Forward the turbo!

    ERIC KIM NEWS

    Or if you’re new,

    START HERE >


  • How to Become More Robust

    Dear friends, a thought on my mind: seek to become more robust, more anti fragile.

    Why robust?

    Robur, oak. Red. Same word as rubber.

    The oak tree is a good analogy because it is insanely big and strong, hard, unyielding.

    Robusta coffee

    Currently here in Saigon Vietnam, and a new passion and interest; towards robusta coffee, which has a higher caffeine content, and also less sugar. So purely from a health and physique perspective, robusta coffee should be superior to arabica because arabica is sweet, arabica has more sugar molecules in it than robusta.

    How to lose fat

    The secret of losing fat, body adipose tissue is very simple and straightforward: simply abstain or do not consume any starches, carbs, starchy vegetables, fruit, anything sweet, whether real sugar fig sugar or some other silly “zero calorie”. this means no Coke zero, no diet coke, no monk fruit, none of that nonsense.

    I have a theory that if you want to become more robust, it is simple, only consume a 100% beef-based diet, and the only non-meat items you consume or bitter ones. Don’t eat anything sweet. That’s your side dish is simply really bitter dark leafy greens, whether it be Collard greens, mustard greens, perilla leaves etc.

    Become more primal

    Who is that the reason why so many people are miserable in modern day living is that we no longer have the privilege or opportunity to be primal. For example, we are no longer permitted to be loud, yell, scream and shout, cry, express anger, thump our chest etc.

    For example something that I have observed is traditionally, in modern day society at least in the more “modern” ones, to be quiet, silent, unobtrusive, low-key, avoiding eye contact or confrontation is seen as a virtue. We often scorn people who are loud, rambunctious, having a jolly old time.

    For example, what is K-12 education? Learning how to deal with boredom, learning how to become silent, sitting down and shutting up, obeying the teacher etc.

    A new path

    Assuming that happiness is indeed your life goal, or perhaps becoming more, allow yourself to become louder, more rambunctious, more flagrant.

    For example, I think the reason why people hate Kanye West so much is because of several reasons; first and foremost, they hate how outspoken he is, how he speaks his mind without any self-censorship. Yet this is precisely what gains him diehard fans like myself, Because indeed he speaks his mind, he doesn’t lie, whether you agree with him or not, at least you know he’s not lying.

    Robust thinking

    With words, thoughts, philosophies, techniques methodologies etc., I believe that the robust ones are supreme.

    For example, any thoughts or topics in which the ancients have touched upon, or any words and etymology which has gone back to the Proto Indo European, tend to be robust. Much of modern-day thinking is fragile at best, notions of “equality“, “justice“, “fairness”, etc. are modern day notions. In ancient times, ancient Greek times, some ancient Roman times, it was more about rank, hierarchy, power, courage, bravery, lethality etc.

    For example, Achilles was seen as supreme because he was the most lethal. Nobody was even half a chance to him, he was even so lethal and powerful that not even the gods could take him. The only difference between Achilles and the gods was that Achilles was mortal whereas the gods were not.

    Modern day times

    What makes one fragile in modern day times? Social media numbers and followings, numeration of money, popularity, fame etc.

    What makes one robust? Self-confidence, self faith, self assurance, etc.

  • PASSION.

    A simple thought on life; a life lived with maximal passion, ambition, and personal interest:

    First of all, let us address ambition:

    How to Become More Ambitious

    Ambition is funny because sometimes it is seen as a virtue, sometimes it is seem as a vice.

    For example to be too ambitious is seen as a bad thing, because you do it at the “expense” of others.

    I say fuck it — ambition is good. Ambition, to hunger and strive for more is one of the greatest virtues of man!


    Ambitious for what?

    This is the even more tricky thing — let us say you are ambitious, but for what?

    Personally speaking I am more ambitious to see more, discover more, think more, become stronger, advance and evolve myself with more unique interesting and diverse experiences, to ultimately become more.

    Truth be told I have almost zero interest in money. Why? To me, my greater goals are related to physical and physiological strength, towards innovation, entrepreneurship, and creating cool shit and sharing it with others! I seek a life with the maximum thrill, fun, uncertainty, creative risk, guts, and balls.


    Your creative risk life goals?

    I believe in the age beyond money and silly notions of success, I say it all comes down to creative ambition. That is, what do you desire to create?

    Build your own platform, company, or business

    Profits are simply a means to an end.

    Nothing needs to get “done”.

    I still think there is a robust future ahead of us in terms of websites, website technology, blogging, etc.

    Amazon web services, WordPress, and open source websites.

    Now let us address value:


    On Value

    What is “value”, and how does one create it?

    First of all, consider … what do you value and desire?

    For myself I value certain ideals like becoming stronger, one rep max at the gym, atlas lift, rack pull etc.

    Therefore for me, to create value in the context of weight lifting is to create things which inspire or motivate others to also increase their one rep maxes in the gym and beyond. Sharing my videos of me doing it, my thoughts and theories etc.

    Second — does it need to be physical, or is digital fine?

    Creating value for the sake of what?

    Valor, valere— having worth, pr ultimately being brave.

    To me the “economy” is simply human activity. Thus to stimulate the economy or the movement of others is the #1 critical thing of value!

    Takeaway point — anything which moves people is what has the ultimate value!

    ERIC


    Turbo thoughts

    1. All of the money is just fake money. Just ones and zeros, and digital data. Therefore, do not use money is a metric for “success”.
    2. What is a more noble goal? Reckless and audacity in terms of creativity.
    3. Design is still the future: we buy it for the design, not anything else. Consider the great renaissance of Hyundai Kia and Genesis, by going all in on disruptive design, they have totally changed the game.
    4. Currently here in Saigon, the growth and entrepreneurship here is phenomenal.
    5. Currently the city or space which interest me the most is Pan Am Penh Cambodia. While there are still lots of opportunities here in Vietnam, I believe there to be more opportunities in Phnom Penh.

    Become the all black on black on black, murdered out Range Rover defender

    It looks like currently speaking, people are going bananas on the murdered out, black on black on black, Matt black look for cars. But instead of just buying it, why not transform your body to look like it? Become more mean in medicine, more muscular, Less body fat.

    Becoming more passionate

    My personal life: thought; becoming more ambitious, and also, becoming more passionate.

    Why is passion important, and what does it mean?

    First and foremost, I believe passion to just be a burning desire for something. A burning desire to become a change what you wish to see manifested in the world, or the desire to create and propagate your passion to the rest of the world.

    Two feet down

    The first step: once you’ve put your heart to something, commit. 2 feet down, all in.

    I believe this to be like a “one rep max philosophy to life”. The basic idea:

    Once you’ve committed to something, go all in.

    For example, HAPTIC ARMOR. My new insanely ambitious approach to fabrics, materials, new cloths.

    Why do I care?

    What you decide to care for and not care for, I don’t think there’s any real logic to it. Simply, you must commit to your heart.

    How to know what you’re passionate about?

    I think the problem in modern day life is that there is a social pressure what one should be passionate for and what one should NOT be passionate for.

    However, the problem is that these tyrants try to superimpose their value structures upon us. What we must do is instead, turn our head and shoulder away, and blatantly ignore all of this nonsensory.

    Commit to your passion

    What I encourage is this: whatever you’re passionate about, commit to it, disregard modern-day notions of economic gain, or “productivity“. It doesn’t need to be productive, simply authentic.

    ERIC


    Conquer the Unknown

    HAPTIC ARMOR: Conquer the Unknown >


    How to unlock and unleash your passion

    1. Spend some time thinking about what you’re passionate about, and with all of your might and mind, strive to strip away what society wants and expects of you.
    2. Beyond economics: Once again, disregard notions of material and financial gain. Passion is beyond money and numbers, commas and zeros.

    More turbo products in HAPTIC SHOP >


    Think More?

    START HERE

    Also BOOKS


    The Will to Simplicity?

    To mirror the thought of our best friend Nietzsche, the will to simplicity is a good one. In your design thinking and body, your life etc., strive to simplify.

    ERIC

    Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication >


    Conquer it all!