Street Photo of the week by Eric Kim
Street Photo of the week by Eric Kim
Eric Kim is one of the most well known and influential figures of contemporary Street Photography. He is based in Berkeley, California, however he rarely remains in one place. Eric has been shooting in the streets for quite some time now sharing his experiences and his knowledge on his blog. A blog that now has thousands of readers and is a rich resource for everything Street. Not long ago, Eric Kim decided to start teaching Street Photography workshops all over the world aiming to help people new to Street Photography overcome their fears and improve their skill. This has given him the opportunity to travel and do Street Photography in many different countries, being influenced by foreign cultures, allowing him to gather experiences that have shaped his ever evolving style.
Eric’s work has been exhibited and published many times and he has been interviewed by blogs and magazines, such as Petapixel, the BBC, VICE and more.
I think Eric’s most valuable gift to Street Photography is the fact that he never stops sharing what he knows, he never stops writing in his blog and he keeps on shooting and trying to improve. Those are things that very few manage to do on a regular basis and his efforts are commendable. Through his hard work and dedication to the art, he has influenced hundreds, if not thousands of people to try Street Photography.
If you would like to see more of Eric Kim’s photographic work you can visit his website at http://erickimphotography.com/ or his Flickr page at https://www.flickr.com/photos/ekizz/.
Dark Skies Over Tokyo
I remember seeing this photo the first time when I was reading a BBC post about Street Photography in which Eric Kim was featured. It had impacted me a lot then. I hadn’t tried flash Street Photography at the time and this made me look into it for the first time.
As I mentioned before, Eric Kim is an International Street Photographer with an evolving style. Each style of Street Photography Eric has used through his photographic journey has produced some great images. This one “Dark Skies Over Tokyo” has been shot as the name implies in Japan, Tokyo in 2011, using a flash. The blast of light on the hand of the woman emphasizes her desire not to be photographed. I love the shadow of her fingers in the background and the expression on her face as she tries to dodge the photo unsuccessfully. What a great shot!
Thank you Eric Kim!
About this weekly feature
As you know, every Friday we feature a photograph of a Street Photographer on our website. The Street Photographer that is featured is selected by the Street Hunters team.
If you would like to have one of your shots featured on our website, then please contact us by visiting https://www.streethunters.net/contact/, or join us on our Flickr Group or subscribe to our GooglePlus Page.
Thank you
Makes an impact as an image, but not very original unfortunately – it’s very Bruce Gilden!
I suppose Bruce Gilden does “own” that style of photography, but it is still very hard to achieve something like this. I have tried this approach and it is difficult. I wonder why people always think of Bruce Gilden when they see photos of people being flashed and not Mark Cohen? I would have thought, he was the original flasher. No?
I’m not familiar with Mark Cohen, and I know very few street photographers, but Bruce Gilden is on of a handful that most photographers seem to know, because of his very distinct style.
Your approach usually seems more passive and from a distance, did you find trying the flash in the face approach a bit aggressive towards people?
Hi Dan, thank you for your question. I have tried Invasive Street Photography and in short I can tell you 2 things about it.
Personally I am not comfortable with it, unless I am amongst a crowd of people partying, such as during a carnival or a New Year event. I think it is aggressive towards people when it is done on a normal day, when someone is least expecting it. But reactions aren’t always bad. I have had a flash go off by accident with my Olympus mju II (on a normal, casual day) and I luckily got smiles in return.
Stay Sharp & Keep Shooting!
That’s a really interesting reply Spyros, thank you. It really clarifies for me about where I am and why I photograph, because “exhilaration” and “gutsy” are two words I don’t associate with it at all, or really want to.
For me personally photography is an escape, a calming, almost meditative experience, a way to get away from the “daily grind” and chaos and bustle and reconnect with what I find beautiful and mysterious and intriguing in the world. It helps me just reconnect somehow and feel sane again. If there was aggression or exhilaration involved, it wouldn’t be serving its purpose, it’d almost be the complete opposite.
Guess this is why my version(s) of “street” photography is nothing like Bruce Gilden’s. : )
I do feel exhilaration in photography, but only when I have my film developed and see a shot that turned out better than I expected, and that makes me really proud to have managed to do enough “right” on that occasion to have captured it.
Thank you for your reply Dan. Yes, I know what you mean. I seek that feeling through photography many times too. I am a person that bores easily, so I change my style rather frequently. I suppose that is why I appear style-less to the people that don’t really know me. Glad we had this chat.
Stay Sharp & Keep Shooting!
Thank you so much Spyros for the feature! Keep up the great work at Street Hunters 🙂
Hi Eric! Thanks for commenting. Keep up the great work photographing and contributing to the Street Photography community! 🙂
Eric Kim should be applauded for his tireless blog-keeping and generous share of knowledge. I wish him the best. I must however be honest and say that I simply do not understand the idea that he is an accomplished photographer. This photograph, for example is mediocre. I just don’t know where this reputation hails from; I do not see much quality in his work.
Why do/ did you not see much accomplishment from his work?
Sorry, I don’t understand the question.