ViewBug guest judge and community member Roustan is a globally-renowned artist based in Los Angeles known for his work in body painting, photography, and conceptual performance, Roustan is recognized as one of the world’s leading body painters, whose style combines traditional fine art, pop culture, and reflections of the contemporary world to create conceptually-based body painting.

Sonar Scar by Roustan

Here are my five tips in no particular order:

1. Learn technique and then abandon it. Your settings should be second nature. The magic moment is all that matters. Don’t miss it. Some of the most famous images in history are slightly blurry.

Nature Nourishes by Roustan

2. Challenge yourself. Try new things. If you are not nervous about what you are trying to accomplish, you are working from a comfort zone. Your growth as an artist is stunted when you are comfortable.

Abandoned by Roustan

3. Always ask for forgiveness, not permission. Sometimes getting the shot means you need to take risks.

Vintage by Roustan

4. Please yourself. You can never make everyone happy. Let your creative motivation be the things you like, not the likes or dislikes of your social fans and trolls.

Super Scar by Roustan

5. When photographing people, distract the subject with conversation about her. Take her mind off posing. Sometimes the most natural looks happen when you’re busy “chimping” your LCD. Don’t miss it. Be ready to capture it before she notices.

Look What the Tide Brought In by Roustan

Follow Roustan on ViewBug and Instagram to see more of his creative shots.