2024 12 31

One of my many bar inspirations: Sportsman’s Club. Chicago, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Bar Owner in 2025

Today is New Years Eve — who wouldn’t want to own a bar on New Years Eve?!$!$?

This is slight sarcasm. I’m not a huge fan of crowded gatherings, and have mixed feelings on socializing generally, however, I love bars. I could spend every day in a bar (not necessarily drinking, I like the vibes and the human dynamic, mom!) and I’ve long wanted to own a bar, though had never made a serious effort to do so myself — until this year. While it’s true I did make an effort to re-open some kind of bar/restaurant concept in the former Orkenoy space inside the Kimball Arts Center (where my studio is located), the level of my effort was fairly minimal. It didn’t go far beyond talking to basically everyone I know about it. Thinking, talking, researching, talking, thinking. Enough time went by that the space got leased out to an office tenant and the dream died… sort of.

Now, there’s another bar on the market and available that checks most of my boxes and is already quite aligned on concept (at least one concept I’ve been stewing on). Still, this idea is quite a long shot at this point, but it’s one I’m seriously considering. Much like the photobook shop dream and having a family member in that business, I also have family on both sides of the bar business (ownership and alcoholism). The latter reality causes both of my parents to think this is a terrible idea, and their perspective needs to be considered. 

Of course, owning a bar introduces a slew of other new challenges and life adjustments. It would be a 180-degree career pivot and I would realistically need to give up most, if not all, of my photography ambitions. This is the main reason I’ve mostly been stewing on the idea rather than acting on it. But with the commercial photo landscape being quite down from where it once was and its future also very much in question, the idea started to sound like it might actually make some sense (and, possibly, cents). 

One of my biggest takeaways from the last three years of running a studio is how much I’ve enjoyed curating and hosting events. I’m going to dig more into this topic in a few days, however, there are quite a lot of parallels to what I’m already doing today with owning and operating a bar; I’m just currently doing it without a liquor license.

My two biggest takeaways from investigating the bar idea further were:

First, that I bring more to the table than I had realized! It was an ego-boost of sorts, hearing confidence from a number of people, including a partner at a big restaurant group, that I should open a bar and that I have more to offer than I gave myself credit for. My self-deprecating style had initially caused me to doubt the whole endeavor strictly because I have no experience running a bar myself.

Second, and even more reassuringly, was the amount of help, openness, and enthusiasm I received from existing bar owners and operators that I reached out to for advice. Initially, I was hesitant to even do so, thinking they would see me more as future competition. In reality, I had people sending me complicated documents filled with projections and numbers I would’ve never considered; I had people coming out to see the space and give me their honest, experienced opinions; I had people running numbers for me and giving me free consultation. It was a reassuring experience, and while I know running a bar would be wildly challenging and likely all-consuming, I love the idea that I wouldn’t be doing it alone.

On that note, back to stewing on it. Until then, if anyone wants to invest $10,000-$100,000 into an exciting new bar opportunity, you know where to find me!

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 30

“Keep it 100” studio portrait featuring Serina. Chicago, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Portrait Studio Photographer in 2025

I’ve been quite humbled in the last few years by the difficulty in attracting people to give you money to take their portrait. Just because you have a photo studio doesn’t make you a professional portrait photographer. It’s been a re-learning experience to figure out what people want from me and what people are willing to pay me for it, when pursuing portrait clients. That said, being a portrait photographer has never been a focus of mine and I’ve sort of actively avoided this my entire photography career, as I didn’t have a studio and it always felt like more work than it was worth. To be honest, my insight is that people don’t have much money to put towards portraits and expectations are high for the little money they will pay (I realize my perspective is a bit warped as a commercial and editorial photographer). What might’ve been a no-brainer career pursuit a decade ago is now challenging and perhaps not advisable.

All that said, I think I finally got to a place where I have things a bit more figured out, in a way that works for me. My “Keep it 100” portrait sessions, inspired by a similar setup done down in Nashville by Jeremy Cowart, have been both a ton of fun and a bit more financially justified. I have a longer post in the works that goes into further detail on the backstory and process, however, I will say that providing an amazing service (one hundred fun and unique portraits for [currently] $150) does wonders for word of mouth. In more recent months, I’ve built up some real demand for this service largely due to the affordability and simplicity (though the setup is quite detailed). This has me thinking I should make portraits a more consistent and regular offering at the studio next year. 

Additionally, I recently saw some work from Ivan Weiss, a London-based studio portrait photographer, that further inspired me to want to focus more of my time on offering a more well-rounded portrait studio experience. While there’s a lot of potential to make really great work, there are also real expenses involved (backdrops, cameras and lenses, lighting) that make this approach less appealing to me. Then, there’s the even more challenging reality of finding higher end clients that are both willing to spend a more appropriate amount of money ($600 and up!) on great images, while also maintaining the creative approach that inspires me to want to do this. The challenges are so great that I will likely stick with the lower end approach. Keep it quick, easy, and affordable, while also making it low stakes enough for me to experiment, get weird, and have more fun along the way.

One other idea I hope to explore is to turn my more affordable “Keep it 100” portrait model into more of a social experience. In a previous life, I ran a website called everyoneisfamous.com, in which I would go out to parties and shows, take a bunch of candid pictures of people, and then post them to the photo blog. I like the idea of dusting off the website and giving it more of a studio portrait approach, in which anyone who wants to participate will get their images on the public website for others to see. We could then offer the setup out in the world at various events, and perhaps even bring the whole thing on the road and do it in other cities! That all gets me excited and feels like a model that might make sense, as part of the payment then becomes exposure for myself and my portrait setup, thus allowing me to keep my rates low enough for anyone to participate.

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 29

Do not eat. Wilmette, Illinois. October, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Top Commercial Food & Beverage Photographer in 2025

A big part of why I decided to make a photo studio happen in the waning days of the covid lockdowns was that prior to covid I’d been getting a lot of food/beverage job inquiries, didn’t have a studio space, and I thought people would be itching to get back out and do shit, make shit, mingle, once the lockdowns were over. While I wasn’t too off in my assessment, where I went wrong was determining what the shit was. I suspected the photo studio would mostly be busy with photo shoots, both of my own and other photographers. While surely, we have done a number of large projects in the space over the last ~three years, it has been more heavily used as an event space and portrait studio than the food and beverage studio I’d imagined. This is largely on me. All of those food/beverage job inquiries I’d been getting sort of organically stopped happening once I had the studio in place, and I didn’t put much effort into changing that. Instead, I focused on the portrait and people work and put lots of effort into hosting events, which I was really enjoying, along with various side projects. 

I don’t regret any of this, but I have been wondering if I should put my focus back on the food/beverage work that I’d imagined primarily utilizing the space for. Last week, we wrapped a large food project that I really enjoyed. I did a cookbook shoot earlier in the year which I also really loved and wish I could do more of. Neither of those projects actually happened in the studio I designed to accommodate them, ironically. 

As is sometimes the case in life, when you expect something will happen, the world has a funny way of making sure the opposite thing happens. That said, the studio is still an amazing place to do food/beverage photography, and it would be a no brainer for me to put more effort into making that happen next year, be it my own shoots or those of others. After a challenging few years in the commercial photography industry, things are trending better right now and I can only hope it continues.

Additionally, there are already plans to do more high end motion spec work to help land new clients. Of course, at the end of the day, these things are time consuming, challenging, and it will be an ongoing process and big commitment to get where I think we can, if we stick with it. I’m consistently inspired and motivated by the Cleveland shop BurkleHagen, and think we could be a similar resource for brands looking for top tier, beautiful, fresh food/beverage photography and video. The challenge is that I really love pursuing lots of different creative avenues, and this idea would largely require a full-time, all-in effort. I think I have some decisions to make and I think the health of the commercial market will likely help guide me in making them, but that’s a more complicated subject for a different day.

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 28

Thank you (for shopping at my imaginary photobook shop). Chicago, Illinois. June, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Photobook Shop Owner in 2025

Oh, man. The photobook store. I’ve been secretly obsessing over this idea for at least two years now. The immediate and obvious inspiration for opening a small (physical & web-based) shop dedicated to photobooks and photography shows/talks/meetups is Baltimore Photo Space. I already have a(n amazing) photo studio space, so it seems like somewhat of a no-brainer to expand the existing operation into something beyond what it is already. 

Quick backstory for those not already familiar with what photobooks are: Photo books. Books featuring the work of one or multiple photographers. Monographs. Printed visual essays. Printed visual narratives. Art books. Photo zines. It’s a genre of book, featuring photography (obvs), that is sort of seeing a resurgence in popularity as photography becomes an increasingly popular hobby (and job!) for more and more people. Making photos is easier than ever. Printing books is easier than ever. It’s sort of an obvious connection that more people than ever are releasing photobooks, many of which are very good (and some of which that are not)!

Let’s explore some pros and cons of this idea:

• PRO: Will gain a ton of experience and understanding of what other photographers are up to. Endless inspiration (aka things to steal)!

• CON: Will possibly have too much exposure to other people’s work, to the point that it will affect my own work a bit too much, in a bad way, or burn out on photography.

• PRO: Will gain a huge photobook library that will be impressive (to some people)!

• CON: Will have a huge photobook library that I will need to put somewhere and transport somehow (hard!).

• PRO: Will make a living and/or have a bit more consistent income through doing something that I love to do (assuming the business does work as I think it would!)

• CON: Will spend a lot of my time working in the photobook store, sourcing inventory, packing and shipping (my local post office has 1.9 stars on google. I stopped in there yesterday and they were not accepting customers because “the clerk was out,” as told to us by the apparently-not clerk), and generally doing things that take away my time and opportunities for creating new work of my own vs sharing the work of others in exchange for money.

• PRO: Will make many new connections in the photo industry and likely some new friends as well!

• CON: Will be forced to do more things I dislike doing, such as legal paperwork, taxes, bureaucracy, posting and responding to people on social media.

• CON: lots and lots and lots of breaking down boxes.

While doing this thought experiment, it became apparent why I have only so far taken baby steps towards making this idea a reality. It would be a ton of work and there’s no clear way of knowing how much I would enjoy doing it longer term without committing and giving it a go. It sort of feels like the chances of it being a net positive on my life are about equal to the chances of it being a net negative. All that said, I have this vague urge to just make it happen. Like it’s a calling of sorts. Perhaps it runs in the family. Perhaps it’s in my blood, as my uncle had an underground rare book shop a few decades back. 

In my ideal, wave a magic wand and make it happen scenario, I would go for it…along with a tight core of one to three other people, so that none of us would be tied to the shop full-time should other opportunities arise (as they will). The trick is finding those people. I do feel oddly confident in the vision and think it could be a lot of fun…in addition to being a lot of work. Work. Work. Shipping. Sourcing. Taxes. Documents. Fun. Work. 

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, please see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 27

Caught in the act of art. Chicago, Illinois. October, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Documentary Filmmaker in 2025

My slow and reluctant pivot back to video is underway, though admittedly much slower-paced than it should be. The move back to shooting video is both personally and professionally-driven. Before I became a photographer, I was a videographer. It’s my first artistic passion and one that I want to further explore before it gets too late in life. Beyond that, my industry of commercial photography is now demanding that all photographers are also motion directors, so it’s basically required if I wish to continue making money in that field.

In the new year, I will obsess over video and dedicate a huge amount of my time to manning a video camera again. Part of why my video pivot has stalled is my instinct is to operate. I must be operating the camera to be fully engaged in the production process. And that requires a time-consuming re-learning process, familiarizing myself with new camera systems and methods that didn’t exist when I was running MiniDV cams in the early 2000’s.

Fortunately, a friend reached out to me a few months back with the idea of partnering on a doc project featuring a mutual artist friend of ours (I’m keeping all the specific details out of it for now as we’re in the super early stages of this and I don’t want to jinx anything). We have already begun production and are now seeking additional financing so that we can move full-steam ahead in the new year (hit me up and I’ll send you the pitch deck!). I’m excited because I think this project has a lot of potential to be something great, though I also know it’s going to be a beast of a process and take up a huge amount of my time.

With so much content being made and shared these days, I’m very sensitive to making sure this project stands out and is elevated from the pack. I don’t want to make just another “feature-length documentary” that gets tossed onto YouTube for a few thousand people to passively watch and forget. There are themes I hope to explore that, I think, will resonate with lots of people; if we handle the project right, it has a chance to really become something that goes beyond Chicago and touches people worldwide. But again, I don’t want to jinx it, so let’s keep it casual!

Semi-relatedly, Kartemquin Films is moving their office directly below my studio inside the Kimball Arts Center. I’ve very much been “listening to the universe” lately, and this feels like a clear sign that I should pay attention to. I also aim to make a monthly screening night happen in our studio space, which we’ve dubbed Cinema 606. While this won’t be strictly doc-focused, I do want to make sure documentaries are a large part of the night.

With Ai blowing up and affecting lots of industries, including my own world of commercial photography, I love the idea of adding documentary filmmaking to my core competency of offerings. On top of that, I have no shortage of ideas for various subjects and people that I would love to explore in moving-visual form. Of course, time and money are always the main deterrents, so it will be very revealing to know just how much this project takes out of me before I make grand plans to become the next Werner Herzog.

Some themes we’re likely to explore in this project include: the business end of art; what it means to be an artist; the unwavering dedication to a city that doesn’t always love you back; substance abuse in relation to artistic endeavor. 

I’d consider it a huge win to complete the project, be proud of it, and have other people choose to watch it on their own accord. Perhaps, if things go well, a modest run of screenings around the country would be an amazing end cap. It will be interesting to look back at this post a year from now, as I realize there’s a lot of actual work to be done and this here talk is cheap. It’s time to get moving and make a damn movie!

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, please see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 26

Quiet street at sundown. Grayville, Illinois. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Becoming a Fine Art Photographer in 2025

This past year has really been a re-focusing of my photography career in many ways. Headwinds working against the commercial photography business have pushed me in many new directions, including more towards the art photography world. To be candid, I’m grateful for it. I’ve spent years neglecting my core passions of photography largely because the money was good. It’s been, and will continue to be, a process getting over the feeling of “selling out.” This process will continue and hopefully only thrive in the new year, as I make a prioritized effort towards making my own personal work from a more artistic perspective (in addition to the commercial work that pays the bills — the worry is that by trying to do both, I could dilute them both and fail spectacularly, forcing myself to become a bartender). Making money through photography is not a bad thing, don’t get me wrong. I’m just working to find a better balance and not shun the type of work that brings me joy.

At the core of this new artistic endeavor, at least as of right now, is a loosely defined Illinois Project aka Ill Wandering. The general idea behind this project is to explore the state I’ve resided in my entire life, while excluding the one county (Cook) that I spend 99% of my time in. Chicago gets all the attention (like my commercial photo career has been) but the state is so much bigger and more interesting than this one city, as great as it is. I aim to explore and document the history, people, textures, decay, nature, landscapes, and mystery contained in all one-hundred and one counties of the state that don’t include the city of Chicago. 

The end goal is to turn this project into a photobook, although what exactly that book is is very much a mystery to even me at this point. I’m also considering the idea of making the project more web-based, like this here blog, with the aim of gaining exposure to the project as I collect images and stories over the coming months and, likely, years. One big challenge I’ve had so far is that I haven’t shared much, if any, of the work I’ve made so far publicly. That has been hard! I tend to be an over-sharer, so my thinking has been that this new approach (to me) in making more artistic and thoughtful work should be handled differently than my previous work, which would be blasted out onto the internet as it was made. Art is made in the decisions and juxtaposition of images, which create meaning and narrative.

My current struggle is the feeling that I’m only sharing my second tier work with the world. All of the best stuff, be it work made for commission or work made for myself, is hiding away on hard drives, not being shared. There are many justifications for this (including: fear the good work isn’t actually all that good and I will be discovered; fear of sharing all the work up front will take away from the moment when it is finally reveled; fear that sharing more of my commercial work will muddle my vision for pivoting more towards artistic photography), but the biggest reason is simply that in holding back the new work I am now creating, I can sculpt and shape it into whatever becomes of it down the road. Meaning, connection, and narrative should form organically as the project is carried out.

In the end, my newfound push towards getting my ass out of the house to make work that speaks directly to me has been driven and motivated by countless other photographers, through their books, websites, YouTube videos, and instagram accounts. I’ve been diving deep into the world of photography that I’ve regrettably neglected while the gettin’ was good. Getting back to my roots and putting in the effort to schooling myself on these things has been wildly inspiring, and in the end, the sole purpose of this effort is not in seeking fame or fortune (chances at either of those through this project are slim). This is about self-growth and personal discovery both in my photography and in myself. If I’m able to take a few people along for the ride and give them some new perspective as well, that would be super exciting. 

-Clayton

This is one entry in a multi-part series of self-exploration and contemplation-out-loud in advance of the new calendar year. Some of this may happen; none of this may happen.
For the complete list of posts, please see 2024 12 25.

2024 12 25

Is it Santa or just an icy rock pummeling through space? Benton Harbor, Michigan. October, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Merry Christmas, y’all! Yesterday I mentioned jotting down some thoughts on what I plan to be focusing on going into the new year. We’ve been quite distracted watching holiday movies (Home Alone, The Family Stone, White Christmas), so I’ll get into those individual posts beginning tomorrow. Looking back, 2024 was quite honestly one of my personal favorite years, despite some big challenges, but I’m also very much looking forward to 2025. I’m also quite proud I’ve managed to get through an entire year of daily posts. It’s been something I’d wanted to do for like a decade and finally made it happen.

It was around this time last year that the idea hit me to start this here blog, so it seemed only fitting I would dedicate some time towards pondering what projects next year might bring.

Topics we’ll explore in the next string of days include:

1. The Illinois Project aka Ill Wandering

2. Documentary Project

3. Photobook Store

4. Commercial Food & Beverage Photography

5. Portrait Studio

6. Opening a Bar

7. This Here Blog

8. Street Photography

9. The Studio As An Event Space

It’s like the nine days of Christmas, or something! Anyway… back to the holiday cheer. See you soon.

-Clayton

2024 12 24

It me! Chicago, Illinois. November, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

It hit me this morning that I’m a few days shy of a full year of posting daily to this here blog. Wild! I then thought I should spend some time contemplating the year ahead, and began writing up short blurs on the various things I am focusing on in the new year.

Today, we are celebrating Christmas. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you and your loved ones!

I’ll be back tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after, to discuss more things…

-Clayton

2024 12 23

The sun setting on my photographic career. St Germain, Wisconsin. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

While at a holiday party a few nights back, the subject of Ai came up and sent me off into a dark headspace. My animator/editor friend had just seen some new examples of Google’s Ai video capabilities and it sent her spiraling into doom, declaring her job was now dead and gone. Sadly, I largely agree with her, tho of course it’s more complicated and won’t happen overnight. I’ve been largely ignoring (avoiding) checking in on Ai advancements over the last six months because I know it will only bum me out, and I’ve been too busy anyway, thus had been feeling more optimistic about the state of our creative industry. That moment at the party was like pouring cold water over my head.

This morning, I awoke to a post showcasing a fully-Ai-generated short film (see below). All of the sound, music and editing was done by a human but the visuals are fairly impressive, considering they were made by typing commands into a computer (I’d love to know how much time he spent repeating commands over and over before throwing his computer out the window). Surely, this will only get much better in the coming months. That said, I’m still not fully convinced Ai will ever become so good that it replaces all human-made visuals. Art is in the choices, and outsourcing a majority of your decisions to a computer will dilute your art and/or take lots of time to perfect, thus minimizing the advantage it provides in the first place. Also, while impressive for what it is, the film is kind of shit.

MOVIES MADE BY AI? WE’RE BASICALLY THERE NOW

Every shot in The Heist was created with Google Veo 2’s text-to-video AI.

No cameras. No sets. Just words turned into film.

Jason Zada handled the sound, editing, and music, but the visuals? Pure AI.

We’re on the brink of AI-made… pic.twitter.com/W4reu1FDFh

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) December 23, 2024

Last week, I hosted a Filmmaker Fridays event at my studio and the topic was film festivals. Two panelists were invited to talk about their roles in choosing which films are accepted to the festivals they work for. My broad takeaway from the event was that there is such a robust and enthusiastic demand for filmmaking generally, that I can’t even imagine a world in which the art form is completely outsourced to automation, regardless of how profitable it may become to do so (I’m not convinced this will be the case, either!). That said, Ai will surely transform the industry in ways comparable or even greater than the recent mega-change from film to digital. That change ushered in an explosion of new participants (myself included) and content is now so plentiful it’s impossible to watch even a small percentage of what is made annually. Sundance supposedly sees fourteen-thousand submissions each year, of which they likely don’t even view many of the entrants’ films because there’s just not enough time to do so.

At the event, I ran into the younger brother of a friend who I hadn’t seen in over a decade. He mentioned that he wrapped a feature horror film which he made for $3,000 and premiered to a sold-out audience at The Music Box. Check out the trailer below. It’s laughable how much better it is when compared to the Ai-made video above.

None of us have any clue what’s next. Nuclear war or impending alien invasion may soon make all of this a moot subject. While I will surely still go through periods of depression about how my job is about to be replaced by robots, I’m choosing to largely disregard these dark proclamations and barrel ahead with a positive mental attitude and the understanding that things will change, perhaps quite dramatically, but the world has a need to remain more or less in balance in order for anything to get accomplished.

-Clayton

2024 12 22

A steel column embedded into a brick wall. That’s it! Chicago, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Yesterday it was announced that the CTA was awarded federal funds to expand the red line further south to reach the edge of the city. The project will be wildly expensive and is not without its critics as to how the money could be better spent. Personally, I love to see the addition of new rail despite the high price tag and hope this trend, slow as it is, will continue.

That steel beam in the above image used to support an entire damn elevated train line that ran through Chicago’s Humboldt Park some five decades ago or so. Adjacent to North Avenue, down the street from where I live, was a CTA rail line that connected my neighborhood into the rest of the city’s network. Of course, that line is long dead and gone, with no remnants of its existence beyond some internet images and this one steel column that survived the purge to profitability and consolidation the system undertook during the years of urban decay and suburbanization. We lost many train lines (and an entire amusement park!) as cars became the prioritized method of transportation.

I’ve been dreaming of an automated light rail “Boulevard Line” running between and connecting the Logan Square Blue Line with the Garfield Park Conservatory Green Line. It’s fun to think about but I doubt this will ever happen. If I find myself bored one day, perhaps I will write up a more formal plan and put it out there for people to look at, along with my much hyped and mysterious Plan For a New Illinois.

-Clayton

2024 12 21

A portrait of my parents. Wheeling, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

December has been a whirlwind. After a relentless amount of events at the studio, a large commercial project, magazine cover shoot, and much more, today is my first day off this month. While that is nice, the fact that we’re now a few days out from Christmas and gift exchanging, I am feeling all sorts of guilt and shame by prioritizing myself and my businesses over family and tradition. Clearly, I either need to find better balance or hire a personal assistant to do my shopping for me so I can keep up.

Without putting all of the blame on myself, I just wanted to share one of the challenges of being a freelancer/small business owner. We’re often forced to work ourselves to the bone at the times it is least convenient to do so, then immediately switch into chill family mode and act like we have all of our shit together. I can’t even imagine doing this with children in the mix.

I love you mom & dad! I’ll see you in a few days and I hope you’re not upset with me if I show up empty handed! I will, at least, have the gift of knowing your son can cover his rent for a few more months, and that’s the greatest gift a boy can give! Yes, this is sarcasm and clearly an attempt to soften the blow, as I know my mom will be reading this. Again, I’m thinking about myself… happy holidays & off to Costco we go!

-Clayton

2024 12 20

Channelling Duchamp. Chicago, Illinois. November, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Photography isn’t art. It’s too easy to make a photo. There’s no skill involved, therefore no artistic value.

I disagree with this, of course, however completely understand and agree with the logic behind it. Seeing photography as art will never be something everyone can do, I don’t think. Anyone can make a good photo (good is relative in any art form, of course). Anyone can also make a good painting (good to someone, at least!), even if they’ve never painted once in their life, but the “barrier to entry” is far more difficult. To make a photo, you just take the phone of our your pocket and push a button. To make a painting, you’ll at least need to find a store that sells the necessary supplies, or place an order on Amazon and wait a few days.

In my younger years as a photographer, I would often scoff at fine art photography, mostly because I didn’t understand the thought process or put in the time necessary to understand what the photographers were trying to do or say. I’d see them using a giant large format film camera to make some images I often found boring and label the whole process unnecessary and self important. Sure, I still dislike plenty of photography that is overwhelmingly embraced by the more formal art world, however, I do now have a far larger appreciation for, and valuing of, photographic art that is challenging to make. Using 4x5 film instead of a 100mp digital medium format camera, for example, should earn you some respect, even though at the end of the day it’s the work (and the person doing the work, but that’s another topic for another day) that most matters.

Yesterday, this video popped into my feed which I found fascinating in many ways. While the clickbait headline is off topic for this blog post, his sentiment at the end is spot on. The guy makes a technologically-impressive camera that produces terrible images, however, the process is what makes the images incredible, and therefore, in his opinion, art.

“I know this thing makes worse pictures than a camera that costs $2… but when I use this thing, I fee like I’m making actual art, which I do not feel when I’m using a digital camera.”

As always, art is in the eye of the beholder, but it is also made in the decisions of the person making the art.

That toilet image would be much better art if I made it on 4x5 film instead of a film-emulating smartphone camera.

-Clayton

2024 12 19

Black & white test. Lincoln, Illinois. November, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

As the year (and my nonstop busy schedule) winds down, I’m excited to look ahead to next year and some projects that are getting me excited. Namely: my Illinois Project aka Ill Wandering aka Plan For a New Illinois aka Untitled Clayton Hauck Photobook Project and a documentary project in the very early stages of filming. The doc, I think, will delve into the subject of art broadly and what it means to be an artist specifically.

Last night, I had an interesting conversation with a commercial film producer friend about this topic. His summary of what makes someone an artist is if they create work that people choose to look at (versus being forced to look at, as is often the case in our world of commercial photography). I liked that summary and am excited to explore these avenues, both physically and metaphorically, more thoroughly in the coming year.

Will you be looking?

-Clayton

2024 12 18

Another Pittsburgh street scene. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. September, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Back on set again this morning for what is likely the last shoot day of the year. This year has been a weird one, from a work perspective. Fortunately, it was busier than last year, however, still far from normal. Or, perhaps more likely, it is the new normal and I am still familiarizing myself with it.

One thing that stands out to me on shoot days is how much data is flowing, and how a blockage of data flow (be it images going to the computer, or the internet failing, or a client being indecisive about approving an image) can totally derail a shoot. This image popped up and reminded of of this sentiment and made me appreciate how much infrastructure we take for granted in this world. Modern plumbing alone is a marvel of human achievement, let alone wireless communications and the world wide web!

Anyway, back to work…

-Clayton

2024 12 17

Two Mr Peepers in the window. Chicago, Illinois. August, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Last week, I realized I posted almost an identical image twice without realizing it. Getting better at editing my images has been one of the main goals of this here blog and clearly I still have some work to do. Being super busy of late hasn’t helped.

Today, another near duplicate but this time on purpose. I also enjoy visiting the same scene repeatedly over time, and this shot of a couple dogs in the window is one that has been posted here previously (see: 2024 07 29), only this time he has a friend.

Anyway, back to work. The day job is called and we’re shooting hot dogs this morning at the studio.

-Clayton

2024 12 16

Grand old bank. Holland, Michigan. October, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Banks, like churches, used to be built grand to inspire confidence and awe. These days, only publicly-funded sports stadiums are constructed in this manner. As a result, there are many beautiful old banks scattered around the country in towns that have dried up and evaporated around them. I’ve had a long-running vision of converting these old banks into boutique hotels, catering to our new leisure-based economy instead of the population growth and commerce that spurred their initial creation.

Of course, this idea sounds cool in theory, while in practice would likely be unsustainably expensive and challenging. Hard, but not impossible. If you know someone with a bunch of money they are looking to spend on something fun and interesting, send them my way and we’ll talk. I’ve got expensive ideas, and perhaps a way to make this vision a reality, however, not the time or capital to do so.

-Clayton

2024 12 15

Is that tree stump smiling at me? St Germain, Wisconsin. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

The internet is many things these days, however, it is still a remarkable place to discover new work that you really connect with. Yesterday, through a photography youtube video, I was made aware of Terra Fondriest’s Ozark Life project and really fell in love with it. Filled with such beautiful human moments, it’s a really special project that fuels my enthusiasm for both photography and life generally. Being a city boy myself, it’s nice to get such an intimate glimpse into other peoples’ realities. Quality photo essays, such as this one, are perhaps the best way to communicate other perspectives and a huge part of why I’m so obsessed with photography.

Also, a quick update to yestetday’s entry (see: 2024 12 14): After posting, I was delivered a plate of food, so that comment turned out to be inaccurate. Also, while I did not meet a cat that night, I did run into a buddy and we discussed our cats for a few minutes, so it sort of qualifies. Then, we ended up at Warlord where I was able to consume one of Chicago’s best burgers. I’ll count the night as a prophecy granted. Perhaps today I can find a bucket of no-strings-attached money.

-Clayton

2024 12 14

Meeting a street cat. Chicago, Illinois. October, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

I haven’t been meeting enough cats lately. I miss having a cat.

Yesterday I realized I posted basically the same photo to the blog twice. I’ve been too busy to catch details like this.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a good cheeseburger. Maybe I’ll get a cheeseburger tonight.

There’s a dinner at my studio tonight. There was a dinner at my studio last night. I didn’t eat at either of them.

Yesterday we did a food shoot and we also didn’t eat any of the food we photographed.

It’s odd being around food so much and not eating any of it. I had a great breakfast burrito this morning, though.

I’m not meeting enough cats lately. I miss having a cat.

There’s a book of poetry I’m currently reading, which is clearly rubbing off on me today.

His (Kevin) poems are far more interesting than whatever this is, however.

One thing it made me realize is that as we get older we long for our youth. Nostalgia is a powerful drug.

I met Kevin’s mom last night at the dinner I hosted in my space (that I did not eat at).

I was afraid of dogs when I was a kid, which is probably why I’m more of a cat person.

I’m not meeting enough cats lately. Maybe I’ll find a new street cat friend tonight, take his picture, and add it to this here collection.

-Clayton

2024 12 13

The night sky is full of mystery. St Germain, Wisconsin. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

The drones / UFOs over New Jersey situation is really something. I always suspected that we’d eventually see some kind of UFO / Space Invaders story in my lifetime and it would be an International News Sensation. I never suspected that we’d get nonstop continual UFO stories each and every day and almost zero people would bring it up in real-world conversation. As someone who loves a good internet conspiracy, I want this one to be based in truth. It probably is, but it’s probably not in the way my fantastical brain wishes it to be.

One minor piece of evidence is this image.

I’ve done long exposure night images once a year while up in the Northwoods of Wisconsin and the takeaway I’ve had over the last five-or-so of them is that the sky is filled with shit. Satellites appear in almost every image now. Whatever is flying over NJ these days are not satellites, however, they could be any number of things that are far less interesting than alien beings. My money is on murky government experimenting. Ho hum.

-Clayton

2024 12 12

My future photography store? Ocean City, Maryland. August, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

I often wonder how my life would be today had a few things played out slightly differently. Specifically, had I decided early on in my photography career to pursuit the path of art instead of (selling out and focusing on) commercial work. Selling prints was always wildly intimidating and confusing to me, so I much preferred to do an assignment, deliver the images, and be done with it. Figuring out how to print images, ship images, price images, sell images… that wasn’t for me. The art world was a scary place and I felt like I was an imposter being in it.

Flash forward a few decades and here I am now, figuring out how to print images, ship images, price images… and sell images? I am learning to become an art photographer, in addition to my main gig as commercial photographer, and let me tell you: it is not easy!

The biggest challenge is: people do not like to spend money on photography! Of course, there are exceptions, however, I think photography has always been sort of the ugly step child of the art world. Paying for a picture seems weird to most people compared to say, paying for a drawing someone made, then photographed, then reprinted a bunch of copies of to sell. I’ve been focusing on a limited-edition series I’ve dubbed The Camera You Have and the three main goals are:

1. Keep the images fun, light, and loose. Things that people might want to hang on a wall in their home opposed to tucking away in some drawer to save as an “investment”. Conversation pieces. Images with a story. Put out new images fairly regularly. There are now sixteen in the series.

2. Make the images affordable — without compromising quality! I’ve bought some prints from galleries in the past and have been immediately turned off by the clear indication they were bought en masse from Costco. I’m now printing all the images I sell myself, to ensure the quality is where I want it to be. Of course, this takes time. I think, as photographers, we really need to go above and beyond to differentiate ourselves as worthy artists.

3. Do small runs and make them limited edition to give them a bit more of a special appeal (I still do feel like limited editions are a bit of a gimmick, but I reluctantly also like that at adds some quantity control). I love the idea of dropping a new image and having it sell out, then moving on to something new (none of the sixteen are sold out yet, however, one of them has just one measly print remaining!). I don’t want to be pumping out the same few images for the rest of my life.

While I think I have succeeded in the first objective, I’m getting pushback on the second and therefore failing at the third.

The consistent pushback I got at the market I participated in over the weekend, either directly or through facial reactions, was that even my most affordable option of $99 is out of many people’s budget. Of course, the most obvious remedy is to focus on a different target market. Go big, limit where I’m showing to “legit” galleries only and not holiday markets and coffee shops, become a mysterious artist with a big following, and sell to collectors who have money. This is kinda-sorta-maybe my longer term plan, however, right now I’m in the have-fun-and-figure-this-out phase and I honestly love the idea of selling more work to more people for less money, while also making sure I am benefiting enough financially to keep the whole effort worthwhile. This is the hard part!

This morning, I woke up from a stress dream with a new idea on how to make the smaller 8x10 editions even more affordable. Previously, I’d been using $99 as my lowest offering, but I may increase the number of prints offered and lower the price on those for future editions. Really, I just want to move more damn prints!

I’ve been joking with people lately that booking $100k+ budget commercial projects is far easier than selling $99 photography prints to strangers. There’s a lot of truth to this, but largely it’s a world I am not yet versed in and learning from the ground up. Finding any audience at all is a big part of the challenge and I don’t have massive social followings to tap into like many photographers who successfully sell prints do. Every single one of my sales so far has taken place from an interaction in the real world, either directly or via my prints hanging in a physical location.

One of the biggest motivating forces pushing me ahead is that I really just want to print more! I’ve really been enjoying it, however, I’m now also developing an inventory, which gets expensive, and I’d love to move some of these things before adding more and more to the pile.

After a year (or two?) of casually pushing my prints, I just added up my total sales for the first time, and I gotta say I’m rather impressed!

Twenty-Six (26) total prints sold, totaling roughly $5,200

On the flip side, I’ve spent well over $10,000 at this point on getting prints made and framed (before I started to do it myself), followed by purchasing a nice printer and lots of paper and ink. So yeah, we’re still not turning a profit in the print shop, but it’s been an enjoyable (while wildly challenging) side hustle. Buy a print of mine, won’t you? I’ve still yet to sell one to a stranger on the internet. It could be you!

-Clayton