2024 11 09
Came across an interesting discussion with author Cormac McCarthy (shown below) in which he discusses his thoughts on the subconscious (it speaks in code because language is, evolutionarily-speaking very new). They also discuss “The Night Shift” being the time, while sleeping, when your brain is working and processing thoughts and problems.
The Night Shift is fascinating to me, and I do my best to stay in touch with it (though admittedly I’m not very well connected to it and want to get better). I’ll remember dreams only if I’m awoken during them (normal, I think). Maybe it was Dali who would set elaborate contraptions to wake him up mid sleep at varying times in order to allow his waking brain to capture buts of what his sleeping brain was working on. This is fascinating!
This morning, I woke up to a dream I often have but with a twist. I regularly have what I call “set dreams” which are basically just me working on a photo production. The difference this time was that the set was a motion set, signaling to me that I’m finally embracing my reluctant pivot to video. These dreams are usual banal, however, I love the idea that I’m running scenarios and gaining “experience” while I sleep to better prepare myself for the often stressful days that I go through in my day job as a professional photographer.
Last night, I was awoken in the middle of the night by a song I had been creating(?) in my sleep. This is another reoccurring dream scenario I have, which makes me wonder if perhaps I do have worthwhile music in me that wants to get out (I’ll often have the urge to start a band despite the fact I can’t play any instruments). I’ve never been able to remember one of these dream songs well enough in my waking hours to know if they are any good, however, the same sort of thing happens with movies I am “creating” in my dream state and those are typically far less amazing in the sobriety of the waking life.
-Clayton
Mysterious alley. Cleveland, Ohio. August, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Came across an interesting discussion with author Cormac McCarthy (shown below) in which he discusses his thoughts on the subconscious (it speaks in code because language is, evolutionarily-speaking very new). They also discuss “The Night Shift” being the time, while sleeping, when your brain is working and processing thoughts and problems.
The Night Shift is fascinating to me, and I do my best to stay in touch with it (though admittedly I’m not very well connected to it and want to get better). I’ll remember dreams only if I’m awoken during them (normal, I think). Maybe it was Dali who would set elaborate contraptions to wake him up mid sleep at varying times in order to allow his waking brain to capture buts of what his sleeping brain was working on. This is fascinating!
This morning, I woke up to a dream I often have but with a twist. I regularly have what I call “set dreams” which are basically just me working on a photo production. The difference this time was that the set was a motion set, signaling to me that I’m finally embracing my reluctant pivot to video. These dreams are usual banal, however, I love the idea that I’m running scenarios and gaining “experience” while I sleep to better prepare myself for the often stressful days that I go through in my day job as a professional photographer.
Last night, I was awoken in the middle of the night by a song I had been creating(?) in my sleep. This is another reoccurring dream scenario I have, which makes me wonder if perhaps I do have worthwhile music in me that wants to get out (I’ll often have the urge to start a band despite the fact I can’t play any instruments). I’ve never been able to remember one of these dream songs well enough in my waking hours to know if they are any good, however, the same sort of thing happens with movies I am “creating” in my dream state and those are typically far less amazing in the sobriety of the waking life.
-Clayton
2024 10 22
Here is another film image made this summer. I must say, film does have a little way with making mundane images just that much better. This same angle as seen from a digital camera would likely not make it to this here blog. The on-camera flash also adds an interesting element while mixed with the nice end-of-day light in the background.
I wish I hadn’t fully given up on film a decade ago and only now re-started shooting some film, now that it is a trendy and expensive way to make mundane images just a smidge more interesting.
-Clayton
An alley tree. Chicago, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Here is another film image made this summer. I must say, film does have a little way with making mundane images just that much better. This same angle as seen from a digital camera would likely not make it to this here blog. The on-camera flash also adds an interesting element while mixed with the nice end-of-day light in the background.
I wish I hadn’t fully given up on film a decade ago and only now re-started shooting some film, now that it is a trendy and expensive way to make mundane images just a smidge more interesting.
-Clayton
2024 10 12
What does the porn industry tell us about the current state of commercial photography? Well, quite a lot it turns out! Oftentimes while editing photos, I’ll play youtube videos in the background to keep me entertained. Former commercial photogrpaher turned youtuber Mark Laita (trend alert!) runs a channel called Soft White Underbelly where he interviews a steady stream of interesting and flawed people on the fringes of American society. This particular episode was a good one, in which a male porn actor talked with Mark about his career in adult film.
The part that got me thinking was how, when he talked about the industry currently being in a state of change and decline, it was remarkably relatable to the industry I participate in. Sure, we may have somewhat less sexually transmitted diseases in commercial photography, but the general sense that everything has changed rapidly and definitively is there. In Alex Jett’s career, the rise of OnlyFans has allowed porn to go from the actor straight to consumer, thus cutting out all of the middle men. There’s no longer a need for production companies and distribution companies, which has made porn cheaper and more plentiful as anyone brave enough to bare it all on the internet can now do so from the comfort of their own home and without the need of anyone else even being involved.
production company > actor > distribution company > store > viewer
actor > tech company > viewer
This is when I started to think about commercial photography. Massive systems and businesses have been in place for decades to help companies manage their marketing and advertising. If a company wanted content of any form made, sure, they could do it themselves but usually it’s far easier and far more effective to outsource the process and let professionals execute it for them. This is where I come in! Clayton Hauck, at your service, ready and able to drop everything and help you produce high quality photos and videos to help you move your companies image forward! You want me to cancel my vacation to shoot an ad campaign for you? No problem! You need me to travel across the country to photograph farms in Wisconsin or furniture stores in Utah? Sounds great! I’ll do it all. For money, of course. That is the catch. The money part.
As content creation (whether it’s porn or not) has become remarkably easy for anyone to do (do well, is another debate), the entire industry which has grown up in support of it is now struggling to stay afloat. A business needs some photos made so they hire an ad agency, who then goes out and hires a production company, who then goes out and finds a photographer, through their agent, to make the work. There are a lot of layers and steps, some of which are good and some of which wasteful and unnecessary, but they are all there for a reason. The problem is nobody wants to pay for any of the middlemen any more when it’s so easy to make images, good ones even, yourself or through your cousin who works at a law firm but likes to make photos and will happily do it for free because it takes her mind away from looking at legal documents all day long.
company needing content > ad agency > production company > photo agent > photographer
company needing content > content creator or hobbyist
Everyone is a photographer now. Those of us who try to use photography as a way to make a living will continue to have a much harder time doing so. Companies want quick, easy, and cheap. It’s hard to blame them, it’s literally the point of a corporation to maximize profits. I lost two projects this month because we are more expensive than whoever else was hired to do the jobs. I’m up for another project but they are asking me to cut my rate by half of what I’d normally charge. On the flip side, I also was hired for a job recently because the client was burned from this approach and the images they tried to get made cheap turned out to be garbage. This is why I still have a job, however, it’s only going to continue to become harder to make a good living through taking photos, as companies continue to try to figure out ways to remove the layers of support which they no longer deem necessary.
It’s probably time I finally start that youtube channel I’ve been meaning to start! I’m not giving up that easy, though. We’re planning on producing a bunch of high end spec projects this winter, while things are slow. I’m still oddly confident that the best of the best image creators will forever be in high demand and companies will continue to advertise as long as we have a functioning economy. The ability to make a living through making images, while increasingly difficult, is still an honor and joy and worth fighting for. Plus, I don’t have what it takes to make it on OnlyFans so I’m kind of stuck.
-Clayton
It's all business. Chicago, Illinois. August, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
What does the porn industry tell us about the current state of commercial photography? Well, quite a lot it turns out! Oftentimes while editing photos, I’ll play youtube videos in the background to keep me entertained. Former commercial photogrpaher turned youtuber Mark Laita (trend alert!) runs a channel called Soft White Underbelly where he interviews a steady stream of interesting and flawed people on the fringes of American society. This particular episode was a good one, in which a male porn actor talked with Mark about his career in adult film.
The part that got me thinking was how, when he talked about the industry currently being in a state of change and decline, it was remarkably relatable to the industry I participate in. Sure, we may have somewhat less sexually transmitted diseases in commercial photography, but the general sense that everything has changed rapidly and definitively is there. In Alex Jett’s career, the rise of OnlyFans has allowed porn to go from the actor straight to consumer, thus cutting out all of the middle men. There’s no longer a need for production companies and distribution companies, which has made porn cheaper and more plentiful as anyone brave enough to bare it all on the internet can now do so from the comfort of their own home and without the need of anyone else even being involved.
production company > actor > distribution company > store > viewer
actor > tech company > viewer
This is when I started to think about commercial photography. Massive systems and businesses have been in place for decades to help companies manage their marketing and advertising. If a company wanted content of any form made, sure, they could do it themselves but usually it’s far easier and far more effective to outsource the process and let professionals execute it for them. This is where I come in! Clayton Hauck, at your service, ready and able to drop everything and help you produce high quality photos and videos to help you move your companies image forward! You want me to cancel my vacation to shoot an ad campaign for you? No problem! You need me to travel across the country to photograph farms in Wisconsin or furniture stores in Utah? Sounds great! I’ll do it all. For money, of course. That is the catch. The money part. (seriously, though, hire me!)
As content creation (whether it’s porn or not) has become remarkably easy for anyone to do (do well, is another debate), the entire industry which has grown up in support of it is now struggling to stay afloat. A business needs some photos made so they hire an ad agency, who then goes out and hires a production company, who then goes out and finds a photographer, through their agent, to make the work. There are a lot of layers and steps, some of which are good and some of which wasteful and unnecessary, but they are all there for a reason. The problem is nobody wants to pay for any of the middlemen any more when it’s so easy to make images, good ones even, yourself or through your cousin who works at a law firm but likes to make photos and will happily do it for free because it takes her mind away from looking at legal documents all day long.
company needing content > ad agency > production company > photo agent > photographer
company needing content > content creator or hobbyist
Everyone is a photographer now (thanks, iPhone). Those of us who try to use photography as a way to make a living will continue to have a much harder time doing so. Companies want quick, easy, and cheap. It’s hard to blame them, it’s literally the point of a corporation to maximize profits. I lost two projects this month because we are more expensive than whoever else was hired to do the jobs. I’m up for another project but they are asking me to cut my rate by half of what I’d normally charge. On the flip side, I also was hired for a job recently because the client was burned from this approach and the images they tried to get made cheap turned out to be garbage. This is why I still have a job, however, it’s only going to continue to become harder to make a good living through taking photos, as companies continue to try to figure out ways to remove the layers of support which they no longer deem necessary.
It’s probably time I finally start that youtube channel I’ve been meaning to start!
I’m not giving up that easy, though. We’re planning on producing a bunch of high end spec projects this winter, while things are slow. I’m still oddly confident that the best of the best image creators will forever be in high demand and companies will continue to advertise as long as we have a functioning economy. The ability to make a living through making images, while increasingly difficult, is still an honor and joy and worth fighting for. Plus, I don’t have what it takes to make it on OnlyFans so I’m kind of stuck.
-Clayton
2024 09 04
This car hasn’t moved in three years. It exists solely for me to take an occasional photo of it, I think. One day, the hood was popped (as pictured)! I image the owner woke up in an ambitious mood. Today was the day they would watch a couple youtube videos and get their old car working again so they could drive down to the shrimp place on the south side they love but haven’t been able to get to in quite a while. A few hours later, the hood was back down and things returned to their normal state of being. The nearby shrimp joint will have to do.
-Clayton
Busted car. Chicago, Illinois. May, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
This car hasn’t moved in three years. It exists solely for me to take an occasional photo of it, I think. One day, the hood was popped (as pictured)! I image the owner woke up in an ambitious mood. Today was the day they would watch a couple youtube videos and get their old car working again so they could drive down to the shrimp place on the south side they love but haven’t been able to get to in quite a while. A few hours later, the hood was back down and things returned to their normal state of being. The nearby shrimp joint will have to do.
See also: 2024 02 28
-Clayton
2024 08 26
This picture is only interesting because it was taken in July. To me, a humorous observation, does not translate to you, an unknowing viewer, without a written explanation of why the thing is worth looking at. This is, I think, an unbreakable rule of how to make good art: the art has to be immediately understood at a fundamental level by the observer. Sure, the interpretation may vary but there can’t be a blog blurb explaining why it’s worth looking at. Photo fail.
I was busy working all day today in Ocean City, Maryland so didn’t have the time for a more robust post. I did, however, ride a roller coaster as part of my work, so a decades-long dream has been fulfilled; since my days working as a ride operator at Six Flags Great America, I have not been paid to ride roller coasters. Until today.
-Clayton
Christmas in July. Chicago, Illinois. July, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
This picture is only interesting because it was taken in July. To me, a humorous observation, does not translate to you, an unknowing viewer, without a written explanation of why the thing is worth looking at. This is, I think, an unbreakable rule of how to make good art: the art has to be immediately understood at a fundamental level by the observer. Sure, the interpretation may vary but there can’t be a blog blurb explaining why it’s worth looking at. Photo fail.
I was busy working all day today in Ocean City, Maryland (have you been here?!) so didn’t have the time for a more robust post. I did, however, ride a roller coaster as part of my job, so a decades-long dream has been fulfilled; since my days working as a ride operator at Six Flags Great America, I have not been paid to ride roller coasters. Until today. Life win.
-Clayton
2024 05 17
Putting yourself out there as an artist is rather daunting. I’ve long preferred the more transactional method of calling myself an editorial and commercial photographer. I have what someone wants (a skill in making nice images) and they have something I want (money, and sometimes exposure). It’s a deal! Although, the money side of the deal is proving to be increasingly challenging these days, which is a topic for another day. In part because of the increasingly changing photography landscape (more supply, less demand) and in part because I’m getting older and wanting to focus more on things I want to focus on, I’ve been turning a bit more towards calling myself, and acting like, an artist.
While this artful pivot is still a slow-moving work-in-progress, I’m finding my brain is becoming a bit more in tune with the things needed to move down the path towards art. Things that a younger me would decide are deal-breakers, an older me sees more as fun challenges and absurd realities that can further fuel my drive to create things. I realize I’m being quite vague here, however, most of what I’m referencing boils down to sales. Things I rather dislike about my current reality in the commercial photography world (selling yourself by any means possible) are also things that successful (not always good) artists also understand and excel at. Always Be Closing.
I have no idea if I’ll ever become a successful artist, as taking myself seriously enough is a challenge I may never overcome. Pricing an image or art piece at $10,000 because it’s worth it is something I find much harder to do when the prospective buyer is the general public, as it immediately rules out 99% of the population and means your buyer will be a rich collector or investor type, and I fancy myself more a man of the people. Defense Mechanism Alert!
But who am I kidding, really? I currently sell my images for $10,000 to corporations, who can afford it, while thinking this is a more justified and acceptable path. Is it?
via Allison Schrager’s Known Unknowns substack:
Becoming a successful artist these days takes jumping through a series of hoops: the Yale MFA, showing at the right galleries, and—if you are lucky—being featured at events like the Biennial. It is hard to imagine that anyone who works at any of these places would indulge an artist who doesn’t adhere to the doctrine.
But that is also the case for many of our most elite institutions, in consulting, media, academia…—pretty much everywhere. And the result is more predictability and less creativity. Don’t take this as an anti-woke rant. Some of the institutions I have in mind are not woke by any stretch, but they still demand a certain type of employee who went to a certain type of school and is conformist in nature. And this really matters in a winner-take-all economy, because climbing to the top of these institutions, or affiliation with them, is important, at least more important than it used to be. No wonder productivity is down.
I liked this quote above from Allison because it showcases how the art world is largely structured and guarded just like any other line of work. This idea is originally what kept away from the art world but these days is more so pushing me towards it.
My 40’s will be interesting as I have no idea where I will be in another ten years. The landscape may change so much I’ll be forced to move to a trade (certified arborist, here I come!) and leave photography altogether; or perhaps we’ll all be living easy off our universal basic income checks. But for now: Fine, art.
-Clayton
Parking lot cat. Rockford, Illinois. March, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Putting yourself out there as an artist is rather daunting. I’ve long preferred the more transactional method of calling myself an editorial and commercial photographer. I have what someone wants (a skill in making nice images) and they have something I want (money, and sometimes exposure). It’s a deal! Although, the money side of the deal is proving to be increasingly challenging these days, which is a topic for another day. In part because of the increasingly changing photography landscape (more supply, less demand) and in part because I’m getting older and wanting to focus more on things I want to focus on, I’ve been turning a bit more towards calling myself, and acting like, an artist.
While this artful pivot is still a slow-moving work-in-progress, I’m finding my brain is becoming a bit more in tune with the things needed to move down the path towards art. Things that a younger me would decide are deal-breakers, an older me sees more as fun challenges and absurd realities that can further fuel my drive to create things. I realize I’m being quite vague here, however, most of what I’m referencing boils down to sales. Things I rather dislike about my current reality in the commercial photography world (selling yourself by any means possible) are also things that successful (not always good) artists also understand and excel at. Always Be Closing.
I have no idea if I’ll ever become a successful artist, as taking myself seriously enough is a challenge I may never overcome. Pricing an image or art piece at $10,000 because it’s worth it is something I find much harder to do when the prospective buyer is the general public, as it immediately rules out 99% of the population and means your buyer will be a rich collector or investor type, and I fancy myself more a man of the people. Defense Mechanism Alert!
But who am I kidding, really? I currently sell my images for $10,000 to corporations, who can afford it, while thinking this is a more justified and acceptable path. Is it?
via Allison Schrager’s Known Unknowns substack:
Becoming a successful artist these days takes jumping through a series of hoops: the Yale MFA, showing at the right galleries, and—if you are lucky—being featured at events like the Biennial. It is hard to imagine that anyone who works at any of these places would indulge an artist who doesn’t adhere to the doctrine.
But that is also the case for many of our most elite institutions, in consulting, media, academia…—pretty much everywhere. And the result is more predictability and less creativity. Don’t take this as an anti-woke rant. Some of the institutions I have in mind are not woke by any stretch, but they still demand a certain type of employee who went to a certain type of school and is conformist in nature. And this really matters in a winner-take-all economy, because climbing to the top of these institutions, or affiliation with them, is important, at least more important than it used to be. No wonder productivity is down.
I liked this quote above from Allison because it showcases how the art world is largely structured and guarded just like any other line of work. This idea is originally what kept away from the art world but these days is more so pushing me towards it.
My 40’s will be interesting as I have no idea where I will be in another ten years. The landscape may change so much I’ll be forced to move to a trade (certified arborist, here I come!) and leave photography altogether; or perhaps we’ll all be living easy off our universal basic income checks. But for now: Fine, art.
-Clayton