2024 09 19
Have I mentioned that my Ricoh sensor is fucked? This image was made back in April and it’s only gotten much worse since then. I guess leaving the camera, which is unable to be opened and therefore cleaned, in your pocket every single day will wear it down quite fast. I’ve used and abused this thing since buying it two ish years ago and I have nothing but nice things to say about it, aside from this. The inability to clear the sensor without doing a risky disassembly is the only flaw this camera has.
Casey Neistat recently bought one of these cameras and, last I checked, was having a hard time figuring out how to use it. If you put a video camera in my hand, I’ll have the same reaction. It’s quite interesting how we become familiar with specific camera tools and, despite everything being quite similar, it can still feel very foreign until you put some time into it.
-Clayton
Power lines. Sensor update. Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Have I mentioned that my Ricoh sensor is fucked? This image was made back in April and it’s only gotten much worse since then. I guess leaving the camera, which is unable to be opened and therefore cleaned, in your pocket every single day will wear it down quite fast. I’ve used and abused this thing since buying it two ish years ago and I have nothing but nice things to say about it, aside from this. The inability to clear the sensor without doing a risky disassembly is the only flaw this camera has.
Casey Neistat recently bought one of these cameras and, last I checked, was having a hard time figuring out how to use it. If you put a video camera in my hand, I’ll have the same reaction. It’s quite interesting how we become familiar with specific camera tools and, despite everything being quite similar, it can still feel very foreign until you put some time into it.
-Clayton
2024 07 26
I’ve always been a picture taker. Expanding on some thinking from yesterday’s post (2024 07 25), picture taking requires me to always be on the hunt for the image. It’s a never-ending collection of moments that pile up on hard drives until I am buried in them. Lately I have been contemplating what might happen if I were to mix a bit of making with a bit of taking.
Peter McKinnon just posted this great video (below) about photographer Matt Barnes, who takes picture making to the extreme. I know I could never take this approach myself as I live for the chance occurrence and feel like my skill is in knowing it when I see it. That said, in my professional role of photographer, we are constantly mixing the candid and natural moments with the styled and manipulated. It’s on these shoots that I’ll have an entire crew of people and props and lights and whatever else is needed.
What I don’t do, however, is use this approach in my personal work. Those moments are mostly always fully candid and happenstance. The image above, for example, isn’t a great image but it has some stuff working for it. One or two more fun details, however, and it might be elevated to something more special and unique. Where I struggle is in knowing what my true identity is as an artistic photographer. That’s partly what this blog is here to help me discover. Am I the guy who strictly finds moments? A true and dedicated street photographer. Or am I the guy who uses my creativity to produce artistic work via whatever path is needed to get there?
The idea that Matt Barnes is able to put all of this time, effort, and energy into creating a moment, then make two or three images and call it a wrap, and then print (I assume?) and DELETE-FROM-HIS-HARD-DRIVES the digital files once he is done with it is something I both love and will never be able to understand… which reminds me, I have thirty-five hard drives I need to back up *visualizes tossing them all into the lake*.
-Clayton
It’s the subtle details. Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
I’ve always been a picture taker. Expanding on some thinking from yesterday’s post (2024 07 25), picture taking requires me to always be on the hunt for the image. It’s a never-ending collection of moments that pile up on hard drives until I am buried in them. Lately I have been contemplating what might happen if I were to mix a bit of making with a bit of taking.
Peter McKinnon just posted this great video (below) about photographer Matt Barnes, who takes picture making to the extreme. I know I could never take this approach myself as I live for the chance occurrence and feel like my skill is in knowing it when I see it. That said, in my professional role of photographer, we are constantly mixing the candid and natural moments with the styled and manipulated. It’s on these shoots that I’ll have an entire crew of people and props and lights and whatever else is needed.
What I don’t do, however, is use this approach in my personal work. Those moments are mostly always fully candid and happenstance. The image above, for example, isn’t a great image but it has some stuff working for it. One or two more fun details, however, and it might be elevated to something more special and unique. Where I struggle is in knowing what my true identity is as an artistic photographer. That’s partly what this blog is here to help me discover. Am I the guy who strictly finds moments? A true and dedicated street photographer. Or am I the guy who uses my creativity to produce artistic work via whatever path is needed to get there?
The idea that Matt Barnes is able to put all of this time, effort, and energy into creating a moment, then make two or three images and call it a wrap, and then print (I assume?) and DELETE-FROM-HIS-HARD-DRIVES the digital files once he is done with it is something I both love and will never be able to understand… which reminds me, I have thirty-five hard drives I need to back up *visualizes tossing them all into the lake*.
-Clayton
2024 07 08
Another Monday so it’s time for another Life Update post, in no clear order:
My commercial photography career continues along at unsustainable levels, causing me to continue to consider new career options (fine art photography? full-time motion directing? bar ownership?). Yes, I’m keeping quite busy on hospitality jobs and smaller projects, but the big budget jobs are less and less frequent. Something needs to change (I hope it’s more work!).
The photo studio has been more stable (profitable, even!) lately, but I’m not yet optimistic this will consistently be the case moving forward (again, commercial projects have been way less frequent among photographers I know, myself included). I really love the studio space and want to make it work, but the amount of my time required just to get it breakeven is also not sustainable. Again, something needs to change (I hope it’s more work!).
While the big jobs are not going on, I spent last last week and a half diving deep into the world of portrait photography via my “Keep it 100” setups. I’m learning a lot and it’s actually been quite interesting, exciting even, to feel like I’m starting all over again and hustling for clients. Very much re-learning to appreciate every single dollar I earn through photography. Definitely planning to write more in depth about all this in the coming days.
I’d been planning to document both the RNC and DNC, however, stupidly had the wrong dates on my calendar and my one week of vacation in the Wisconsin Northwoods falls on the same dates as the RNC being held in Milwaukee, so I will likely miss most of all of it. Kind of annoyed about it but also really need to give myself some time off as I’ve been pushing myself way too hard lately. Still hoping to cover the DNC, which might be an absolute shit show. Politics are very depressing lately, but this might be one of the larger stories of our lifetime.
Had my first tarot card reading yesterday. It was surprisingly apt in its assessment.
I started reading/doing The Artist’s Way after finally finishing the 640 page The Big Store, which was inspired by this previous post: 2024 03 29. I should do a book review or followup post.
I booked my favorite musician (David Dondero) to play a show at the studio September 9th. Save the date! More info to come!
Now that this blog has been populated quite a lot, I’m getting rather annoyed at Squarespace’s rather minimal (bad) handling of blogs. This platform is not really designed for intensive writing or bulk posting. A search bar would be great! If only those had been invented.
Can you tell I’m stressed about money these days? While that does suck, I’ve been quite high on life otherwise and feeling great about most everything else! Money stress is never fun but I continue to tell myself it’s just money and we’ll figure it out.
-Clayton
Night drive through Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Another Monday so it’s time for another Life Update post, in no clear order:
My commercial photography career continues along at unsustainable levels, causing me to continue to consider new career options (fine art photography? full-time motion directing? bar ownership?). Yes, I’m keeping quite busy on hospitality jobs and smaller projects, but the big budget jobs are less and less frequent. Something needs to change (I hope it’s more work!).
The photo studio has been more stable (profitable, even!) lately, but I’m not yet optimistic this will consistently be the case moving forward (again, commercial projects have been way less frequent among photographers I know, myself included). I really love the studio space and want to make it work, but the amount of my time required just to get it breakeven is also not sustainable. Again, something needs to change (I hope it’s more work!).
While the big jobs are not going on, I spent last last week and a half diving deep into the world of portrait photography via my “Keep it 100” setups. I’m learning a lot and it’s actually been quite interesting, exciting even, to feel like I’m starting all over again and hustling for clients. Very much re-learning to appreciate every single dollar I earn through photography. Definitely planning to write more in depth about all this in the coming days.
I’d been planning to document both the RNC and DNC, however, stupidly had the wrong dates on my calendar and my one week of vacation in the Wisconsin Northwoods falls on the same dates as the RNC being held in Milwaukee, so I will likely miss most of all of it. Kind of annoyed about it but also really need to give myself some time off as I’ve been pushing myself way too hard lately. Still hoping to cover the DNC, which might be an absolute shit show. Politics are very depressing lately, but this might be one of the larger stories of our lifetime.
Had my first tarot card reading yesterday. It was surprisingly apt in its assessment.
I started reading/doing The Artist’s Way after finally finishing the 640 page The Big Store, which was inspired by this previous post: 2024 03 29. I should do a book review or followup post.
I booked my favorite musician (David Dondero) to play a show at the studio September 9th. Save the date! More info to come!
Now that this blog has been populated quite a lot, I’m getting rather annoyed at Squarespace’s rather minimal (bad) handling of blogs. This platform is not really designed for intensive writing or bulk posting. A search bar would be great! If only those had been invented.
Can you tell I’m stressed about money these days? While that does suck, I’ve been quite high on life otherwise and feeling great about most everything else! Money stress is never fun but I continue to tell myself it’s just money and we’ll figure it out.
-Clayton
2024 06 27
We’re a few days shy of the halfway point in my goal of doing a blog post every day for a year and I’m falling behind! Way too much going on these days and not nearly enough hours in the day to get to it all. Let’s get over the hump and finish the year strong… more tomorrow… hopefully.
-Clayton
Nashville soccer fans as seen from above on The John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge, which is one of the coolest things in Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
We’re a few days shy of the halfway point in my goal of doing a blog post every day for a year and I’m falling behind! Way too much going on these days and not nearly enough hours in the day to get to it all. Let’s get over the hump and finish the year strong… more tomorrow… hopefully.
-Clayton
2024 06 25
I do miss the days when I had a week’s worth of blog posts in the can and didn’t need to think of posting something every single day. Today, I’m busy catching up on a never-ending list of things to do. I’ll never catch up, of course. Triage is always necessary. Admittedly, I spend too much time dreaming and not enough time doing. But that’s just how I operate and I don’t think it can be compromised. World building in my brain is what keeps me sane and happy.
To keep things on topic: I will say that Nashville is a wildly overrated city. It competes for the top spot in this category. In my opinion, of course. That said, there’s also a lot of great stuff in Nashville. It’s not a bad place, but I don’t fully understand the hype. But there a lot of things I don’t understand.
-Clayton
Downtown Nashville, as seen from the car passing through on the highway. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
I do miss the days when I had a week’s worth of blog posts in the can and didn’t need to think of posting something every single day. Today, I’m busy catching up on a never-ending list of things to do. I’ll never catch up, of course. Triage is always necessary. Admittedly, I spend too much time dreaming and not enough time doing. But that’s just how I operate and I don’t think it can be compromised. World building in my brain is what keeps me sane and happy.
To keep things on topic: I will say that Nashville is a wildly overrated city. It competes for the top spot in this category. In my opinion, of course. That said, there’s also a lot of great stuff in Nashville. It’s not a bad place, but I don’t fully understand the hype. But there a lot of things I don’t understand.
-Clayton
2024 06 17
Life Update: it’s finally happened. I’ve become the bitter old-guy photographer I always used to cringe at.
I had an idea while running downtown the other day: become wildly rich and get a condo in the newly renovated Tribune Tower. Not needing to worry about money any longer, I could continue posting to this blog daily while spending my nights downstairs at Billy Goat Tavern cosplaying as a poor person with influence. Like an old newspaperman. Someone people pay attention to. Maybe I’ll even pick up a cigar habbit.
Major corporations are now ashamed of appearing rich so attempt to hide it to not to infuriate the unequal masses. The flagship Apple Store on Michigan Avenue is both wildly expensive, constructed of load-bearing glass walls, yet nearly invisible to any passerby not looking for it. Part of their aesthetic is to be so minimal you forget they have access to quite literally everything you do or think.
Perhaps they are learning from history. Sears built the world’s largest skyscraper on the other side of town, modern and dominant, at the height of their success, and then immediately began to fail, in small part because it changed people’s perspective of the store. They previously thought Sears was local and based somewhere near them, not off in some fancy Chicago tower. Apple’s headquarters is a lowrise structure hiding out in one of California’s wealthiest suburbs.
I’ve always been ashamed of having money and owning a house largely because I know most of my fellow photographer colleagues don’t. It’s a struggle out here and I’ve been fortunate, while also busting by ass and neglecting most normal-people life decisions in the process to get where I am. These days, I too am reverting to the mean. Bigger jobs are happening far less frequently and smaller jobs are paying increasingly less money. My editorial portrait cover shoot this week will pay me roughly what my monthly health insurance premium payment equals.
Recently, I learned that one established photographer I know, who shoots top tier commercial campaigns, works twenty hours a week at Starbucks simply so he can get health insurance, thus saving him hundreds of thousands of dollars, but of course taking away much of his time and making him exhausted in the process. These tradeoffs are becoming increasingly necessary and I’m finding myself seeing the logic in landing a similar job for similar reasons, just because it makes sense compared to what I’m doing now.
The really young photographers have no idea photography used to be a career! One that they could make a livable wage doing. Now it’s more of a hobby that might occasionally pay a couple hundred bucks. Still, I consider myself fortunate for making a go of it during a window of time where it was possible to do so. Hopefully, things pick back up again and I look back at this post next year and laugh. You gotta stay positive.
Anytime I tell a stranger I’m a photographer they say: oh like events and weddings? I always used to be offended by this but I probably should’ve taken it more as a warning sign. The idea that people could be paid well to make photos of anything beyond documenting a live event now seems increasingly crazy. Even Adobe is trying to cut us out (“skip the photo shoot!”), likely as payback for everyone stealing their software for years.
Lately photography feels like that sport where two people slap each other as hard as they can. People love that sport! You gotta stay positive.
Over the weekend, we were enjoying brunch at the bar and I was hypothetically discussing what job I could get with no college degree or experience in any line of work. Out of nowhere, another local photographer popped into frame from behind the bar to say hello! “Bartending is steady work, consistent money, and it doesn’t pay net thirty, net sixty, net six months,” he joked in that dead-inside way all of us professional photographers understand at a gut level.
Anyway, back to thinking about how I can become wildly wealthy and move into Tribune Towner. You gotta stay positive!
-Clayton
This boot is made for kickin’. Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Life Update: it’s finally happened. I’ve become the bitter old-guy photographer I always used to cringe at.
I had an idea while running downtown the other day: become wildly rich and get a condo in the newly renovated Tribune Tower. Not needing to worry about money any longer, I could continue posting to this blog daily while spending my nights downstairs at Billy Goat Tavern cosplaying as a poor person with influence. Like an old newspaperman. Someone people pay attention to. Maybe I’ll even pick up a cigar habbit.
Major corporations are now ashamed of appearing rich, so attempt to hide it to not to infuriate the unequal masses (us). The flagship Apple Store on Michigan Avenue is both wildly expensive, constructed of load-bearing glass walls, yet nearly invisible to any passerby not looking for it. Part of their aesthetic is to be so minimal you forget they have access to quite literally everything you do or think.
Perhaps they are learning from history. Sears built the world’s largest skyscraper on the other side of town, dominant and imposing, at the height of their success, and then immediately began to fail, in small part because it changed people’s perspective of the store. Customers previously thought Sears was local and based somewhere near them, not off in some fancy Chicago tower. Apple’s headquarters, meanwhile, is a lowrise fortified structure hiding out in one of California’s wealthiest suburbs — out of sight.
I’ve always been ashamed of having money and owning a house largely because I know most of my fellow photographer colleagues don’t. It’s a struggle out here and I’ve been fortunate (while also busting by ass and neglecting most normal-people life decisions in the process to get where I am). These days, I too am reverting to the mean. Bigger jobs are happening far less frequently and smaller jobs are paying increasingly less money. My editorial portrait cover shoot this week will pay me roughly what my monthly health insurance premium payment equals.
Recently, I learned that one established photographer I know, who shoots top tier commercial ad campaigns, also works twenty hours a week at Starbucks simply so he can get health insurance, thus saving him thousands of dollars, but of course taking away much of his time and making him exhausted in the process. At least he has ample access to coffee? These tradeoffs are becoming increasingly necessary and I’m finding myself seeing the logic in landing a similar job for similar reasons, just because it makes sense compared to what I’m doing now.
The really young photographers have no idea photography used to be a career! One that they could’ve made a livable wage doing. Now it’s more of a hobby that might occasionally pay a couple hundred bucks. Still, I consider myself fortunate for making a go of it during a window of time where it was possible to do so. Hopefully, things pick back up again and I look back at this post next year and laugh. You gotta stay positive.
Nearly every time I tell a stranger I’m a photographer, they say: oh like events and weddings? I always used to be offended by this but I probably should’ve taken it more as a warning sign. The idea that people could be paid well to make photos of anything beyond documenting a live event now seems increasingly crazy. Even Adobe is trying to cut us out (“skip the photo shoot!”), likely as payback for every photographer stealing their software for years.
Lately, photography feels like that sport where two people slap each other as hard as they can. People love that sport! You gotta stay positive.
Over the weekend, we were enjoying brunch at the bar and I was hypothetically discussing what job I could get with no college degree or experience in any line of work. Suddenly — out of nowhere — another local photographer popped into frame from behind the bar to say hello! “Bartending is steady work, consistent money, and it doesn’t pay net thirty, net sixty, net six months,” he joked in that dead-inside way all of us professional photographers understand at a gut level.
Anyway, back to thinking about how I can become wildly wealthy and move into my fancy Tribune Towner condo, looking down on the world. You gotta stay positive!
-Clayton
2024 06 10
It’s another Monday Life Update. Not too much to report on this week, which is fine. It’s a bit more healthy compared to my more frantic update last week, which even had my mom worried about my mental health. Sure, I still to have quite a lot on my mind, but perhaps it’s a bit more focused, namely:
We began production on a documentary film project. It’s still very early days and this project may or may not go anywhere (managing expectations), but we do have quite a lot of ideas on where to take it and we do now have one day of filming in the can, as they (used) to say. I still need to watch the footage and grade myself. Still learning new gear and how to record sound, etc.
Still planning this wedding. Have eleven tables set to arrive any minute now. Spent the weekend figuring out our registry list. It won’t end until September.
I picked up a Murakami book (After Dark) at a used sale while out getting coffee because a) I’ve been meaning to read more of him and b) I’m legitimately considering the idea of opening a bar, which he is a (perhaps weirdly) someone I reference in my brain whenever this idea pops up. The writing is good and reminds me that I need to read more print, as I’ve been doing Audiobooks almost exclusively lately, often while running.
Speaking of running: I had a crazy idea that I wanted to hit a marathon-length run before my September wedding date. Considering I am not in fantastic physical shape currently, this idea is quite unrealistic. I’ve scaled back my ambition to a half marathon.
I’m being reminded how time consuming and involved video post production is. This was literally my job after college and I strayed from it for this exact reason. I need to discover a healthy and balanced relationship between shooting, which I love, and editing, which I feel like I can only either obsessively dive into or completely shun. It’s a work in progress.
Lastly, this bar situation I’ve been subtly mentioning. Opening a bar has long been an idea which I’ve thought about. In my older years, the idea has faded as the realization of how much damn hard work it would be has taken hold. When you’re younger, you think of the upsides more than the darker realities. When you’re older, the time consumed doing the bullshit required tends to make you have second thoughts about everything.
What’s crazy, though, is that my industry is in a bit of turmoil lately and most people I talk to have been siding with the idea of opening a bar over the idea of being a photographer. I’d been thinking I was greedy to even have these thoughts, but the amount of people who share my views, and have encouraged them, has been quite eye opening. I feel like a longer post about the state of commercial photography is in order. It’s complicated and complex, but the overall vibe on the streets these days is not a healthy one and something needs to change.
-Clayton
Mr Peepers. Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
It’s another Monday Life Update. Not too much to report on this week, which is fine. It’s a bit more healthy compared to my more frantic update last week, which even had my mom worried about my mental health. Sure, I still to have quite a lot on my mind, but perhaps it’s a bit more focused, namely:
We began production on a documentary film project. It’s still very early days and this project may or may not go anywhere (managing expectations), but we do have quite a lot of ideas on where to take it and we do now have one day of filming in the can, as they (used) to say. I still need to watch the footage and grade myself. Still learning new gear and how to record sound, etc.
Still planning this wedding. Eleven tables are scheduled to be delivered any minute now. We spent the weekend figuring out our registry list. It won’t end until September.
I picked up a Murakami book (After Dark) at a used sale while out getting coffee because a) I’ve been meaning to read more of him and b) I’m legitimately considering the idea of opening a bar, which he is (perhaps weirdly) someone I reference in my brain whenever this idea pops up. The writing is good and reminds me that I need to read more print, as I’ve been doing Audiobooks almost exclusively lately, often while running. Plus I’d love to go to Japan but don’t see that happening in real life soon, so at least I can take a trip in my head.
Speaking of running: I had a crazy idea that I wanted to hit a marathon-length run before my September wedding date. Considering I am not in fantastic physical shape currently, this idea is quite unrealistic. I’ve scaled back my ambition to a half marathon.
I’m being reminded how time consuming and involved video post production is. This was literally my job after college and I strayed from it for this exact reason. I need to discover a healthy and balanced relationship between shooting, which I love, and editing, which I feel like I can only either obsessively dive into or completely shun. It’s a work-in-progress.
Lastly, this bar situation I’ve been subtly mentioning. Opening a bar has long been an idea which I’ve thought about. In my older years, the idea has faded as the realization of how much damn hard work it would be has taken hold. When you’re younger, you think of the upsides more than the darker realities. When you’re older, the time consumed doing the bullshit required tends to make you have second thoughts about everything.
What’s crazy, though, is that my industry is in a bit of turmoil lately and most people I talk to have been siding with the idea of opening a bar over the idea of being a photographer. I’d been thinking I was greedy to even have these thoughts, but the amount of people who share my views, and have encouraged them, has been quite eye opening. I feel like a longer post about the state of commercial photography is in order. It’s complicated and complex, but the overall vibe on the streets these days is not a healthy one and something needs to change.
-Clayton
2024 06 01
No Complaints, Just Pure Satisfaction.
Enjoy your Saturday, y’all.
-Clayton
This van really knows how to live. Nashville, Tennessee. © Clayton Hauck
No Complaints, Just Pure Satisfaction.
Enjoy your Saturday, y’all.
-Clayton
2024 05 26
Happy Sunday. Happy holiday weekend.
Are you someone, like me, who watches people play video games? It’s quite strange to think that millions of people watch other people play video games instead of doing so themselves. Why is this the case? Entertainment, obviously, but I do it largely for time reasons. I’ve gotten into playing a few games in my adult life, but because my work schedule is inconsistent and because now my downtime is also spent working, I just don’t have much time for games.
One of the games I did get quite into actually playing myself was Cities: Skylines. The sequel came out recently and I found myself really wanting to buy and play it. Perhaps luckily for me, the release was a disaster and the game was rushed out before it was completed in hopes of a big payday for the company. Fans of the game were quite upset about how everything went down and much of the community which grew up around the first game and posted a crazy amount of content covering it has not moved over to C:S2, which is probably also good for my productivity.
That said, the core of the game does have some rather cool features and you can see the potential for perhaps a future popular and amazing game. Whether or not the developer sticks with it and continues to spend money on further developing and whether the fans stick with it and wait for improvements to be made is all to be seen. This morning, I found myself watching a forty minute video covering these developments and the conversations between fans and the company making the game and found it interesting that this is, first of all, content that even exists and, secondly, content I find myself actively interested in when you consider I’ll likely never even play this game myself.
Thinking on it so more, as a kid I recall subscribing to magazines which covered the development of video games. I was excited to read about what games were coming out and what games were popular or highly rated, so it’s not like this is something that hasn’t been done before. All that said, it’s another example of how all media is slowly transforming away from the structured, official, companies releasing products covering things to people on youtube with a following self-producing content which covers these things.
Anyway, I still have a free hour to kill so back to youtube I go to see what adventures await me.
-Clayton
Pedestrian overpass through the trees. East Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Happy Sunday. Happy holiday weekend.
Are you someone, like me, who watches people play video games? It’s quite strange to think that millions of people watch other people play video games instead of doing so themselves. Why is this the case? Entertainment, obviously, but I do it largely for time reasons. I’ve gotten into playing a few games in my adult life, but because my work schedule is inconsistent and because now my downtime is also spent working, I just don’t have much time for games.
One of the games I did get quite into actually playing myself was Cities: Skylines. The sequel came out recently and I found myself really wanting to buy and play it. Perhaps luckily for me, the release was a disaster and the game was rushed out before it was completed in hopes of a big payday for the company. Fans of the game were quite upset about how everything went down and much of the community which grew up around the first game and posted a crazy amount of content covering it has not moved over to C:S2, which is probably also good for my productivity.
That said, the core of the game does have some rather cool features and you can see the potential for perhaps a future popular and amazing game. Whether or not the developer sticks with it and continues to spend money on further developing and whether the fans stick with it and wait for improvements to be made is all to be seen. This morning, I found myself watching a forty minute video covering these developments and the conversations between fans and the company making the game and found it interesting that this is, first of all, content that even exists and, secondly, content I find myself actively interested in when you consider I’ll likely never even play this game myself.
Thinking on it so more, as a kid I recall subscribing to magazines which covered the development of video games. I was excited to read about what games were coming out and what games were popular or highly rated, so it’s not like this is something that hasn’t been done before. All that said, it’s another example of how all media is slowly transforming away from the structured, official, companies releasing products covering things to people on youtube with a following self-producing content which covers these things.
Anyway, I still have a free hour to kill so back to youtube I go to see what adventures await me.
-Clayton
2024 05 25
Oh boy. It was nearly my first missed day this year, but here we are, with a daily blog.
Yesterday I was busy directing and shooting a motion piece at the local bar Meadowlark for 50 Best. Today, I was busy photographing that same bar’s new cocktail menu (all 16 drinks) in my studio. I’m exhausted, but it was a productive few days and I’m excited about the new work. I gotta say, however, shooting video is such a different beast. It wasn’t my first time directing a piece, however, it was my first with both directing and camera operating; today I woke up noticeably sore.
Shout out to my buddy Dave Rentauskas for lending me his Canon R5 C rig.
Video is still wild to me. I’ve spent a lot of time shooting and editing video but am still amazed by the sheer amount of variety in decision making options available to you, and how it’s basically impossible to do all of the required jobs yourself (recording sound, lighting, editing, shooting, acting, etc). Over the course of a seven hour shoot, the possibilities are basically endless. Over the course of a two month feature film production, it’s a dauntingly massive feat involving so much brain power and things that can go wrong, it’s no wonder so many movies turn out to be crap even when so much money and talent goes into producing them.
Anyway.
Until next time.
-Clayton
Balloon man selling the goods. Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Oh boy. It was nearly my first missed day this year, but here we are, with a daily blog.
Yesterday I was busy directing and shooting a motion piece at the local bar Meadowlark for 50 Best. Today, I was busy photographing that same bar’s new cocktail menu (all 16 drinks) in my studio. I’m exhausted, but it was a productive few days and I’m excited about the new work. I gotta say, however, shooting video is such a different beast. It wasn’t my first time directing a piece, however, it was my first with both directing and camera operating; today I woke up noticeably sore.
Shout out to my buddy Dave Rentauskas for lending me his Canon R5 C rig.
Video is still wild to me. I’ve spent a lot of time shooting and editing video but am still amazed by the sheer amount of variety in decision making options available to you, and how it’s basically impossible to do all of the required jobs yourself (recording sound, lighting, editing, shooting, acting, etc). Over the course of a seven hour shoot, the possibilities are basically endless. Over the course of a two month feature film production, it’s a dauntingly massive feat involving so much brain power and things that can go wrong, it’s no wonder so many movies turn out to be crap even when so much money and talent goes into producing them.
Anyway.
Until next time.
-Clayton
2024 05 24
Sometimes accidents make for more interesting results. Not realizing I had my ISO set to 400, this was the resulting image made while attempting to photography my delicious cocktail in Nashville’s super dark and very great cocktail spot, Attaboy.
I’m posting this because today I’m off directing a video piece at local cocktail spot Meadowlark… and what is video but a bunch of blurry photos strung together one after another, right? My pivot to video begins now! But also, I’m photographing cocktails Saturday as well in my usual still fashion, so really it’s just yet another job to add to my list of jobs.
Photographer, director, videographer, studio manager, blogger.
-Clayton
Blurry cocktail at Attaboy in Nashville, Tennessee. April, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Sometimes accidents make for more interesting results. Not realizing I had my ISO set to 400, this was the resulting image made while attempting to photography my delicious cocktail in Nashville’s super dark and very great cocktail spot, Attaboy.
I’m posting this because today I’m off directing a video piece at local cocktail spot Meadowlark… and what is video but a bunch of blurry photos strung together one after another, right? My pivot to video begins now! But also, I’m photographing cocktails Saturday as well in my usual still fashion, so really it’s just yet another job to add to my list of jobs.
Photographer, director, videographer, studio manager, blogger.
-Clayton
2024 05 16
A photo a day keeps the doctor away.
Have I said this before? Probably so. It’s getting to be the time in this daily brain dump where I start repeating myself without even realizing it.
Anyway, I did just notice that there is a severe lack of cats featured on this here photo blog, so needed to address this dire situation.
-Clayton
Cat on stairs. Nashville, Tennessee. May, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
A photo a day keeps the doctor away.
Have I said this before? Probably so. It’s getting to be the time in this daily brain dump where I start repeating myself without even realizing it.
Anyway, I did just notice that there is a severe lack of cats featured on this here photo blog, so needed to address this dire situation.
-Clayton