2024 12 01
Off Day!
Out looking at trees. One of them will come home with us. Iāve never had a ārealā Christmas tree before. It always seemed like a bit of a weird tradition to me, as much as I like having the decorations up to set a nice mood. Itās mostly the part about the mass killing of trees just for a few weeks of use that bothers me. I guess today is the day I embrace the tree slaughter and participate in this human tradition.
-Clayton
Bare trees. Rockford, Illinois. March, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
Off Day!
Out looking at trees. One of them will come home with us. Iāve never had a ārealā Christmas tree before. It always seemed like a bit of a weird tradition to me, as much as I like having the decorations up to set a nice mood. Itās mostly the part about the mass killing of trees just for a few weeks of use that bothers me. I guess today is the day I embrace the tree slaughter and participate in this human tradition.
-Clayton
2024 11 01
Another one of Paulie Bās great Walkie Talkie videos dropped and itās Chicago street photographer Amando de Leon so I have to shout it out! Peep the video belowā¦ a few fun standout moments for me were:
Amando says: 35mm in Chicago, 28mm in NYC are the perfect focal lengths and that feels so right. I love the sentiment.
āI love flash. You look like youāre just having a party!" Being out here [photographing on the street] is like being at a partyā
He wants to publish more DIY zines and get a website up to sell them to fund his photo projects ā¦ Iām aiming to create a lil web shop on my see you soon site for this exact kind of thing. Hopefully early next year itāll be a reality. Itās been stewing in my brain for a long time now, itās just finding the time to make it a reality that has been the challenge. Ideally, I would love to help in my own tiny way to support these photographers who are out there putting in the time making their art. Iād also love to be out there myself more but know that realistically it will probably never happen, at least as much as Iād like it to.
Amando likes to photograph in bars. This was my life for a while! I think Amado and I need to meet and I need to buy the guy a couple beers! Hit me up, Amado!
Gary Stochl and Vivian Maier doing it themselves without a community or social media to keep pushing them.
Why do you take photos? ābecause it makes me feel like Iām here, Iām present.ā
-Clayton
Hyde Park and downtown through the trees of South Shore, Chicago. September, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
Another one of Paulie Bās great Walkie Talkie videos dropped and itās Chicago street photographer Amando de Leon so I have to shout it out! Peep the video belowā¦ a few fun standout moments for me were:
Amando says: 35mm in Chicago, 28mm in NYC are the perfect focal lengths and that feels so right. I love the sentiment.
āI love flash. You look like youāre just having a party!" Being out here [photographing on the street] is like being at a partyā
He wants to publish more DIY zines and get a website up to sell them to fund his photo projects ā¦ Iām aiming to create a lil web shop on my see you soon site for this exact kind of thing. Hopefully early next year itāll be a reality. Itās been stewing in my brain for a long time now, itās just finding the time to make it a reality that has been the challenge. Ideally, I would love to help in my own tiny way to support these photographers who are out there putting in the time making their art. Iād also love to be out there myself more but know that realistically it will probably never happen, at least as much as Iād like it to.
Amando likes to photograph in bars. This was my life for a while! I think Amado and I need to meet and I need to buy the guy a couple beers! Hit me up, Amado!
Gary Stochl and Vivian Maier doing it themselves without a community or social media to keep pushing them.
Why do you take photos? ābecause it makes me feel like Iām here, Iām present.ā
-Clayton
2024 10 31
In the waning days of covid lockdowns, I drove out west for work. Afterwards, I connected with my sister and we headed to Sequoia National Park for a little exploration and visit with the famous General Sherman. It turned out to be a perspective-changing experience, as we arrived right at open and had the entire park to ourselves for hours! Standing alone among the worldās largest living creatives was an experience I will never forget and this image is one of the favorites Iāve ever made.
Lately Iāve been spending a bunch of time printing photos at the studio, so I was excited to release another limited edition on my ongoing series dubbed The Camera You Have. This image looks great printed and can be yours for free if you win my giveaway or if you simply purchase one via my online print shop. Itās a perfect time to get your holiday shopping started!
To enter, simply leave a comment on this post (make sure your email is accurate!) and/or like, comment, reshare the Instagram post on my @claytonhauck IG account. Good luck!
-Clayton
The Camera You Have #0015 āHuman For Scaleā General Sherman. Sequoia National Park, California. January, 2021. Ā© Clayton Hauck
In the waning days of covid lockdowns, I drove out west for work. Afterwards, I connected with my sister and we headed to Sequoia National Park for a little exploration and visit with the famous General Sherman. It turned out to be a perspective-changing experience, as we arrived right at open and had the entire park to ourselves for hours! Standing alone among the worldās largest living creatives was an experience I will never forget and this image is one of the favorites Iāve ever made.
Lately Iāve been spending a bunch of time printing photos at the studio, so I was excited to release another limited edition on my ongoing series dubbed The Camera You Have. This image looks great printed and can be yours for free if you win my giveaway or if you simply purchase one via my online print shop. Itās a perfect time to get your holiday shopping started!
GIVEAWAY! To enter, simply leave a comment on this post (make sure your email is accurate!) and/or like, comment, reshare the Instagram post on my @claytonhauck IG account. Good luck!
-Clayton
2024 09 11
I should be writing my wedding vows but I am instead writing a blog.
I vow to work on my wedding more than my blog this week.
Never forget.
-Clayton
Trees at night. Chicago, Illinois. May, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
I should be writing my wedding vows but I am instead writing a blog.
I vow to work on my wedding more than my blog this week.
Never forget.
-Clayton
2024 06 14
While browsing Huluās user interface to put on some background news television, it hit me that todayās news channels are essentially reality filters. Users are given a choice which filter they want to use in order to view the world in their ideal vision. This is something I already knew, but hadnāt previously thought of it like Instagram filters. Increasingly, we are using technology to warp the reality around us.
Iām someone who enjoys all four seasons, but I also understand why so many people move south to avoid them. Seasons come with drawbacks. Itās cold. Itās hot. Itās muggy. Itās buggy. Itās snowy. Itās wet. Why put up with all the inconvenience when you can simply relocate to San Diego and enjoy three-hundred-plus days of 70-degrees and sunny? Theyāve even shipped in a bunch of palm trees from elsewhere to add visual appeal.
It doesnāt seem like this trend of re-shaping our personal world to better suit our desires is going to slow down anytime soon.
-Clayton
Bare trees prior to the additional of leaves for added visual pleasure. Starved Rock State Park, Illinois. April, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
While browsing Huluās user interface to put on some background news television, it hit me that todayās news channels are essentially reality filters. Users are given a choice which filter they want to use in order to view the world in their ideal vision. This is something I already knew, but hadnāt previously thought of it like Instagram filters. Increasingly, we are using technology to warp the reality around us.
Iām someone who enjoys all four seasons, but I also understand why so many people move south to avoid them. Seasons come with drawbacks. Itās cold. Itās hot. Itās muggy. Itās buggy. Itās snowy. Itās wet. Why put up with all the inconvenience when you can simply relocate to San Diego and enjoy three-hundred-plus days of 70-degrees and sunny? Theyāve even shipped in a bunch of palm trees from elsewhere to add visual appeal.
It doesnāt seem like this trend of re-shaping our personal world to better suit our desires is going to slow down anytime soon, whatever the unknown costs may be.
-Clayton
2024 06 04
This video below entered my life over the weekend and Iām really glad it did, though my bank account took a hit as a result.
Alec Soth discusses two photobooks and how words relate to their pictures within. Tim Davisā Iām Looking Through You and Gilles Peressā Whatever You Say, Say Nothing.
Timās book is incredible and has been in heavy rotation lately at the studio, however, Alecās video sort of rudely reminded me that my habit of fully avoiding words in photobooks is something I need to address. Even as someone who fancies myself a wanna be writer and values good writing above maybe even photography itself, my instinct is to completely cut out the words, perhaps because they typically donāt serve a valid purpose in most photobooks and Iām forcing my brain to connect soley with the images, without changing their meaning. But thatās not really my choice to make! Books are put together with much work and consideration, and if the artist put the words in the book, I shouldnāt ignore them, even if perhaps sometimes itās to my detriment. Now, Iām excited to get my ass back to the studio and head straight for Timās book to take in the words he put into it to go with the images I have already consumed.
Gillesā book is set to arrive today. This is an insanely deep photobook project spanning 1,000 pages of images and an accompanying book with another nearly 1,000 pages or words and images. Plus it comes with a tote bag to contain everything. Normally, hearing about a project like this, Iād get super curious and then see the $456 price tag (marked down from $750 on amazon), then immediately move along to other distractions in order to turn my mind to different things; but Alec did such a great job talking about this book and how good it is, I mustered the courage to plop down the money and have it delivered.
Lately, Iāve been ālistening to the universe when it tells me something.ā This is a bit of a new approach to how I might normally operate and Iām not yet quite sure how it will play out. Itās a long-term process, afterall, but I do strongly think these small everyday decisions I am making now will compound into something bigger and more meaningful a decade from now. I bring this up because this video was the second time in a week Iād come across a photographer I trust mentioning this expensive book. Previously, Iād tune it out as Iām quite stressed about money these days, however, Iām listening to the universe and the universe wants me to spend $500 purchasing a photo book.
Iāll let you know in a decade whether or not it pays off.
-Clayton
Bare trees at Starved Rock, Illinois ā Massively compressed jpg for the sake of your bandwidth. March, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
This video below entered my life over the weekend and Iām really glad it did, though my bank account took a hit as a result.
Alec Soth discusses two photobooks and how words relate to their pictures within. Tim Davisā Iām Looking Through You and Gilles Peressā Whatever You Say, Say Nothing.
Timās book is incredible and has been in heavy rotation lately at the studio, however, Alecās video sort of rudely reminded me that my habit of fully avoiding words in photobooks is something I need to address. Even as someone who fancies myself a wanna-be writer and values good writing above maybe even photography itself, my instinct is to completely cut out the words. Perhaps itās because my brain goes first to the words and then to the images, which minimizes the visual impact. Or perhaps itās because they typically donāt serve a valid purpose in most photobooks and Iām forcing my brain to connect solely with the images without changing their meaning. But thatās not really my choice to make! Books are put together with much work and consideration, and if the artist put the words in the book, I shouldnāt ignore them. Now, Iām excited to get my ass back to the studio and head straight for Timās book to take in the words he put into it to compliment the images I have already consumed.
Gillesā book is set to arrive today. This is an insanely deep photobook project spanning 1,000 pages of images and an accompanying book with another nearly 1,000 pages of words and images. Plus it comes with a tote bag to contain everything! Normally, hearing about a project like this, Iād get super curious and then see the $456 price tag (marked down from $750 on amazon), then immediately move along to other distractions in order to turn my mind to different things; But this time Alec did such a great job talking about this book and how good it is, I mustered the courage to plop down the money and have it delivered.
Lately, Iāve been ālistening to the universe when it tells me something.ā This is a bit of a new approach to how I might normally operate and Iām not yet quite sure how it will play out. Itās a long-term process, afterall, but I do strongly think these small everyday decisions I am making now will compound into something bigger and more meaningful a decade from now. I bring this up because this video was the second time in a week Iād encountered a photographer whose opinion I trust mentioning this expensive book. Typically, Iād tune it out, as Iām quite stressed about money these days, however, Iām listening to the universe and the universe wants me to spend $500 purchasing this photo book.
Iāll let you know in a decade whether or not it paid off.
-Clayton
2024 04 08
Sun behind trees. Grand Detour, Illinois. February, 2024. Ā© Clayton Hauck
Iām out today, heading home from my cookbook shoot in Nashville and chasing this total solar eclipse. Iāve never experienced one before so will be sure to report back tomorrow and let yāall know if my life is now forever changed and I have a new perspective on everything. Or maybe Iāll simply never return? Weāll see!
-Clayton