pawlmadethis

[pawlmadethis]

I have never witnessed something in my entire life that kept me so interested within a roller coaster of socio-economic company history and tax evasion schemes that really boiled down to the greatest personal conclusion of this man’s day.

[pawlmadethis]

My dude Dezmatic + @pawlmadethis beat = FAM (avail. 10/1)

[pawlmadethis]

#ATCQ

[pawlmadethis]

Dear @baseballcardvandals

[pawlmadethis]

A little shortie for a friend. Watch.

R.I.P. Tailor Made Tattoo

@jonbass1 (Instagram)

[pawlmadethis]

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/adultrappers

promo code: FREE

[pawlmadethis]

Star Wars? No. Free rap? Yes!

If parting w/ 99¢ was keeping you from seeing #adultrappers today is your day. 

Promo code: FREE 

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/adultrappers

[pawlmadethis]

Me too.

Someone on Twitter asked Erykah Badu what keeps her at peace and this was her answer

[pawlmadethis]

It’s Friday and it’s third preseason game day!

[pawlmadethis]

Bucket list: “Look, Mom, we’re on Sportscenter!” 

[pawlmadethis]

Getting my Public Radio on. Click the link to hear the interview from Central Time on WPR. 

[pawlmadethis]

This could be titled Five Tips for becoming a Professional Anything. 

Great stuff. 

Five Tips for Becoming a Professional Photographer

Much of the conventional wisdom on to become an advertising and editorial photographer is wrong, so I’ve written up five tips that counter the common narrative. It’s exciting to meet young people who are creative and driven,  nothing would make me happier than to see them thrive as professional shooters.

1. Don’t go to College More and more I’m meeting emerging photographers who are saddled with over 100K of college debt. My advice to young people – skip photo college. You can learn everything you need through books, mentors and short-term courses.  It will be a more challenging road, requiring openness, experimentation, and plenty of trail and error but the dividends are astronomical. Imagine spending your twenties with the freedom to live and work anywhere you wanted without a crippling debt hanging over you demanding a substantial and regular income. College is great but spending $150,000 to be a photographer is insane.

2. Don’t be a Photo Assistant Photo assisting is a procrastination tool. One can make amazing money in their mid-twenties as a photo assistant – and have fun and strange experiences on a variety of photo sets - but what you won’t be doing is building a creative foundation that you’ll need when it’s time to get serious in your early thirties. The longer one waits to transition out of assisting the harder it will be – one goes from making great money to no money (at least initially).  A better choice would be interning for a great photographer for a season or two, you’ll be immersed in the world that you want to be a part of, and have the license to ask lots of questions.

3.  Don’t Move to New York I’ve met more than one young person who told me that they moved to New York to be inspired and be a part of a creative community only to find themselves feeling isolated and exploited.  It seems that there are two kinds of people in New York, those with a vision, and those without who work for peanuts for those who do. New York (and other important cities like Los Angeles and London) is primarily a marketplace – cultivate your vision elsewhere then bring it to market and show us something new. New York welcomes you – but come when you have something to say.

4. Don’t be Successful

If you’re any good you’ll find yourself at some point as out of line with the culture.  Your clients will be uninterested or confused by your latest work. Go with it, as it means that you’re onto something special.  Of course one needs to make a living, so hit the sweet spot for your clients too, but keep shooting the less obvious pictures along the way – this will be the work that really makes your name down the road.

5.  Do be a Hater I’ve found that I make my most interesting and original work when reacting against a prevalent trend rather than being inspired by some well-achieved work.  When you’re inspired by a great photographer you tend to make some variation on that person’s work.  But when you react against something you set the bar higher, “these folks are getting it wrong, and I’m going to show them the right way.”  For me that means digging deep into myself and asking the hard questions about where photography should be going and how I might help bring it there.

[pawlmadethis]

Happy Born Day to my adopted twin brothers from other mothers...actually, only Tim was adopted. 

#Hangar18 

[pawlmadethis]

Inspired by my friend Cryptic One and his very ambitious #beataday project on Instagram (check him out @cryp_uno), another long cold winter and my recent lack of creative output comes this new creative outlet.

I’ve started a collection of videos I like to call "Shorties". Some are old, but may be new to you. The link to the story above however, is brand spanking new. It’s a Shortie Featuring DJ ROTO aka Tory Miller: executive chef & co-owner of Graze, L’Etoile and Sujeo in Madison, WI.

I actually shot this interview during filming for our documentary Adult Rappers, when I was pursuing a much broader theme. It never made the cut as we sharpened our focus on rappers primarily, but Tory is a great interview. This is a peak into his hip-hop past and how the music effects his aesthetic choices even today as a chef and entrepreneur.

Enjoy.

[pawlmadethis]

Many moons and many beers ago. Just 3 more Multi-Platinum dream warriors.

Photo by dpakisgood

[pawlmadethis]

This! For those whom believe mandatory group brainstorms are the way.  via swissmiss

[pawlmadethis]

Way ahead of its time.