Process Driven

“Sometimes disengaging is the best way to engage.” That’s a quote from Rick Rubin’s new book, The Creative Act: A Way of Being, which I can’t recommend highly enough. Before I actually sat down and started reading it as a book, I would flip to a random page and read just what was on that page—and I actually think that with this particular book, that’s a perfectly acceptable way to approach it. First of all, the chapters are short—some are only a page or two—and between them are little one or two line quotes like the one I just shared and honestly, there have been a ton of these little thoughts and ideas that have sent me down rabbit holes or connected the dots between things that I have already been thinking about.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get more conversations like this. You can also find a written version of Iterations on Substack.MUSICMu

This Iteration is a little different. Earlier in the week, I went into DC to visit a friend at the National Gallery and I took a few notes before and after—just a few thoughts that were in my head on the train ride in and out of the city. I love DC and whenever I go into town, regardless of why I’m there, I always come away recharged and inspired and just generally happier. Adrianne says that I should start doing it once a week. Maybe she’s right.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get more conversations like this. You can also find a written version of Iterations on Substack.MUSICMusic For Workplaces by Jeffery Saddoris

In this episode, I'm joined by Jon Wilkening who, after a disappointing trip out West,  walked away from the creative side of his life to refocus on his family. Now, three years later, the itch to create has started to come back, though he’s not exactly sure what that might look like.CONNECT WITH JONTwitter: @jonwilkeningInstagram: @jonwilkening CONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get more conversations like this.SUPPORTLeave a review or a rating wherever you listen, or you can share the episode on social media.MUSICHigh Line by Duffmusiq

"Art used to be in charge of us. You used to buy a whole album not even knowing what songs would be on it. Now, we have everything on demand. At your fingertips. In pieces. You think half the people that are posting quotes from Oscar Wilde have ever read one of his plays?  Or posting photos of Audrey Hepburn have actually seen the film that it’s from? Not a chance."That was an excerpt from a monologue—and it’s just one of several really terrific monologues—from a movie that Adrianne and I watched the other day called Vengeance. I don’t want to give away too much of the movie, but I will say that each of us had some expectations going into it and we couldn’t have been more surprised at how much we ended up enjoying it. In fact, it’s the first movie in quite a while that we’ve talked about multiple times after watching it. The other thing we’ve been talking about is The Last of Us on HBO, but I’ll save that for another time.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris

This month has been incredibly productive for me, both in terms of the painting I’ve been doing in the studio and in the amount of writing I’ve been doing. I’ve got multiple paintings in the works and I’ve started sketching out the framework for an entirely new body of work, which, if I can pull it off, will be different than anything I’ve done before. I feel like I’m still riding the wave of momentum that started building over the last couple months of 2022, after coming to some pretty terrific—and in some cases pretty profound—realizations around my work and where I see myself going over the next year. Looking forward is not something I’ve historically been very good at. Looking back, on the other hand, is something I do really well—often to pick at the scabs of some imagined shortcomings where I think I’ve failed myself or others. I just can’t think about 3 or 5 or 10 years out like some people do, especially since I’ve spent so much of my life not being able to see a 10 day plan, let alone 10 years.CONNEC

In this episode, Sean and I are talking about balance—specifically the balance between work and happiness and doing the work you love versus doing the work that pays the bills. Plus, we talk about stepping outside of our respective comfort zones to produce work that’s just as challenging for us as it may be to an audience. LINKSParable (Print): Physical Magazine: PARABLE Window Light (vol.1) — Sean Tucker PhotographyParable (PDF + Audio): Digital Magazine: PARABLE Window Light (PDF + Audio) — Sean Tucker PhotographyCONNECT WITH SEANWebsite: http://seantucker.photography  Twitter: @seantuck  Instagram: @seantuck  YouTube: @seantuckCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisYouTube: @jefferysaddorisYou can also connect with both of us by sending an email to deepnatter@gmail.com.SUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get Deep Natter, along with Process Driven and Iterations all in one feed.SUPP

Before we get started, I’d like to ask you a few questions. There are no wrong answers here, I’d just like to get you thinking about them because they’re part of what has inspired this particular Iteration. Do you believe that you should ever compromise when making your art?Are you the only audience that matters when it comes to your art?Is there a difference between art and product? If so, should the approach to making those two different things be different?While you’re thinking about the answers for yourself, I’ll share my answers to each of the questions. And keep in mind, these answers are just for me and your mileage may vary. I’m actually going to answer these in reverse, and I think by the end you’ll understand why. CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get Iterations, as well as Deep Natter, and Process Driven all in one feed. You can also find

In this episode, Maarten Rots joins me from a village in the south of Spain where he’s been working on photos for the next issue of his magazine March & Rock. He’s also been reflecting on a decade as a photographer and we talk about some of the changes in how he approaches his work and what he gets out of it. LINKShttps://www.andalucia.org/en/genalguacilhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puente_Nuevohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marbellahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Towns_of_Andalusiahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esteponahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Júzcarhttps://www.andalucia.org/en/genalguacil-cultural-tourism-museo-de-arte-contemporaneo-fernando-centenoCONNECT WITH MAARTENWebsite: https://www.maartenrots.nlInstagram: @maartenrotsMarch & Rock magazine: March & Rock magazineCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get Deep Natter, Itera

One of the first books I remember reading was The Outsiders by SE Hinton. Just to be clear — The Outsiders wasn’t the first book I ever read; not by a long shot. Even as a child, I had a pretty good sized library, which included classics from Dr. Seuss, Maurice Sendak, and Margaret and H.A. Rey. But The Outsiders was different. It was the first book I can remember that really resonated with me and made me think about language. In fact, it may be the book that began my love affair with the written word.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast app to get Iterations, as well as Deep Natter, and Process Driven all in one feed. You can also find a written version of Iterations on Substack.MUSICMusic For Workplaces by Jeffery Saddoris

I’ve been listening to a lot more music lately—and not just in the background while I’m doing something else, but in the foreground as its own activity. Growing up, my mom always had music playing in the house. She was a huge Motown fan, so I grew up listening to Diana Ross and the Supremes, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5, and way too many others to mention. She and my dad were also big Elvis Presley fans. I think my dad sort of wanted to be Elvis, which probably wasn’t all that uncommon for men in the late ‘60s. My mom and her friend Carol actually used to wait outside Elvis’ house in Brentwood, hoping to catch a glimpse of him coming or going. Although they never saw him there, they did get the chance to go to a party he hosted in 1969 at the International Hotel in Vegas, but that’s another story.LINKSUlla StrausBillow Observatory Lisa Bella DonnaCONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything

Last week, I sat down for a conversation with Bill Wadman that was released in this feed as well as the On Taking Pictures feed, which hadn’t been updated since 2018. The response to the episode was, well, unexpected to say the least. We’ve gotten a ton of feedback and I can’t tell you how much we appreciate it. We don’t really know how often these conversations will happen moving forward, but it’s always good to sit down will Bill and just hit the record button and see where we end up.What I do know is that this is part two of the conversation from last week that started with Bill talking about whether or not he was going to return his new Fuji GFX 100. In this conversation we’re talking about media, materials, and an incident involving some Ikea shelving that leads us down a rabbit hole around legacy and perspective.LINKSOTP Episode ArchiveIkea IDÅSEN shelvingCONNECT WITH BILLWebsite: https://billwadman.comTwitter: @billwadmanInstagram: @billwadmanCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Tw

Adrianne and I were out walking Cooper earlier and I asked her whether there was a single event that made her 2022 memorable. She thought about it for a moment as we walked and said, “Honestly, I can’t think of anything. Can you?” I tried to scrub through the previous twelve months in my mind and I drew a blank too. Nothing stood out. I mean, there are a ton of things that came to mind, like another year of Covid, another year of humans failing the environment, Congress, the Supreme Court, Brexit, China, Russia, Ukraine, Twitter. I could go on, but none of the things I would come up with feel very personal. They affect all of us in one form or another. When we got back to the house, Adrianne asked if she could read me a poem that one of her friends sent her. It’s an anonymous poem that was on the Plague Poems Twitter feed.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything in your favorite podcast

In 2012, Bill Wadman and I recorded the first episode of On Taking Pictures and for the next 324 weeks, we never missed an episode. Even though Bill and I don’t talk every week like we used to, whenever we do, it’s like picking up the conversation where we left off. If you’ve never listened to an episode of OTP, consider this a teaser for the 325 episodes you have ahead of you. OTP changed my life for the better and I always love getting to sit down with Bill, regardless of whether or not we hit the record button. But it’s often a lot more fun when we do because we get to share the conversations with you. LINKSOTP Episode ArchiveMichael FremerWilson Watt Puppy speakersFuji  32-64 f/4 zoomFuji GFX100sJohnny Carson Carnac the MagnificentBill’s GFX100s playback exposure issuePentax 645zCONNECT WITH BILLWebsite: https://billwadman.comTwitter: @billwadmanInstagram: @billwadmanCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisYouTube: @jefferysaddorisSUB

The other day, Paramount Pictures put up a ten-minute mini-documentary showing some of the preparation and training that Tom Cruise and the production crew went through to perform just one of the insane stunts from the next installment of Mission: Impossible. I say just one because I’m sure that the film is loaded with them. I mean, it’s a Tom Cruise movie, so there can’t be just one, right? There might be one that everyone talks about, like hanging off of the side of an Airbus as it takes off, or flying a helicopter through a 360-degree corkscrew dive, or performing 106 HALO jumps with a broken ankle just to get three shots, or…well, you get the idea. To say the man is focused is an understatement. Whether you love him or hate him, when it comes to leaving it all in the frame, I can’t think of another filmmaker more dedicated to the craft of making movies and entertaining audiences than Tom Cruise—and he’s been doing it for decades.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddori

Before we get started, I want to let you know that we’re making some changes to the show. In addition to bringing back Process Driven, these conversations with Sean will go to monthly, rather than twice a month and my goal is to bring in a different co-host for at least one additional episode per month. All of the episodes will still be part of my main podcast feed, which is now called Jeffery Saddoris: Almost Everything since I’ve got some things in the works that will not be a part of the main feed. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out. In this last episode of 2022, we’re talking about the year ahead and some of the changes each of us want to make, both in terms of what we do and how we do it.LINKSRichard MosseMaria LaxStefan Sagmeister - Made You LookCONNECT WITH SEANWebsite: http://seantucker.photography  Twitter: @seantuck  Instagram: @seantuck  YouTube: @seantuckCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisYouTub

This is the sound of me writing. Specifically, it’s the sound of me writing this Iteration. I’m using a Slate Gray Pilot Prera fountain pen with a medium nib, loaded with my favorite ink: Namiki IC-100 in blue/black. While I typically sketch and jot down ideas on paper, I do most of my actual writing in an app called Bear, which I’ve used for a number of years. But for the past several weeks, I’ve been going back and forth on getting a new iPad to replace my aging second-generation iPad Mini along with an Apple Pencil so that I could potentially retain the feeling of analog writing on a digital device. What I found is that while the mechanics of writing on the iPad might be the same, the feel isn’t even close—and that’s where it falls apart for me.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Everything in your favorite podcast app to get every show I release in one feed. You can also find a written version of

For several years in a row starting when I was in junior high, my dad used to take me to the Point Mugu Naval Air Show. Military aviation was something we had in common and the Point Mugu show was always terrific. That was the show I first saw the F-14, the F-15 (which, at the time was the only jet that could actually accelerate on a vertical climb), the F-16, and even the SR-71, which is still my favorite aircraft of all time. Anyway, one particular year—and this might have been around 1979 or 1980, as we walked around the show, we overheard people talking about the Harrier, which neither one of us had ever heard of.CONNECT WITH MEWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisSUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Everything in your favorite podcast app to get every show I release in one feed. You can also find a written version of Iterations on Substack.MUSICMusic For Workplaces by Jeffery Saddoris

In this episode, we’re picking up at the tail end of a conversation Sean and I were having about money and value and how that relates to art and it reminded Sean of an interview he was listening to with Steven Fry, which helps to set the tone for the rest of the show. Pay particular attention to the beautiful bit of wisdom Sean drops at about the 30-minute mark. LINKSDiary of a CEO: https://stevenbartlett.com/the-diary-of-a-ceo-podcast/The Judge: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1872194/CONNECT WITH SEANWebsite: http://seantucker.photography  Twitter: @seantuck  Instagram: @seantuck  YouTube: Sean TuckerCONNECT WITH JEFFERYWebsite: https://jefferysaddoris.com  Twitter: @jefferysaddoris  Instagram: @jefferysaddorisYou can also connect with both of us by sending an email to deepnatter@gmail.com.SUBSCRIBESubscribe to Jeffery Saddoris: Everything in your favorite podcast app to get every show I release in one feed.SUPPORTLeave a review or a rating wherever you listen, or you can DONATE to support the shows more direc

The other day, I was sitting in our sunroom watching a video interview with Simon Sinek, who I absolutely love. If you aren’t familiar with Simon’s work, there are a ton of terrific videos on his YouTube channel—I might start with Why is Your Origin Story or Be the Idiot—and I can’t recommend his book, Start With Why, highly enough. It’s a deceptively simple question that I think many of us have a hard time answering when it comes to talking about the things we make or want to make. Anyway, I was watching this video and in it Simon was telling a story about Phil Knight, the co-founder of Nike. Basically, using running as a metaphor, Phil was illustrating the meaning behind their famous “JUST DO IT" slogan and how it has nothing to do with winning and everything to do with trying. As Simon said, “when Nike is at their best, they celebrate the ones who do, not the ones who win.” When the video finished, Adrianne, who was sitting at her computer across the room, asked, "do you know about the knowing-do

Over the past month or so, I’ve been seeing a lot of Quentin Tarantino clips pop up in my YouTube feed because about a month ago, I clicked on a video of Quentin being interviewed by Charlie Rose. When it finished, the algorithm showed me another, which I also clicked on. Since the algorithm got what it wanted, it started showing me more clips and occasionally I would click, and here we are a month or so later with me having watched about a dozen clips and interviews with Quentin Tarantino. Full disclosure, I like some of Tarantino’s movies, but it’s his approach to making movies that I find fascinating. Recently he was quoted as saying that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was his best movie, to which someone on Twitter almost immediately replied “He’s wrong. It was Pulp Fiction.” I can’t say I disagree. But regardless of what you or I think of any of his movies, he makes exactly what he wants to see and if we don’t like it, that’s on us, not him. He was very clear about that fact in one of the interviews I wat