Good afternoon everyone,
I am happy to share the 9th issue of A Twenty Percent Creative with you.
If this issue brings you value, please Like It and Leave A Comment too.
Thanks and have a great week!
Jeff
As you may know, I am one of the curators for @street.finder on Instagram. Each week, I review the recent posts shared with the hashtag #streetfinder and the posts found under the tagged tab of the account. The hunt for interesting photos in the constant stream of submissions is fun yet challenging at the same time. I enjoy looking for themes in the submissions and diving deep into photographers’ pages to see their portfolios and approaches to street photography in their hometowns or travel destinations.
When I first joined instagram in 2016, I participated daily in the @jjcommunity daily themes. From February 2017 through November 2019, I occasionally curated for the community. With JJ Community, curators are called editors. We would distill down the hundreds of submission each day to our individual handful of favorites. Our favorites were viewable by Josh Johnson (the “JJ” behind the community) using an editors’ hashtag. Josh would then share his favorites from the editors’ hashtag to the main JJCommunity page each day. It was great fun and I learned so much in this role.
At that time, I was still very new to photography. Living in Minnesota, I thought I was supposed to be a landscape photographer. Seeing hundreds of photos each day in my role as JJ editor, my visual style began to emerge from the distractions and noise within the daily hashtag pages. If you check out my editor’s page, @jj_editor_jeff, you will see the beginnings of my style today represented in the photographs of others that I decided to select and feature. Said simply, the time I have served as a JJ editor and now as a Street Finder curator has been time well spent for improving my craft as a photographer and visual artist.
Ok Jeff, get to the point
This THURSDAY NIGHT, MAY 5, 2022, at 10 PM US CENTRAL TIME, I am going to host a Zoom call. I will screenshare Instagram and work through my process of finding a photographer to feature or a theme to share on @street.finder on Friday. If you are interested in watching my process, asking questions, and talking about photography while I do this, please reach out to me via DM on Instagram to get the Zoom link. This opportunity is only available to newsletter subscribers. If you are unable to make this call due to previous commitments or time differences around the world, I will plan to hold future calls at different times - please reach out via DM as well if you would be interested in attending a future call.
AUSTIN KLEON
I have spent the last several weeks voraciously consuming the work of Austin Kleon. I am so fascinated and inspired by Austin’s ability to bring his creative thoughts and ideas to physical form through analog means — ie writing, drawing, collage, newspaper blackout poems, and an amazing daily journaling practice.
Austin, a self-described “writer who draws”, is the author of several fun, inspirational New York Times bestselling books about creativity — “Newspaper Blackout”, “Steal Like An Artist”, “Show Your Work”, and “Keep Going.” Austin’s substack newsletter is, by far, the best newsletter I’ve found. The paid version is especially valuable as Austin shares how-to videos, detailed behind-the-scenes of his daily life, and the opportunity to participate in discussion boards with him and other people who create or make things. You can learn more about Austin via his website or @austinkleon on Instagram (7,334 posts) and Twitter (116.6K tweets).
“No Regrets” is a list of the actions I have taken since publishing the previous newsletter. I plan to include this section in each issue to hold myself accountable, push through my resistance and fear, and promote tangible progress as a photographer, business owner, and a twenty percent creative.
Ten days ago, I cold emailed the communications manager at a local church. I proposed a photography project documenting the beauty of the church (interiors and architecture) and the grounds on sunny days. I have not yet received a response.
I submitted this series of abstract photographs to an open call in Minneapolis at the Praxis Photo Art Center.
I have also prepared photographs for submission later today to the Minimalist Photography Awards 2022 competition.
I started making 24 x 36 inch posters using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop this week. I have wanted to do this for years but kept procrastinating on getting started. With high amounts of caffeine on board, I had a fantastic time working on the two posters below between 10 PM - 3 AM the last two nights. I have so much to learn about Adobe Illustrator but I am excited to take action. I am going to order test prints this week to check my work (ie color, brightness, design issues). If all goes well, I am going to re-launch my Darkroom print store with plans to sell open edition posters and some of my photography too. I will share my progress in the next newsletter.
**What are you working on? What’s on your mind?**
I would love to highlight your projects in future issues. Please reach out via email at jeff@jeffreymkarp.com or let’s start a discussion in the comments below.
The Surprising Afterlife of Used Hotel Soap - an article about Clean The World
How to Take Creative Long Exposure Photos - a Youtube video by Jamie Windsor
How to Draw People in Perspective - a Youtube video by Circle Line Art School
Photography By The Letter - an amazing e-book by Jeffery Saddoris
If you are enjoying A Twenty Percent Creative, please consider sharing the newsletter with your family and friends.
I welcome feedback about the newsletter. Please email me directly at: jeff@jeffreymkarp.com
https://www.jeffreymkarp.com
Instagram: @jeffreymkarp