In this podcast I start my read and riff series, where I read from books I think will be valuable to you and then riff on what they mean to me. In this episode, I begin to read and discuss Susan Sontag's famous book of essays On Photography. I delve into Chapter 1 "In Plato's Cave" and discuss how these issues are relevant to today's photo-crazy world. Thanks for listening, I hope I give you something to think about.

Tired of boring art? Want to help create the change you want to see? How about: be aggressively creative. Life is too short to not make kickass art. Listen to me rant about how I want to live and create. I didn't mention them in the podcast, but I was inspired by Jocko Willink's podcast when he talks about the necessity of hard work, with Robert Hughe's characterization of modern art as creating the Shock of the New, and I was also inspired by the models I worked with on a body painting project last weekend: Alex, Dominique and Stephanie. We did some aggressively creative work. Check out @jakejthomasphoto on Instagram for a glimpse of the badass art we created.

Jake strives to give his friends encouragement about how to navigate the perilous world of digital media. We all need some constructive criticism, but how do you manage the feedback you're encountering. Jake's answer is to be your own best critic. Know your faults, own your mistakes, and be kind enough and encouraging enough to keep up the will to continue working. We don't want to be delusional, but we do want to stay motivated, so it's important to filter the feedback and to be selective with what criticism you allow into your consciousness.

Jake explains how he got to Joshua Tree for Bhakti Fest, why it’s sometimes good to do some work for free and he discusses the desert scene a bit.

Jake takes a slightly different approach by ranting against drugs. He believes that you don't need anything more than a couple of beers and Cannabis. He understands that being an artist comes with a lot of baggage but he wants to stress to you that your best work is only going to come from hard work and never the influence of drugs. Peace!

Jake reflects on meeting and photographing one of his favorite young rappers, Maliibu Miitch. He shares some thoughts about how to offer and provide value as a way of opening doors to creative collaborations, reminds you to keep the desire of your audience or client first, and discusses what good management is and can do when it comes to the arts. Not only was he super happy to meet Maliibu, but he got to meet her manager Donnie, DJ Flipside, Haiti and her fiancé Chase Money Marz.

Maliibu Mitch on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maliibumiitch/

Maliibu on ITunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/maliibu-miitch/701153270

Maliibu's Manager Donnie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brovazent_donnie/

Chase Money Marz on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chasemoneymarz/

Chase Money Marz on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6snOIiDamg&feature=youtu.be

DJ Flipside on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamdjflipsidenyc/

Haiti on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hboy

Jake discusses three people who inspire him: Jocko Willink, Anthony Tashnick, and Gary Vaynerchuck. Hopefully he inspires you to think about how you're using social media, how you balance your digital life with a physical one, and to find people who inspire you to be your best.

Jocko's Podcast: http://jockopodcast.com/

Anthony Tashnick on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anthonytashnick/

and Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Anthony-Tashnick-495002753864382/

Gary Vaynerchuck's podcast: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/podcast/

Further discussion of Ta-Nehisi Coates' Between the World and Me, thoughts on the controversy of Cornel West's critique of Coates, and a meditation on the power of art and the power of criticism.

In this episode, Jake discusses the first part of Te-Nehisi Coates' powerful book The World Between Us, pays tribute to the activism of his friend Michael Jolson, meditates on the power of art and literature, and asks the question: "How would it feel to have a black son."

How do you get out of a stagnant phase? Inspired by my friend Bonnie Sultan I meditate (rant) about how to change patterns in your life.