Endless Appreciation: Recent Episodes
Daniel Agee, Sam Hurd
A behind-the-scenes look at running a photography business, building a community platform, and sustaining creativity. Hosted by Daniel Agee, head of Community at Glass, and Sam Hurd, a wedding photographer and educator.
Takeaways
- Landscape photography may not be everyone's preferred genre, but it can still be appreciated and admired.
- The Apple Vision Pro provides an immersive experience for viewing panorama photos.
- Creating unique content and finding your niche can help you stand out in a crowded online space.
- Success on platforms like YouTube should be measured by the impact on your target audience, rather than the number of views or followers.
- Blogging and newsletters are still valuable tools for building an audience and maintaining control over your content. Long-term investment is crucial for achieving impactful results.
- Building an email list is a valuable marketing channel.
- Content restrictions on social media platforms can be frustrating for creators.
- Social media algorithms can have a significant impact on engagement and reach.
- Switching editing tools can be a challenging and uncomfortable process.
- Personal experiences and moments are valuable and should be cherished.
- Taco Bell's Apple-style keynote was entertaining and showcased their new branding.
- OpenAI's demo highlights the potential of realistic AI and raises concerns about misinformation.
Chapters
00:00Technical Difficulties
01:03Introduction and Location
02:34Landscape Photography
05:16Apple Vision Pro
06:09Panorama Photos
07:09Preference for People in Photos
09:23Creating Unique Content
10:42Collecting Data in Photography
12:08The Appeal of ND Filters
13:23The Trend of Handheld Motion Blur
14:13Finding the Perfect Shot
15:22The Immersive Experience of Panoramas
16:38The Unexpected Appeal of the Apple Vision Pro
17:37Navigating the YouTube Landscape
19:30Defining Success on YouTube
22:30The Challenges of Algorithmic Metrics
25:12The Power of Blogging and Newsletters
30:36The Value of Niches and Audience Ownership
37:48The Importance of Long-Term Investment
39:12The Value of Building an Email List
44:00The Frustration of Content Restrictions
46:26The Impact of Social Media Algorithms
48:26The Challenge of Switching Editing Tools
55:23The Power of Personal Experiences
58:31Taco Bell's Apple-Style Keynote
59:56OpenAI's Demo and the Future of Realistic AI
Chapters
00:00Introduction
02:38Horse Riding and Gambling
05:09Baseball Betting
06:32Sports Gambling
09:12Blackjack and Las Vegas
12:20Referral System for Wedding Photography
15:33Booking Weddings
16:28YouTube Channel and Drone Purchase
22:17YouTube Channel Progress
25:29Watching Drone Footage
29:44Buying a Drone
30:52Concert Photography
39:01Feeling Nostalgic and Disconnected
41:10Returning to Past Environments
42:22The Evolution of Photography Skills
43:11Reflecting on Decades
44:55Favorite Parts of the Photography Process
46:10Finding Joy and Excitement in Photography
48:06The Power of a Great Photo
49:03The Changing Motivations for Photography
51:53The Joy of Editing Photos
54:44The Tedious Process of Creating Presets
56:20The Love-Hate Relationship with Photography Work
58:43The Benefits of Creating a Visual Reference Collage
01:01:43The Aesthetic and Empowering Nature of the ZF Camera
01:05:30The Dilemma of Switching Cameras
The conversation covers a range of topics, including the influence of social media on self-diagnosis, the changing landscape of education, and the challenges of wedding photography. The hosts also discuss their dream photography partners and the weirdest objects they have used to get the perfect shot. Overall, the conversation explores the intersection of photography, social media, and personal identity. In this conversation, Daniel Agee and Sam Hurd discuss various topics related to photography, including inspiration from test videos and movies, influential directors and styles, time travel for a photo shoot, photographing fictional characters, photography myths, and photographing a solar eclipse.
Daniel started the Glass YouTube Channel and won't stop making bad jokes about it. Sam politely puts up with it. Definitely do not like and subscribe to Glass's YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@tryglass), it'll go to Daniel's head.
Daniel is back from vacation and fully rejuvenated. Mostly. Kinda. He recounts that rejuvenation to Sam before they dive into the naming process they used for created the Insight name.
Daniel and Sam briefly talk about why Nikon randomly gets so much hate over Canon, but using that as the title because SEO is real. Sorry, not sorry.
Daniel and Sam share a nice, cozy episode of cameras, weddings, deliverables, and how things are just too good now.
What would your remixed version of your photography be? What's that's look like? Well, Daniel has got the questions and Sam has got the answers. Oh, and Dad Rock music recommendations.
Parcels — Live Vol. 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4TFD2PfVPw
Parcels — Live Vol. 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAbB9UlAWMc
Chase Jarvis SanDisk Vlog
https://youtu.be/TUx2tLP4D80?si=EinPlThryVqP4sTv
Buckle up — Daniel and Sam cover a lot of ground to make up for last week's single topic.
Daniel comes to Sam with a problem — a secret problem. 50 minutes later, it remained unsolved but the vibes improved greatly between the start and finish. So there's that, which is nice. If you listen/watch this episode, you're binding yourself to the Endless Appreciation Super Secret Handshake rules of keeping secrets.
As you listen to this episode, you'll find out what it's about at the same time as Daniel does. In that, he forgot to write the notes and now is just writing words to fill space. Think of it as a mild mystery.
Daniel and Sam talk consistency in their photography and how cameras are just too gosh darn sharp these days.
Daniel and Sam talk about reaching consistency in their work, how to not judge past work by present skill, and camera deal breakers.
Daniel has one quick question for Sam before they get started — "Why do you take photos?" — oh, whoops, the episode is over.
Daniel and Sam talk about the Glass Meetups and the projects and the things. Oh, and also the stuff. Photography? It's mentioned.
Talking about some apps and some photos and just a general episode where nothing — oh, right, Daniel and Sam shot a wedding.
Sam and Daniel talk through when to buy a new camera or when to sell an old camera and creating single images versus whole bodies of work. Oh, and Daniel talks through the new Glass Feature Patron real quick, right at the end. You know, in case we had to cut it.
Sam held a workshop and demo'ed his new AI-assisted inspiration tool for the first time. Daniel shot a wedding and an event and now has too much camera gear in his cart. A tale as old as time.
Daniel and Sam share updates from their past weeks, including the importance of owning a sump pump, the first trial run with the prototype Mirror Filter for headshots, and where they see evolution in their photography styles over the past decade.
Sam and Daniel accidentally start a business (or two) before diving into the why behind Daniel's self-portrait project.
That One Homepod Commercial — https://youtu.be/b4m_TmC8OEw
Daniel and Sam try to nail down their responsibility in using new technologies, how we go about building for them, and how we talk about them in public. Part one of seventeen or nine hundred.
Sam is deep in his website design. Daniel does his best to comfort him with a few little tips and tricks for content and SEO. Such as titling things like podcast episodes Content and SEO for Photographers! What a world we live in.
Daniel and Sam share a discussion with photographer Ryan Muirhead. We cover making work for yourself, healing through photography, selling your work (or not), and dumb jokes.
Reviews and ratings! Rating Reviews, reviewing rates, onward and upward. Talking about taking time and making time. Things should take time.
Daniel's Long Exposure photo mentioned at 17:00 — https://glass.photo/daniel/4g3YIfFkS0rk8K4jULG27m
Fly from one timezone to one five hours away, but only stay for a few days, fly home, and then prepare for a flight to one seven hours in the other direction. Somewhere in there, record a podcast.
As we prepare to start interviewing other photographers, we test a handful of interview questions on each other.
Daniel and Sam answer your questions about Glass, weddings, cameras, and creating. You know, the entire show is about that. But this is, like, explicitly about those things.
Daniel gives Sam a choice of a positive episode and a grumpy episode. Having chosen positive, Sam helps Daniel spend his holiday gift.
Daniel & Sam are joined by Glass cofounder and designer, Tom Watson. We get into the details of running an indie business, designing a non-addictive social network, and positive vibes.
Daniel accidentally wakes a very jet-lagged Sam, and then makes him talk about to-do lists, allergies, and being allergic to to-do lists.
We've got an early episode again this week. Recorded in January, Daniel & Sam get to know each other a bit. And then immediately dive into a debate about communities, identities, and the internet. As we do. Small memorials for apps past. RIP.
Daniel & Sam talk. That's, like, the whole thing, right? Sam solves conferences for Daniel for the 2025 Glass Conference. Sam preps for the start of wedding season. Daniel almost feels like a whole a human.
Recorded before we announced Endless Appreciation, join Daniel & Sam for a conversation about what the hell you do when you just don't have it.
Intro music! Outro music! We've got the music! Daniel & Sam discuss balancing marketing and timing. Oh, and Daniel gets depressed about the state of the internet. It doesn't get resolved. (Don't worry, it'll be a recurring theme.) We've got our first explicit language tag! Sorry, just had really strong opinions about a piece of software needing to go away.
Daniel and Sam talk through public speaking and hosting workshops. Or spending $75,000 on a camera set up that you don't need. A photographer favorite of "Does Gear Matter?" (Yes, of course it does.) Or optimizing your kit. Or how much Sam hates lens caps. Or what keeps Daniel up at night. Or the two minutes where Sam forgets that this is audio, not video. We've got options, folks.