Trying Is Cool: AD Sneaks on Photography, Teaching, and Why the Work Behind the Photo Is the Whole Point

About this episode

Andrew Dutton discusses his journey from a digital media teacher to a prominent sneaker photographer and author.

Andrew Dutton, better known as @ad__sneaks on Instagram, has built one of the most recognizable sneaker photography accounts anywhere online. Hundreds of thousands of followers. Features from Complex. Brand invitations to NBA All-Star Weekend. And a coffee table book, The Art of the Sneaker , releasing March 24th , that nobody saw coming... including him. Nick and Andy get into how a digital media teacher from rural Idaho turned a COVID-era passion project into a published photography book, what it actually looks like behind the scenes of those perfectly lit shots, and why "trying is cool" might be the most important creative philosophy nobody is talking about enough. They also get into the The Gathering experience and what it means to find your people in a culture that's increasingly fragmented across algorithms, how sneakers have always been a connector more than a commodity, and why the work behind the photo matters just as much as the photo itself. If you've ever thought about turning your passion into something bigger, this one's for you. The Art of the Sneaker is available for pre-order now at Andy's Instagram bio and will be available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and…

People in this episode

Hosts: Nick, Andy

Guest: Andrew Dutton

Topics covered

• sneaker photography
• creative philosophy
• digital media
• community
• passion projects

Keywords

• sneaker photography
• The Art of the Sneaker
• Andrew Dutton
• COVID-era passion project
• creative philosophy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Complex, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Patreon

Products: The Art of the Sneaker

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