We recently connected with Hadley Dye and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Hadley, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
My creative journey truly started in the Spring of 2018. I was 16 years old and really lost in life, having just been released from an extremely abusive TTI program where I had developed C-PTSD among other things. I started taking photos of friends and landscapes as an escape and a form of therapy. From March to August, taking photos was just a hobby that I never imagined would blossom into my future career. Having faith in myself has taken me places I never could’ve imagined.
At the tail end of the summer going into my sophomore year, I met this guy named Snake who grew up with several major Atlanta artists, including YFN Lucci and Rich Homie Quan. He knew I was taking photos at the time and invited me to shoot the last date of Rich Homie Quan’s 2018 tour. For anyone reading this, think of the joy you felt when you opened your favorite Christmas gift. That joy you felt was what I felt upon hearing I would get the chance to shoot for one of my favorite artists.
On August 18, 2018, my life changed forever. The concert was held at the Masquerade, and it was f*cking electric. The camera I took with me was my mother’s rarely used Canon T5i with a 18-55mm kit lens. I was able to shoot on stage, backstage, and in the photo pit. I met two other photographers there that day who would end up becoming great friends of mine. Shoutout to the homies, Will and Daytona. I realized a few days after that concert that I wanted to pursue and build a career as a portrait photographer in the Atlanta music industry.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Hadley Dye, and I’m an Atlanta-based female portrait photographer and graphic designer. I currently specialize in music and lifestyle photography. I was born in Atlanta, GA in January 2002 during a Southern blizzard. From a young age I had dreams of working in the music industry. I tried my hand at producing beats in middle school but failed miserably. At some point during my teenage years, I wanted to be a combat photographer, but that was before I learned you still had to go through basic training. Eventually, I found my place as a photographer in the music industry. Like many of the creatives of my generation, I’m self-taught in both of my disciplines. I’m constantly learning, leveling up, and renovating my craft. I never took a photography class in school. YouTube, trial and error, and repetition has been my photography education thus far. Some of my biggest inspirations have been Chi Modu, Gunner Stahl, Cam Kirk, and Pi’erre Bourne.
I’m known for my striking candid portraits. I prefer shooting that way as I find that the emotion is more raw and genuine. The results come out more natural in my opinion. I also find it to be more comfortable for my clients and myself. I shoot great posed photos too, but my bread and butter is definitely candid. Since 2018, my work has been featured on The Source, HipHopSince1987, FOX 5 Atlanta, TMZ, IMDb, SCADConnector, among others.
I offer photography, videography, and graphic design services. I’m like your one-stop shop. I want potential clients to know that my work is driven by passion, each project is the gas that fuels my creative tank. What I think sets me apart from others, is that I treat my clients like family, I don’t cut corners, and I offer a 10% cash back program if my client’s referral books a shoot with me or commissions a design from me. I’m all about comfort, so if you need to listen to music, take a break, or eat a snack while we’re shooting, go for it. I also want my clients to be comfortable sharing their vision, preferred style, and any other concerns during the booking process, so I can tailor their shoot to the best of my ability. Good communication on both ends is essential.
My brand is HADS404, HADS stands for Humans Achieving Dope Shit and 404 is the Atlanta area code. I love working with dope humans. I love my city and will never say goodbye to Atlanta. This city is filled to the brim with art and artists of all disciplines. We’re the rap capital of the world and the 2nd biggest hub for the film industry, right behind Hollywood. The meaning of HADS is important to me because in the future I want to form a collective of artists and want it to be inclusive. I also have a Humans Achieving Dope Shit tattoo on my arm.
Some fun facts about me
• I’m a Capricorn
• I’m disabled
• I have four tattoos
• I’m a cat person
• I was in an ESPN/SEC commercial when I was 9 years old
• My dream camera is a Canon R5 MkII
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The amount of people I’ve been able to meet over the years has been extremely rewarding. I’ve met people of all walks of life. I’ve met lifelong friends, great clients, and worked with some of my favorite artists during this journey.
Being able to serve my community in a creative way is rewarding. Hearing people tell me that I’ve inspired them is beautiful, and I’m so grateful that I’ve been able to make a positive impact on others.
The art I create is rewarding. I love being able to capture ephemeral moments, moods, and perspectives that would otherwise go unnoticed because they change in a fraction of a second. I enjoy being able to constantly explore and push boundaries, both personally and within my work. Art has no rules. Art is freedom. You can create anything you want. I enjoy looking back on old shoots I’ve done and having all the memories and nostalgia rush back into my mind. It’s a natural high that has no ill effects on your health.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
As creatives, we pour everything into our work. Non-creatives only see the finished work and typically don’t comprehend or realize how much work went into getting there. As a photographer, the majority of my shoots last 1-2 hours, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I spend anywhere from 6-18 hours importing, culling, editing, exporting, and curating to get to the finish line. Those hours spent grinding are rarely given any thought by outsiders. During more complex photography projects, those hours turn into days. For video projects, I may be editing for a week or more.
The creative process is just like one’s success in life, it’s not linear. There are ups and downs, lefts and rights, dead ends, and roadblocks. It’s full of trial and error. Sometimes the brilliant idea in your head completely implodes, like the Georgia Dome, when you try to execute it. Other times, the idea in your head may seem like a failure, yet it ends up blowing your mind when you execute it. Separating criticism of your work from criticism of yourself can get difficult. It’s one big gamble.
If you freelance like I do, there are months when you’ll get a ton of bookings and other months when you’ll get little to no bookings. There are a lot of unknowns, but it’s all part of the journey.
Another thing, creative block is real. It can be extremely frustrating and fill you with lots of self-doubt about yourself and your work. Creative block isn’t just being uninspired, it can also initiate imposter syndrome, potential of burnout, lack of motivation, and overthinking/perfectionism. I’ve experienced my fair share of all of that. The worst part about creative block is the fact that it can take days, weeks, or months to go away.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://hads404.com
- Instagram: @hads404
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hadleydye202323
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@hads404
Image Credits
Profile Photo: Joseph Ragland
Interview Photos: Hadley Dye