Hwhup The Deans List? The Jason Dean here, bringing an end to the Weekend part of Labor Day weekend and by proxy- the whole freaking summer. This is the first Labor Day weekend in almost 15 years that there hasn’t been a school year for my family on the other side of it, so it’s a little bitter sweet. On the one hand, I am not going to have to wake up early in the morning five times a week to single-handedly drag two unwilling humans out of bed and out the door for 7-hour days in the American public school system. On the other hand, I never have to worry about getting to Graevaet insanely early on concert nights in order to get a decent parking spot ever again (editors note: double-check that you used ‘bittersweet’ correctly).

Anyways. Let’s get into it.

Economics

Okay, I’ve teased this for a couple of Weekenders in a row and you’ve all been insanely patient with me. Well, the time is now. Drumroll please…

(deep inhale) IPutInMyNoticeAtWorkAndI’mGoingToTryAndDoThisFull-timePhotographer/ArtistThingForALiving 😮‍💨.

You read that right, folks. Me, a life-long “play it safe, be conservative, don’t take risks, aspire to the 9-5, follow the rules, did I mention play it safe?” guy, is taking a risk and stepping away from a job that outwardly seems to be stable for a career that is less stable, not in the realm of my previous education or professional experience, and highly dependent on people having disposable income; income that, in the coming months, may have to be used to just buy fruits and vegetables.

Is this a mid-life crisis? Man, I hope so- that means I’ll live to 92!

I will have more to say about the transition and my reasons for it in a future edition of The Weekender. For now, let me just tell you I know this is 100% the right thing for me, even though it is a little unnerving to set out into open waters without the safety of institutionally-backed employment. It will be a challenge…but it is a challenge that I am ready to meet head on!

My last day as an office professional is October 17. Until then, I’ll be lighting some multiple-ended candles so to speak as I transition into a new existence so if you feel so moved, you can toss a few cups of coffee at me (to me?) in the link below!

Art

Between wrapping up projects for work and developing the infrastructure for my burgeoning new business (editors note: double-check that you used ‘burgeoning’ correctly), I’m extremely far behind on photo editing and sorting 😬. Fortunately, I do have a few images to share.

The above image was taken at the St. Clair River in Port Huron. Back in June, work took me to Port Huron. I’d never been there, so I took a slight detour to the river. Port Huron businesses have a lot of ‘Blue Water’ this and ‘Blue Water’ that, and I thought it was quite pretentious to be honest (pay no attention to the ‘Superior’ and ‘Fresh Coast’ labeling on every other business in Marquette)- but man, this water was BLUE. I didn’t spend a ton of time there because I was on my lunch break, but I definitely plan to get down there again!

Of course, it wouldn’t be Art Class if I didn’t share some of my more abstractier work. Like this shot, where I was able to isolate the focus point on the front-most edge of the leaf while the rest of the plant and the waterfall in the background (this was taken at Dead River Falls) fade softly into the background. This is easily one of my favorite photos I’ve taken so far in 2025.

I also enjoy finding focal points and then changing my angle so that I am shooting through a solid object. Most of the time, I end up with a really blurry picture of an unidentifiable solid object. Sometimes, I’m able to capture images like this:

And then there’s images like the one below that, full disclosure, I like but don’t love right now (although it is growing on me as I look at it while writing about how it was a mistake and should have never been born).

Exploring the boundaries of shape and form requires a lot of patience and finesse; things that admittedly I don’t currently have in abundance. Which is why I’m excited to dive in and really grow into this type of photography. I am just scratching the surface of what I can create. Check out this reel I recently shared on Instagram:

In that short video, you can see dozens of unique and interesting moments open up- all while I am just laying on the ground. The possibilities are both endless and all around us. What a beautiful world we live in!

Kind of a short one today (editors note: double-check that you used ‘short’ correctly) as I am looking forward to enjoying the swan song of another beautiful Michigan summer by mostly staying indoors because this has been one of the worst fall allergy seasons in recent memory. I’m glad to know that my inner Emergency Broadcast System is working beautifully...other than, you know, not understanding that this is only a test.

Thanks for being you and being cool with me to be me! Have a wonderful Labor Day, friends 😊

See you around,

Jason