It can be intimidating to approach an established, highly regarded artist - especially when their CV is long and loaded. Nonetheless, I bit the bullet and emailed Doug DuBois a few questions. Of course he was super nice and nothing but down to earth and thoughtful in his answering of my questions. Find out how he takes his coffee and what he thinks about Instagram.

You got your MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1988. I live in San Francisco so I'm especially curious what it was like then. What you were like then? What was it like being a photographer in this city at that time?
I lived with a roommate in a rent controlled apartment on Filbert St just under Coit Tower. The city was relatively inexpensive then and, if you got lucky, you could find something affordable in pretty much any neighborhood. While the haute cuisine of Chez Panisse, et al was in full swing, food was affordable all over the city.

I worked as a color printer in a lab on Howard Street to make my rent and buy film. The owner was quite generous and let me use the lab on evenings and weekends to do my own work. Towards the end of my time there I printed on weekends with Larry Sultan for his exhibition at MOMA in New York. We would go to openings at SF Camerawork, New Langton Arts and dream of being artists. Ahh, it sounds so beautiful and nostalgic.

It was beautiful – I was young with no money and little responsibility. I was learning constantly. I was lucky – although I didn’t think about it at the time -- to be there.

How do you take your coffee?
A cappuccino with 1% milk in the morning (I make it at home). A macchiato in the afternoon (when I have time) and the occasional espresso at night. No sugar.

On hot days, iced espresso with tonic.

I can definitely blame Café Trieste in North Beach for making me a coffee snob.

I see you've travelled a lot for work - is there a place on your bucket list? Where are you based now and what is it like?
I’m really not that well traveled – I’ve never been to China, India, Africa – or Spain for that matter. Most of the world is still on my bucket list.

I live in Syracuse, NY. It’s a rust-belt town and a considerable distance, north-west from NYC. The city has edges – some of the poorest neighborhoods in the US – along with a diverse and growing (despite Trump’s best efforts) immigrant community.

I teach at Syracuse University which houses Lightwork, one of the best artist in residence programs/ateliers for photography in the US.

““Art making is work, get at it and let that be your reward. All else is pomp and circumstance.””

— Doug Dubois

Do you believe in this statement: "You either got it or you don't."
No. I’ve been teaching for well over 25 years and do everything I can to dismiss and debunk mythical notions about artistic genius.

As an accomplished and established artist, having published multiple books and given gobs of lectures: What would be your single most important advice to an aspiring artist?
Utterly ignore the statement in the previous question. Art making is work, get at it and let that be your reward. All else is pomp and circumstance.

That answer was a bit flipant – just stay focused, keep the faith and don’t let the trappings of fame, celebrity or artistic pretense distract you.

““Stay focused, keep the faith and don’t let the trappings of fame, celebrity or artistic pretense distract you.””

— Doug Dubois

Describe your perfect day:
I have an 11 month old son. On one hand, a perfect day is spent with him and his mother. On the other, a perfect day is getting away and getting some work done. Pretty much every day is a difficult balance between the two.

I'm interested in the way you compose your images...the way you place people and things. In terms of composition, do you have any die hard rules or do you subscribe to the "go with your gut" theory? Is it a combination? A percentage? Tell us your secrets!
There are no rules and no secrets. Whatever I’ve learned about composition comes from looking at photographs, films, paintings, etc. Like the eco-system of bacteria in your gut, it all comes from somewhere else. The more things I look at with intelligence and discernment (I’m not interested in everything) the more diverse and accommodating my gut is.

In my computer I have folders of film stills that I used to draw on to make photographs. At one time I collected postcards of Renaissance portrait paintings with interesting and subtle hand gestures and gazes. I have a stupid amount of photo books. All of this and more is in my gut.

““I find Instagram, in general, too noisy and inarticulate for my taste. I don’t have the patience to wade through it. I tease my students that it’s the junk food of photography and it makes their brains and eyes fat and lazy. I don’t really believe that, but when I see the glass eyed swiping that goes on everywhere, I wonder. “”

— Doug Dubois

Do you have an Instagram account? Would you say 'Yay' or 'Nay' to social media?
I have a private account that I’ve never posted to. I set it up to look at the work of Ruddy Roye – a photographer that makes very intelligent use of social media.

I find Instagram, in general, too noisy and inarticulate for my taste. I don’t have the patience to wade through it. I tease my students that it’s the junk food of photography and it makes their brains and eyes fat and lazy. I don’t really believe that, but when I see the glass eyed swiping that goes on everywhere, I wonder.

Is there anyone that you would absolutely refuse to photograph?
It depends on the context and the use of the image. I’m not sure I’d photograph Trump for a profile in People Magazine (not that they would ask me), but I might for a critical piece of writing in the New Yorker.

Are you an early bird or a night owl?
I peak at 2 pm – what does that make me, a mid-afternoon pigeon?