Because of the pandemic, the last couple of years were pretty challenging for many of us.

I will be forever grateful for all of the generous individuals who helped our little studio survive the financial challenges imposed by the pandemic. Your response of love and help was totally amazing and humbling. During the brunt of the pandemic, our studio was completely shut down for a year, and I redesigned all of my classes to be presented over Zoom sessions. I thank all of you who took those classes during our most-challenging time.

To reciprocate for all of your kind support during that time, I also did something to help others who wanted to take my classes but similarly were experiencing financial hardships. I took a leap of faith and made my classes be priced to whatever you could afford. My pandemic pricing scheme was quite simple: “name your own price.” That worked out beautifully.

Ultimately, we got through the worst of the pandemic by helping each other. We got through this together.

I just wanted to celebrate that. I am so very grateful to all of you, my clients, students, and friends.

Kevin Gourley

I have known far too many photographers who have gotten caught up into comparing their work with others, feeling discouraged that their work is just not good enough. While it is true that this can serve as a great motivator to learn more, improve technique, and grow in technical skills, discouragement also can sometimes stifle creativity and inspiration. If you make mistakes (and we all do) don’t let that discourage you. Learn from your mistakes and move on! That is a good strategy for life in general.

I am a big believer in all artists pursuing their art simply because they enjoy it. Experiment, explore, and find your unique path in artistic creation. You don’t have to “be like everyone else.” You don’t have to enter photo contests to prove your worth to the world. Art does not have to be a competition. Yes, it IS sufficient if you are happy with the art you are creating. That is enough. Find what YOU enjoy and DO THAT.

Doing what YOU enjoy, expressing your art in YOUR way, celebrates your uniqueness and is the gift you bring to the world.

Happy Picture-Creating, my friends!

Kevin

I thought I’d share a few quotes from various wise people, some thoughts to consider:

• “The position of the artist is humble. He is essentially a channel.” – Piet Mondrian
• “Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” – Scott Adams
• “When you can do a common thing in an uncommon way; you will command the attention of the world.” – George Washington Carver
• “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” – Sylvia Plath
• “We all get so afraid of vulnerability that we actually stop trying to do things that we are not already good at doing.  When we give up being new and awkward, we stop growing and we stop living.” – Brene Brown
• “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” – Dr. Suess
• “The easiest thing to be in the world is you. The most difficult thing to be is what other people want you to be.” – Leo Buscaglia
• “It’s better to fail in originality, than succeed in imitation.” – Herman Melville
• “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” – Pablo Picasso
• “You may not be a Picasso or Mozart but you don’t have to be. Just create to create. Create to remind yourself you’re still alive. Make stuff to inspire others to make something too. Create to learn a bit more about yourself.” – Frederick Terral
• “Find something only you can say” – James Dickey
• “I’m not very creative” doesn’t work. There’s no such thing as creative people and non-creative people. There are only people who use their creativity and people who don’t. Unused creativity doesn’t just disappear. It lives within us until it’s expressed, neglected to death, or suffocated by resentment and fear.” – Brene Brown
• “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” – Pablo Picasso
• “No person has the right to dictate what other people should perceive, create or produce. Everyone should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” – Ansel Adams
• “Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.” – Tom Peters
• “Go and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make. Good. Art.” – Neil Gaiman

I have a class that might help you if you are feeling stuck, not sure what you might do to find new inspiration or creativity:

Photography: Finding Your Way – Creativity and Inspiration Workshop
Whether you are just starting out in photography or you have years of experience, this class will meet you where you are and help you find new directions to head to discover your unique artistic expression in photography! Fall in love with photography, all over again!

I have always loved photography.

With my having a Master of Science Degree and a love of art, photography is a perfect combination of science and art for me.

I also love teaching. The first photography class I ever taught was back in college, which was decades ago. I have since organized numerous photography groups in the Austin area, and have taught countless numbers of photographers from beginner to very advanced.

I love helping people improve their photography skills and find their own artistic expression through the camera. In my later years, especially, I am finding great joy in that. (That’s one reason I encourage every photographer take my “Photograph: Finding Your Way: Creativity and Inspiration Workshop.“)

To be honest, I’ve never been one who is too motivated to “market myself” to impress others about how great I am. In fact, in many cases, ego gets in the way of true artistic expression. I believe we all just need to pursue the art that excites and inspires us without worrying about comparing ourselves to others.

I love this insight from Ansel Adams:

“No person has the right to dictate what other people should perceive, create or produce. Everyone should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” – Ansel Adams

When I look back on my career, what I remember most fondly are the experiences I have had and the wonderful people I have met along the way. In fact, I can honestly say I have really loved the people and the experiences even more than the photography itself.

I feel so blessed to have had this experience as a photographer and educator and friend to so many people who have come through the door of studio or joined me on our many destination workshops.

What I find particularly touching are all the kind and humbling words I have heard from former clients/students. Thank you for that.

Click Here to See What Former Students Have Said

I am in a perpetual journey of gratitude for my experiences with all of you. Thank you all for being a part of my life, either because you gave me the honor of allowing me to photograph you or teach you about the art and science of photography.

Kevin Gourley

It is often so tempting to think the most important aspect of our photography is the camera we own. Ansel Adam’s insight is critical for all of us photographers to acknowledge. “The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it!” (YOU).

If you want to improve your photography, instead of upgrading your camera, upgrade the photographer! Photography is all about YOU and how you see the world around you, AND it is about operating that little machine called the camera. Remember the camera is just a machine. You are the artist.

We offer a workshop that I encourage ALL photographers to take. It is called “Photography: Finding Your Way – Creativity and Inspiration Workshop.”

If you are wondering what steps you can take to advance your photography, this class will help you discover the way forward. It is about photography. It is about you. It is about your art. It is about creative expression. It is what I wholeheartedly believe all photographers will benefit from exploring.

Journey with us as we help you find your way to better photography, greater artistic inspiration, and if you feel like you’ve been in a rut, we’ll get you out of that rut and back on the road to creativity!

See what former class participants have said about my Photography: Finding Your Way – Creativity and Inspiration Workshop:

• “I really didn’t think I needed this class, but I signed up anyway. Wow, I am SO glad I did. This class totally renewed my passion for photography and how I see the world around me! I fell in love with photography all over again! Thank you!!!”
• “It’s so easy as an amateur photographer to become overwhelmed with all the technical aspects of photography. And as a photographer at any level, there is often an expectation of working to get the best technical picture. Kevin does a wonderful job of teaching the technical aspects of photography, for sure, but his Finding Your Way class focuses instead on the joy of photography, on photography as an experience and way to express ourselves. We are all creative beings, an image of the great Creator, and it is healing to the soul to pursue that. In addition to revealing the depth of Kevin as an amazing person, this class gives permission and encouragement to explore our individual path of creativity using photography. We laughed, we cried, we learned, and we found the spark that drew us to photography in the first place. Thanks, Kevin.”
• “I just finished taking Kevin’s “Finding Your Way” Workshop. Wow. I have been a passionate photographer for most of my life but over the last 18 months I have struggled due to my health. As a nature, wildlife and landscape photographer it became very difficult to photograph the things that spoke to me for so long. So, having taken many classes from Kevin before, I decided to see if I could re-ignite my flame for photography. I did some soul searching and was able to focus my attention using a different approach. Now I have several projects lined up as well as a strategy of combining three of these projects together to reach a goal. Kevin, as always, you never disappoint. You are not only a great photographer and teacher but even more importantly a great person. I can recommend Kevin’s workshops without reservation. Thanks so much.” – Don Simpson
• “Thank you for providing an avenue for me to begin to recapture my love of photography!”
• “When I was preparing my homework for the Finding Your Way class, I found that I actually enjoyed it; whereas, in the past the thought of sharing my work with others absolutely terrified me. This is huge.“
• “If you are in a rut and don’t know what to shoot or don’t even know if you still like to shoot, you MUST take this class. It is a virtual buffet of ideas that builds on itself each day of the class. There are dozens of ideas, videos, music, poems that are guaranteed to stimulate your imagination and make you want to get out and start taking pictures. This is one of the best photography classes I have taken in a long time and I now have a long list of project ideas to work with. Even if you have great technical skills or know everything you need to know about Photoshop and Lightroom, this class is for you. It is not about skills, it is about tapping into your creative mind which so often gets pushed to the side. This is one of the best investments you can make as a photographer.”
• “This class has been an inspiration, and an opportunity to once again learn how photographers see so differently from one another. I have learned much from your sharing of your photo projects, and from the other participants as well. It’s been a great use of my time and effort!“
• “Thank you for a wonderful workshop. I always believed you could not teach someone to be creative. You did it. I came home with many ideas that I could tackle that would bring my unique self to my photographs.”
• “This class is different than any other photography course I’ve ever taken in that it lends one to truly thinking about photography in a way that deepens the connection and benefit one gets from not only taking images, but how they interpret and share them. The material and content was diverse and thorough and ultimately Kevin assembled and presented a large collection of information that everyone can put in their personal creative toolbox and use it every time they use their camera. As usual, Kevin also provides nice outlines and a notebook to memorialize the experience and collective analysis of a topic that any photographer who is wanting to up their personal approach will take aways in a very meaningful manner.”
• “I took this class last year and it was so good and inspiring and so broad in its scope. I could not imagine how I could learn creativity by taking a class, and I was so shocked to discover how well you did it.”
• “I want to tell you that the class yesterday was EXCELLENT. It is different than any other and better than most any. I have played it over in my mind many times even in the short time since it ended.”
• “Great inspiration and offerings to stretch my thinking when considering a photograph. Made me THINK! And finally a photography project to implement those thoughts.”
• “Once in awhile, as constant learner, you take a class that shifts your way of thinking and approach to a subject. I found Kevin’s course to have that affect. As an amateur and hobbyist photographer, I really appreciated Kevins approach to looking inside your self and how you view it vs. getting new equipment or going to an exotic place for inspiration. As the saying goes the change comes within yourself. I like this new approach to getting out of a rut. Kevin also demonstrated that you can take your photography to other venues of providing service . I think this helped me look at possibilities of going into a different venue for photography. That in itself was worth the class. I highly recommend this class if you want to start carrying your camera again and just start shooting. Great course.”
• “Kevin presented a rousing, creative program that really enabled me to visualize a host of new directions for me move that will give me more joy in my photography. He helped me ‘take my blinders off.’ Now it’s apparent that there is a universe of new ways to help make my photos more meaningful TO ME!”
• “I felt the thoughtful, caring attitude that was projected not only by the teacher but students was the strong point. I very much liked the huge number of thought provoking suggestions and the videos were delightful but more than that they got the points across.”
• “I like the stimulation to get out of my photographic rut(s). Showing me innumerable examples of different photographic approaches was very helpful. But mostly, I liked your non-critical, non-directive encouragement for me to find more satisfying ways to enjoy photography.”
• “I have been on a number of workshops with Kevin, which were all amazing, but this was exceptionally different.”
• “a chance to consider new ideas and approaches, a chance to try new things”
• “I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for new sparks or wanting to push yourself in new ways creatively and technically.”
• “really helped me to look at my photography in a more emotional way rather than being so concerned about technical aspects”
• “I loved the projects and homework we were given to apply the information after leaving the workshop”
• “It was a fantastic experience.”
• “Kevin’s creative ideas for sparking photographic enthusiasm and the opportunity to think about project ideas, and go out and photograph with that new philosophy, made holding a camera in my hand new and exciting again.”