“Give me a place to stand on, and I can move the earth.” – Archimedes. Confidence is everything my friends. I can recall many awesome experiences in my life as an artist (a person who creates). I’ve always had a vivid and strong imagination. I won my first art contest at 6 years of age and won 4 years in a row after that in my local town. Many people are not aware of this, but I was a very gifted and talented drawer/sketcher. Throughout middle school, I won and came a close second local and national competitions.

During my high school years, I gave up and threw it all away because of a lack of confidence in myself and my work. After high school, I often attempted to draw again; only to discover the talent had eroded and my passion was only a flicker of a once roaring fire.

I decided to try photography. I remember loving it in high school..but hey!! it was high school, and distractions were all around. But despite only having a 3rd of my attention; a seed was planted with photography. Many years had passed before I decided to give photography a legitimate shot and also afford a decent camera. I was immediately hooked!! The fire that left with my art had come back. I was reborn with new imagination and a desire to create. I realized I love photography more than I did drawing and thought I could never give up on it. As the years went by of receiving only minimal love and support for my passion I wanted to give up..again!! I heard about a seminar being giving by one of my favorite photographers and decided to give it one last hoorah!

Meeting Joe McNally was probably one of the most surreal moments of my life. Not only did I meet him, But I he chose me to be a test model for the day of the seminar. Nervously, I agreed and it was AMAZING!!. After the seminar I went to see if Joe was still available so that I could retrieve the frames he had taken. Luckily he was. He began to talk to me about my career and confidence as he packed up. Joe gave my dreams hope and me a new confidence in my work. I spoke with him for an hour about not giving up on something you love… I will continue to grow and perfect my craft. Because I believe in it, and I believe in capturing the human experience!!

Believe in your work and it will believe in you- G. Fikes