Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Kelley.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in a farming town in Arkansas that was far too small to hold my ambitions, my dreams, my hunger, or me…
Always a creative, I was a band kid who made art, wrote scripts and stories, and shot short horror films before the age of YouTube. (My mother always brings up the story of coming home to find my younger sister in a long black wig drenched in water. Sorry sis.) I did my own thing. I clearly didn’t fit the country, football-playing mold of my peers; I couldn’t even pretend in my wildest imagination. What I did imagine, however, was a new perspective.
I started finding that shift in perspective in college. It was a new place I’d never lived full of new people I’d never met. Our stories all different, yet equally intriguing. That love of stories inadvertently led me to study journalism–something I never considered doing but made sense immediately. I got to write, shoot and edit video, produce live shows, etc. More importantly, I got to create and share new perspectives.
Over a decade later, I’ve not stopped. Those starry-eyed ambitions of that young Arkansas boy have moved me to three states so far, telling the stories of a university, high profile business leaders, a state legislature, a television station, and now a nonprofit. My video and photo work has garnered several awards, appeared on a number of publications and platforms and was recently featured in a First Friday art show.
The road from that small town has been rough, but interesting and full of character nonetheless. Stories are our personal currency, and my life is much richer having made transactions with as many people as I have. And here’s to many more.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The ability to see things through a different lens isn’t just a professional skill I’ve studied and practiced. It’s always been inherently part of me. When I said I didn’t fit the mold before, it wasn’t just my lack of athleticism or my penchant for the arts. It was growing up gay in the Deep South.
It took me years to process and understand how I felt, but in retrospect, I realize that was a core perspective that shaped the way I saw things growing up. It shaped the way I navigated through a minefield of impending judgment and ostracization. And, ultimately, shaped the way I’d pick up that shame moving forward. I was never going to fit that mold; I just wasn’t meant to. And that’s okay.
That metaphorical lens is now the one attached to my camera, looking at the world slightly differently as I photograph my way through my travels and walks around the neighborhood. Creating visually striking images has become a form of therapy for me; putting something beautiful out in a world that can sometimes be rather ugly. That’s what I choose to focus on anyway.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My work ranges between writing, video production, and communications; it’s kept me incredibly busy. What I’m probably most known for, however, is my photography on Instagram.
What started as me taking photos of peculiar light fixtures, turned into me feeling confident enough to put my own vision forward despite the criticisms, to now having been featured in an art show and selling my prints. Who would’ve thought?
By no means am I an influencer here…far from it. I’m just a regular dude who just enjoys creating stuff. But it is always incredibly humbling to meet someone who recognizes or follows my work or even wants to buy it. I’m deeply grateful and appreciative to those who’ve supported, encouraged, and inspired me along the way.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
We hear that word a lot, don’t we? Some use its weight as if it’s the very measure of our value. However, I don’t think success can be so easily defined; I think of it more as a spectrum depending on where one is at the time.
Success can be obvious like accomplishing a long-sought goal, landing a dream job, or creating a masterpiece. Sure, that’s great. For some, success can be letting go of a toxic relationship or finding something new they enjoy. And for some, success can be just getting out of bed that day, and I totally respect that.
Those moments in life that fuel your soul to keep going, whether big or small — that’s success.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @jkportrays
- Other: https://vimeo.com/jakelley
Image Credits
Josh Kelley
