Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ryan Bruce. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ryan, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

By far the most meaningful project I have ever worked on was making a feature film with some of my closest friends. I got my masters degree in theatre (directing emphasis) and due to the collaborative nature of theatre I developed some really deep relationships. That time in my life also coincided with a genuine passion for photography. Naturally, the intersection of theatre and photography led to exploring filmmaking avenues. After making several short films we set out to make a feature length film. And we set out with quite lofty goals, but ultimately the real reason that the film was such a meaningful project was because it remains a beautiful document of that stage of my life: the relationships, the beginning of a larger creative journey, and the profound experience of how potential becomes real if you just have the courage to put ideas into action.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

For the sake of brevity I tend to tell people that I am a “people photographer” but through my decade as a working photographer my focus has definitely evolved. My photography beginnings came during grad school for theatre so my first paid work involved shooting headshots for actors, and while my skill and style has evolved I still really love the one on one experience of shooting portraits, from children to professional headshots, and everything in between. Over the past few years my focus has shifted to the world of dance. My undergrad was in fashion design, and that combined with a masters in theatre, photography, and filmmaking, made the move to dance rather seamless. The result is that I get to work with the professional dance companies and choreographers here in Kansas City in a myriad of ways, from performance to dance films to studio photography work. I absolutely love collaborating with other artists, and that is especially true with dance, and I’m never happier than when I’m able to combine my creativity with the creative energy of others. And the amount of time I spend creating that work, thinking about that work, and constantly trying to find a way to make the work more personal and more unique tells me that I’m headed in the right direction.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

For me my goal right now is to move away from creating work specifically for a client, and move towards creating work and finding the audience afterwards. This is often broadly referred to as “fine art photography”, and although the destination is not totally clear to me, I feel compelled to move in that direction.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I knew how important it is to connect with other creatives, and often all it takes is sending a message or email to make that happen. Those other creatives then become an excellent resource for maybe showing you other potential avenues to go down, other people you can reach out to, and perhaps they might just show to you, or reveal to you, an avenue that you definitely don’t want to go down.

Contact Info:

• Website: ryanandrewbruce.com
• Instagram: @ryanandrewbruce
• Twitter: @ryanandrewbruce

Image Credits
All photos taken by Ryan Andrew Bruce