Often there is no book or course to learn how to do what you want to do – so how artists and creatives overcome such challenges? How have some of the most talented artists and creatives in the community managed to learn their craft?

Carol Schiraldi

People often ask if you are born a photographer or if it is something you can learn. I feel it’s a little bit of both. Photographers are observers, storytellers, poets, and masters of light. These are often things you cannot learn in a book. Most of my knowledge comes from watching, working with experts at the craft, and asking a lot of questions, plus observing things, and, of course, a lot of trial and error. Read more>>

Tony Logan

When it comes to fashion and writing, both have to deal with finding your style. Music was my entryway into fashion because music videos were style tutorials on how to look, act, and feel growing up in the 90s. Early hip-hop visuals gave me a visual of different lifestyles, showcasing a lifestyle I couldn’t even imagine as a young teen. Later, blogging became a way for me to document fashion through style editorials for websites and magazines like Solediction, GQ, The Stndrd, and Vouch Mag. Both of these outlets significantly influenced how I would later become a Personal Stylist and Journalist. Read more>>

Savannah and Ryan Parker

Ryan: Well we learned about graphic design and photography in college. We both majored in graphic design at Barry university in Miami Shores. I know me personally, I had a great experience learning these skills because I had not only professors teaching me but my sister as well. I would say something that I know now that I wish I knew back then would have to be shortcuts in Adobe. Read more>>

Tara Love

I was blessed with the gift of vocal ability. It was quite natural for this path to occur, and it has led me to crafting my own musical creations. My craft is to develop, relearn, and realign myself. It is imperative to have knowledge of self, and to display that energy into the art I release. Read more>>

Dee w/ DeeplusDesigns

I learned how to crochet by attending YouTube University. haha. Years ago, I had a friend who had recently got into the craft and it intrigued me as it reminded me of yarn projects I use to do when I was in elementary school. Read more>>

Danielle Kennedy

A lot of what I’ve learned about photography is self taught. I’ve also have met some amazing photographers that have been willing to share their knowledge and show me a lot of how they do their style. I’ve also worked for a couple photo companies and have learned some things from them as well. Though I tend to take everything I’ve learned from all that and tweak everything to suit my style. Read more>>

Vanessa Gamboa

Having a good understanding of how hair works takes time. In cosmetology school you just learn the basics. Its nothing like when you are out in the “real world” doing your client’s hair. I did most of my learning when I started my job at Urban Betty Salon. I was an associate for about 7 months. Read more>>

Sir Thomas

I learned the basic fundamentals of poetry in English class when I was in school. Part of the curriculum consisted of reading classical poetry. Also, a requirement was to identify and explain the different literary devices used to comprise these poems. My first attempt at writing poetry consisted of this classical form of poetry. Read more>>

Hayley Labrum Morrison

My primary artistic proficiency is painting. I began painting in high school, taking as many classes as I could in public school as well as private watercolor lessons senior year. I wanted to dive deeper into art, so I earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art from BYU Provo. I worked part time as a mural painter my senior year and after graduation in 2008, but put a full-time practice on hold. Read more>>

Marquise Wells

I first picked up a camera in 2002 when I was a senior in high school. Fine Arts was a graduation requirement and I chose photography as my fine art. I learned how to use film first. I learned how to use a camera. Read more>>

Greg Montique

The process was part schooling, part experimentation, and a lot of YouTube and Google. My degree is in video game design which gave me a base-level understanding of the software needed to produce a podcast. Getting our conversational flow took a while and refining the sound took a bit longer. You have no idea how long it takes to learn not to consistently talk over each other. Read more>>

Allie Nelson

I got started with photography when I was 13 years old. My father worked as a wedding photographer all my life growing up. Once digital cameras became mainstream, I was able to tag along with him and try my hand at photography. My father quickly saw that I had a decent eye for photography and soon got me my first camera—a Nikon D5000. I was so excited to try all new kinds of photography with a camera of my own. He assigned me weekly themes for me to try and capture: light, shadow, nature, etc. I loved the challenge and he taught me how to shoot on manual. I craved the knowledge and that helped me learn quickly. Read more>>

Valoramous

To learn the craft as a record producer and DJ, I expended thousands of hours in practice, reflection, self-study, and education, as well as a considerable sum of money in hardware and software. Read more>>

Ryan Lau

It’s taken my all my life to learn my craft. I started out as a touring guitar player and I was always drawn to adding parts, or learning all the elements to the song. What makes this song what it is? What are all the layers here? I don’t think there is a way to “speed up” the process of learning how to add meaningful and creative layers to a song. Read more>>

Matt Scott

I am primarily self-taught within my field, luckily I was around at the beginning of social media and YouTube, so I had access to a lot of resources to learn this craft. I was (and still am) able to reach out to other artists in the field who are much more skilled than I am and pick their brains and get help from them. I also did a lot of trial and error. Have an idea, try it, have it fail, then try again. That is one of the most important processes in learning. Read more>>

Billboard Chaz

I learned to do what I do just by being a super hands on learner. Once I got my hands on photoshop it was really just practice practice practice and a whole lot of trial and error until I got to the point where I am now with it and it’s second nature. Something I could have done to speed up the process would have probably been going to school to learn the foundational skills and fundamentals. Since I’m self taught I learned everything on my own. Read more>>

Eric Ryles

At an early age, I was always into artwork and paintings. Photography, to me, is nothing but artwork. I had learned photography by looking at video tutorials, hands-on training and guidance from mentors. I had also attended photography workshops. But most importantly, practice was key. Knowing what I know now, I could have been more consistent. Read more>>

Carly Dagit

The truth is I am still learning how to be a comedian and a writer. I love the feeling that I’ll never be finished because there will always be something I can improve about my craft. I also love the immediacy that comes with learning these skills, meaning the best way to continue learning is to continue doing. For anyone interested in comedy, Read more>>

Brian Hampton

I’d say learning the craft is something that came through trial and experience. I’ve always had an innate creative sense since I was a kid. In reference to my experiences in media journalism, I just started writing and publishing my work through my blog in 2015 and then it was recognized by other outlets whereby I was asked to be a contributor. Read more>>

Horace Glasper

I learned my craft by reading about my hero’s like Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy. I used to go to the library by my house and sit for hours and days reading . Then finally when my time came to perform I learned from seasoned professionals in the city by watching them nightly. I was never afraid to ask questions or take chances even it meant going to another city in the middle of the night with nothing but my suitcase. I was never afraid to take a chance and bet on myself! Read more>>

Emily DeMeo

I originally began Of Light & Letters as just a calligrapher. I had started off learning the basic strokes through hand-lettering long before I ever picked up my first pointed pen. The internet is an amazing place full of resources, and through social media, youtube videos, and Skillshare, I quickly found myself falling in love with the art of modern calligraphy. There was definitely a learning curve involved- what types of nibs work best on handmade paper, testing inks and determining just the right consistency. While I adored calligraphy (and still do!), I also felt the pull toward the world of design and printed paper goods. Read more>>

Samson Huang

I dove into my art classes in High School where my works of art caught the attention of my teachers and won competitions and awards. Although my HS counselor encouraged me to apply to some of the best art schools in this country, I chose instead to study computer engineering in college to ease the concerns of my working class immigrant parents. Pursuing a career as an artist in a struggling immigrant family of 6 living below the poverty level was never an option for me on the table. Read more>>

Andrew Keo

Photography definitely came naturally to me, but that’s also due to my 4 years in art school training to be a 3D Animator plus having worked at multiple animation studios under amazing art directors and soaking up everything I can definitely made my transition to photography easy but learning all the staples of animation wasn’t easy but it basically gave me all the tools to understand photography. Read more>>

Aliza Li.

For me, creating is something that comes naturally. I’ve always known I’d be somewhere close to music but to say I wanted to be a singer/Songwriter Is something that took me years to admit honestly. You really have to be comfortable with who you are as a person and know how you want to present your craft. Life has a way of giving you exactly what you need, when you need it. Read more>>

Autif Kamal

To stream on Twitch you need to learn how to use OBS. And then, you need to know how to add sources to capture gameplay and your webcam. That is the minimum required to stream on Twitch. But, doing the minimum doesn’t mean that your stream will be optimum. To optimize my stream, I had to play with framerates for my specific computer and bitrates to make sure that users viewing get a viewable stream (as in not pixelated) but then also so that the bitrate and FPS (frames per second) are not so high that as a user, you keep seeing a buffering stream. Read more>>

Inklyne

Doing music wasn’t easy. This involves a lot of fight out . I learn a lot of things while doing music, one thing I know once you’re putting in the work there is a chance of winning like 100% chance of winning I’ve come a long way and I’ll never stop pushing my music I’m the only one who promotes and push my music to the limit. Read more>>

Amber Harmann

Actually, YouTube was a great first step in helping me learn candle-making! When I first had the idea to start my own little business I started searching everything from DIY videos, tips on growing a small business, videos on how taxes work as a small business owner, anything and everything I could think of I would need to know! My second step was getting involved in groups on social media for others learning the craft! Networking is an amazing way to help you learn and find inspiration! Read more>>