We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Hicks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Courtney, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
I learned both figure skating and photography very slowly over years of enjoying it. Figure skating obviously took longer because it’s an elite sport that requires an immense amount of very specific technical learning, but my photography skills grew over the years in a similar way. I started photography on my uncle’s tiny point and shoot Canon when I was 11, and then got my own for Christmas and went from there. Over the years I continued to develop my editing style and I determined how I like to frame my shots. I never took any technical photography classes, and I’m sure that would have helped speed things along, but I do really like how organically I had to figure everything out for myself. I know that my style is truly mine because I had to develop it over years of learning how cameras worked and years of realizing that what feelings I like to portray in my photography.
Courtney, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Okay so I’m a former Team USA figure skater, currently making a return to competitive skating. I’ve been skating for 23 years, but I retired for year before coming back! I have had the opportunity to travel all over the world and country for skating, and with that I picked up a huge love for nature photography. I’m currently a digital content creator on Instagram, and I sell prints and paintings of my photos. I still go on trips around the Colorado Springs and Denver areas specifically to find new places to shoot, and I have a special love for astrophotography. I eventually would love to do a project that documents a bunch of the western US National Parks and Preserves at night. For now though I’m working on my competitive comeback and I’m trying to make a return to the US National Championships, as well as a return to international competition. I’m in the midst of documenting my whole journey on Instagram and posting both figure skating and my photography journeys as well. I’m really proud of the community that I have built up and I’m so grateful for how supportive and kind my little corner of Instagram is! I’m very much looking forward to continuing to grow this brand and hopefully inspiring others to pursue their passions.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
I so truly just want to share my love of life with people. Whether that’s through my renewed passion for my sport and my efforts to achieve my goals, or though my attempts to capture as much of the incredible beauty in the world as possible, I want people to be able to feel and also share in how exciting life can be. I like to find joy and excitement in even the most mundane aspects of day to day life and work, and I like to share that.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to really unlearn my need to work through everything even if I was sick or hurting or exhausted. That was something i was taught my whole life in figure skating, as many people are in so many sports, and finally years later I’m figuring out how to let myself rest and heal. It took me tearing my labrum in my hip and having to have a surgery to repair it and still being at risk of it tearing again to get the message through. It’s hit especially hard this year as I’m 27 and two years out of hip surgery and trying to make a comeback to be fully competitive in my sport, and realizing that my body doesn’t recover as quickly as it did when I was 16. I’ve had to learn how be kind to my body and respect my limits, and I’ve had to work really hard to get out of a lot of toxic mentalities that would oy cause me more harm today. It’s been kind of insane figuring out my limits in real time while trying to find a training routine that works for me long term. I’ve had to sometimes pull back on how much I was training and adjust my intensity, and I’ve finally found a really good balance.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.Courtneyhicks.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/courtneynhicks?utm_source=qr&igshid=MzNlNGNkZWQ4Mg%3D%3D
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/courtneynhicks?t=Ep8Xon2HIP48TFeZmjQw4g&s=09
- Other: Photography specific Instagram: https://instagram.com/courtneyhicksphotography?utm_source=qr&igshid=ZDc4ODBmNjlmNQ%3D%3D
Image Credits
Robin Ritoss, Courtney Hicks, Peter Zapalo