We recently connected with Greg Murray and have shared our conversation below.

Greg, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I graduated Loyola University Chicago in 2004 with a business degree and spent 10 years working in corporate Human Resources. I basically spent 10 years pretending to like what I did for a living. Financially, I did pretty well during that time. Mentally, I didn’t. I tried to force it and am so lucky I got out from under the mounds of paperwork, pointless meetings, office politics, etc….

First, it’s important for me to go back in time. I grew up in a household with all types of animals: dogs, cats, reptiles, fish, guinea pigs, birds and more. I loved animals. I also loved art as a child and came one class short from minoring in art at Loyola Chicago. My mother was a cake artist. I have vivid memories of sitting on the kitchen counter watching her make and decorate cakes. I was amazed by her skills. I think art is in my blood.

In 2010, I felt the need for a new hobby and I picked up my first nice/expensive camera. I spent years photographing the Cleveland skyline and Cuyahoga Valley National Park. I was chosen to participate in art shows and won awards for my work. But within a few years, I got bored with landscape and cityscape photography. In 2014, with the support of my girlfriend Kristen (now wife), I decided to combine my love for animals and art. I left my career in business to pursue being a full time photographer, focusing on animals.

Within 3 years of running my full time photography business, I reached my goal of only taking photography work that involved animals. That same year, in 2017, I was published and am currently working on my 4th photography book through a major publisher. My books are sold around the world now. I license my photography to some of the largest companies. I could never have imagined I’d be in the position I’m in right now.

The past 9 years have involved a lot of hard work. My weeks may have been much longer than when I worked in the corporate world. But they were much more rewarding and satisfying. I get to do what I love and make a living at the same time. It took years to get to where I am now. I have a much better life work balance now that I’ve made a name for myself.

As much as I look back at my time working as a human resources professional and think about how much I disliked it at times, that time prepared me to run my own business. I spent time understanding how businesses ran. I worked with executives, accounting, marketing and more. All that work and collaboration prepared me for 2014, when I became a full-time business owner.

Greg, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a full-time pet and animal photographer based in Cleveland, Ohio. I basically make people smile and laugh for a living. People hire me to photograph their pets. Businesses hire me for commercial animal photography work and magazines hire me for editorial work. I also license my photography to some of the largest organizations in the world and have done some work with greeting card companies.

I have 3 (soon to be 4) published photography books that have sold over 30,000 copies worldwide:

– “Peanut Butter Dogs”

– “Pit Bull Heroes: 49 Underdogs With Resilience & Heart”

– “Peanut Butter Puppies”

I’m also a rescue animal advocate, with a focus on pit bull type dogs. Pitties are my favorite type of dog to work with. They are the underdog. As a lifelong Clevelander, it’s in my blood to root for the underdog. I helped end my hometown of Lakewood, Ohio’s 10 year old ban on pit bull type dogs in 2018. It’s one of my proudest moments.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of what I do is that I make people smile and laugh with my work. My goal with my photography is to grab people’s attention and to make them happy. To this day, I can’t believe I do what I do.

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

I spend a lot of my time promoting the adoption of rescue animals. I love all animals, even those from breeders. However, it’s important for me to spread awareness and the importance of rescuing a dog, cat or any other animal who needs a home. Our shelters are full. When you adopt, you save two lives by bringing one home and making room in that shelter or rescue organization for another animal. I hope everyone considers adopting the next time they are looking to add an animal to their home.

After my first book, I’ve committed to only having rescue dogs in all future books. I volunteer my time with local rescue organizations and photograph animals who need a home then promote them on my social media channels.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.gmurrayphoto.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thegregmurray
• Facebook: Facebook.com/gmurrayphoto

Image Credits
All photos by me, Greg Murray