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

Stanley , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

I am very happy to be an artist. No matter what’s going on in my life, I can always take a step back and be appreciative of the fact that I made the choice to put my dreams before “reality.” I funded my camera through a check I made after working for the summer of 2021. And for the next few months, I continued to work front of house at Panda Express to fund not only any new gear I had, but myself as well. In January of 2022, my photography started gaining a lot of traction, right as my job at Panda Express was looking to promote me. The way that I saw it, I could make a successful future for myself in whatever route I chose. But when it came down to it, I wanted something insecure – away from the mundane and the rudimentary. A life for myself where I’d never stop learning, and never lose the love to learn more. With that in perspective, the decision was easy. I handed in my two week notice, and I’ve never looked back. It’s a decision I’d make over and over again, and one that I continue to choose everyday.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Stanley Ligon, and I’m an artist. The medium by which I choose to represent myself best is through photography and graphic design, but I pull inspiration from all different kinds of art forms. I’ve been taking pictures all my life, but it wasn’t until 2 years ago that I started to envision myself pursuing this passion in full, and bought a camera. I create because I love the experience of using what I’ve learned to create new ones and lasting memories for everyone I shoot with. My good friend and artist extraordinaire Chykeem Nichols (also known as Miyagi) were having a conversation about this, and how important it was that as photographers, our primary job is to immortalize a moment and all of the emotions that are evoked from it, and in our unique way preserve it to transcend time. The project I’m most proud of will always be my next one, because it’s building on the culmination of everything I’ve learned so far. Currently though, I am most proud an ad campaign for the City University of New York (CUNY), titled “A Degree for Every Dream.” It focuses on the diversity of the CUNY system in terms of majors and different career choices to choose from for those pursuing higher education, and that you can stay close (in NYC) and go far with the knowledge and skills you’ve gained. In our office of media and marketing, we worked tirelessly over the summer to produce the campaign, and I’m grateful to have my art showcased in the same trains and buses that I grew up taking. More than that, I’m grateful to be apart of something so large and amazing. The main thing that I want anyone who follows my work to know is that I’m constantly striving to hone what I do. I acknowledge that my style, in ways are considered “unconventional” in the sense that it somewhat deviates from what a professional photographer is supposed to me. But I never learned the rules of photography just so that I could follow them for the rest of my career – I learned them so that I could break them down and warp them in whatever way I saw fit. My biggest fear in this art is to be stagnant and lost in the same cycle of doing what I’ve already done, which is why I consider my style is every style I haven’t tried yet. I will continue to try. So I thank anyone who has ever seen my work before and admired it for any part of it, as well as those who may not have liked it very much. I put everything I hear about it in the same pot, and use it to water my next piece.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

To best support artists, I believe society has to deviate from experiencing art on social media. I personally use Instagram to promote myself and my work, but it’s certainly not my first choice. In many ways, it’s an amazing resource for outreach, networking and broadcasting. But I don’t like how it measures appreciation. In the beginning of my journey I measured how good my art was by how many likes it got, or who commented or re-shared. I especially didn’t like how naturally it made me compare how my post did to other artists. I’m thankful that I’ve made it to a point where I ‘m comfortable putting my art out, no matter the response. But as a new artist, it was a bit jarring and a hard obstacle to get over. But there’s really nothing like seeing your work in print, in real life. It’s a completely different experience where you’re forced to immerse yourself in the full quality of your art, whether you want to or not. There is no scrolling away, you know?

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

So many. Youtube is my biggest. I learned everything I currently know from Youtube and practical experience. Manny Ortiz, Lindsay Adler, Peter Mckinnon, David Bergman, FJH Photography, and countless more that I can’t think of right now. They in my eyes are the masters of off-camera flash, techniques and just lighting in general. They answer those very specific questions most beginners (myself included) felt silly for asking, in so much detail. Another great resource are the people at Adorama. Their customer support team are super helpful – one of their staff sat down with me for about 20 minutes to really explain how flash photography worked best and different things to try to get the best out of it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.stanleyligonart.com
• Instagram: @_stanley_l

Image Credits
Stanley Ligon