Meet Stephen Proctor

We recently connected with Stephen Proctor and have shared our conversation below.

Stephen, appreciate you making time for us and sharing your wisdom with the community. So many of us go through similar pain points throughout our journeys and so hearing about how others overcame obstacles can be helpful. One of those struggles is keeping creativity alive despite all the stresses, challenges and problems we might be dealing with. How do you keep your creativity alive?

For me, creativity comes alive when I step away from the noise of the world and all its devices. Screens, news, social commentaries, and the cacophony of culture can fog up the brain and dull the senses, but stepping into the wild restores them. A quiet hike through the forest, the scent of rain on the earth, or the horizon unfolding in a wide-open vista—all of it reminds me of the bigger story I’m a part of. Years ago, this longing for natural beauty and perspective drew me to leave Nashville (my city of creative dreams) and settle in the Pacific Northwest, where I built a tiny home tucked among the evergreens. Creating this reality for myself was one of the hardest yet most rewarding things I’ve ever done! Now I wake up each day to light dappled through the trees or rain dripping off pine needles. And my favorite part of the day is seeing deer wandering past my door and bedding down in the yard. In this slower, more contemplative way of living, creativity flows like a quiet, steady stream.

The other wellspring of creativity for me is collaboration. There’s something transcendent about sharing space with other artists—painters, dancers, tea masters, designers, filmmakers—each bringing their own language of beauty. As a visual artist, my deepest resonance is with musicians. Music has always been my first creative “love language”; it awakens me like nothing else can. When I’m feeling flat or stuck with a creative block, a single composition—especially a piece that’s cinematic, ambient, or modern classical—can stir my imagination and get the creative juices flowing again. In those moments, sound becomes a canvas, and I begin to see colors, images, and movements that harmonize with the melodies.

At the heart of it, both nature and collaboration are invitations back to beauty. They breathe life back into my being and invite me to enter into wonder. Music opens my imagination, and the natural world restores my soul. As long as those two things are present in my life, the creativity (usually) flows out of a place of abundance. At the end of the day, my calling is to craft memorable, emotional experiences for others. But I can only give what I’ve first received. I have to return to the source—to beauty in its most natural form—so that what overflows from me is honest, alive, and hopefully capable of awakening wonder in someone else.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

My work lives at the intersection of art, nature, and sacred space. I’m a visual artist and author, endlessly fascinated by the ways beauty can awaken wonder in ourselves. Over the years, I’ve worked in immersive projection, live events, and creative direction for churches and organizations. But at the heart of it all is a simple desire: to create experiences that help people pause, breathe, and reconnect with something greater than themselves.

One of my most personal projects is my book, WILD WONDER, which released last year. It’s a collection of my drone photography, essays, and reflections that invite readers to behold beauty and see Creation through a new lens—featuring dramatic coastlines, ancient forests, braided rivers, glaciers and mountaintops. The book grew out of my own journey of slowing down and rediscovering the beauty that’s always been around us, if only we stop long enough to notice. Beyond the book, I create visual environments for live events, collaborate with composers and filmmakers, and curate photography exhibits that invite people into a posture of stillness and awe.

Right now, I’m actively exploring new directions for my work. I’ve been collaborating with authors on book covers using my nature photography, and with musicians on album artwork and packaging—projects that allow my visuals to live inside the stories and sounds of others. I’m also experimenting with emerging technologies like Augmented Reality, adding new layers of depth to my book, gallery exhibits, and client projects. (I’ll be turning my entire book into an AR-experience this fall!) I’m also beginning to explore what it might look like to offer “fractional creative direction” for organizations—helping communities reimagine how they use visuals, music, and space to tell their story. Whether through a photograph, a film, or an immersive installation, my hope is always the same: to curate moments that feel memorable, meaningful, and alive with wonder!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

The first value that has shaped my journey is curiosity. I try to keep my eyes open to beauty in unexpected places and ask deeper questions of the world around me. That curiosity deepens when paired with silence and patience. Slowing down, stepping away from the hustle, being still, and cultivating contemplative rhythms has taught me that creativity isn’t something you force—it’s something you receive. My advice to anyone starting out: don’t just chase the next trend. Work hard, yes, but don’t get caught up in the hustle. Learn to be, practice silence, attune your ears, recalibrate your eyes, and let wonder do its work in you.

The second quality is adaptability with technology. I’ve always been drawn to new tech—unique projectors, drones, even augmented reality—but the real impact comes when those tools serve a larger vision. My encouragement is to stay curious and keep exploring, but also to find a niche where you can go deep. For me, that’s been the fusion of nature, visuals, and music. Technology will always evolve, but if you know your voice and focus, you’ll be able to use it with intention rather than distraction.

The third is collaboration and community. My creativity has expanded most when I’ve worked with others—especially those unlike me—and let their gifts spark something I couldn’t create alone. Just as important has been seeking out mentors: people older and wiser, in different seasons of life, who love you for who you are, not just what you create. A mentor once told me that mentoring is “mining the gold” in someone—seeing what they can’t yet see in themselves. And calling that hidden gem forth. That has been true in my own journey. My advice? Don’t walk this road alone. Surround yourself with people who stretch you, inspire you, and remind you that art is never just about self-expression—it’s about shared experience.

In the end, curiosity keeps you open, adaptability keeps you moving forward, and community keeps you grounded. Together, they form a foundation that not only fuels creativity but sustains it for the long road ahead.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

I don’t have just one challenge—I have a set of them. One is living with ADHD (I was diagnosed and medicated early in life.). It’s incredibly difficult for me to stay focused, especially when there are no deadlines or immediate consequences. I can be highly productive in bursts, but I’m also constantly procrastinating in between projects. That ebb and flow can be exhausting. But I have a few natural supplements that help take the edge off and help me focus!

Another ongoing challenge is visibility as a freelancer. Most of my opportunities have come through relationships and word of mouth, which I’m deeply grateful for, but I often feel uncomfortable putting myself out there to new people. Social media, which should help, has become draining and counterproductive to the kind of life and art I’m trying to cultivate. I pour energy into creating something beautiful, but with algorithms constantly shifting and attention spans growing shorter, it sometimes feels like my work disappears into the noise. And while I know “selling” myself is part of the job, it rarely feels natural to me.

The truth is, I don’t have all the answers for how to overcome these obstacles. Right now, I’m simply learning to put one foot in front of the other—focusing on the work in front of me each day, trusting that faithfulness to the process will carry me forward. My hope is that my way of life and the kind of art I create will continue to connect me with the right clients and collaborators. I’m more concerned with the quality of people I work with than the quantity of people who see me. I’ve never been after a large following. What matters to me is finding an authentic balance—staying true to myself and the way I create, while also building something sustainable. And if anyone has suggestions or recommendations along the way, I’m all ears!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://proktr.com
• Instagram: @sproctor
• Twitter: @stephenproctor
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/proktr
• Other: https://wildwonderbook.com

Image Credits

Jeremy Stanley, Mikaela Hamilton, Luke Webster, Nakamoto Forestry, Brandon Hendricks, Stephen Proctor