Meet Lyn Stevens | Fine Art Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lyn Stevens and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lyn, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I was born into a dairy farming family in rural Watertown, Wisconsin. My Great Grandfather, Grandfather, and Father were all dairy farmers. Risk and uncertainty were a daily part of the farming process, and this is the lifestyle in which I was raised. As a child, I had barn chores, helped with harvesting the crops and was a member of an equestrian 4-H club called the Buckaroos. I learned earlier than most, the importance of hard work. I learned that when one way of doing things did not work out, to pivot and try the same thing another way, to get the same result. I learned the value of a dollar, and learned that all things in life are uncertain, but if I am willing to push through the “hard stuff,” the actual result can turn out amazing. I have taken these life lessons from youth into adulthood, while working on a budget. When something is not working for me, I pivot and try a different way to get the same result. I work hard and dream big. I get out there to network and get involved within my community.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My music photography has always focused on helping other people accomplish their own creative goals. With my focus now on fine art photography, I am focused on what I can accomplish with my own creative goals. With shifting my focus inward, I have already started to see positive results.
I approach photography as a documentarian, based off the strong belief that I am documenting future history, in the present-day moment, inspired by my love for music and the city of Nashville, my work aims to highlight the familiar sights and sounds in a new light. I concentrate on unique angles, vibrant colors, and striking reflections to offer viewers a fresh perspective on the everyday beauty that surrounds them. My goal is to provide a tangible connection to the heart of Nashville.
Since I am self-taught, each new step that I take with photography is a learning curve. Not only am I technically challenged, but also posting to social media challenged. My strength lies in displaying my work in person and interacting with the public at art markets.
In the two years that I have been pursuing fine art photography, my images have been part of the Soundwaves Gallery at GEODIS Park, I received an honorable mention in the 2024 juried Central South Exhibition and have now had three solo exhibitions. I recently figured out how to create an online portfolio, how to create and print QR codes and recently applied for an artist residency. I am very proud of myself for accomplishing all of these things.
The most important lesson that I have learned so far is to keep moving forward. No matter how time consuming and hard they might be, I will finish those applications to art shows, art galleries and artist residencies. When the going gets tough, others stop, but I continue to keep moving forward, I am seeing results because of this.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love live music, and I love learning about the history of county music. My absolute favorite place in Nashville is the Ryman Auditorium. My second favorite place is the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum. I would also show my friend the Walk of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Other must stops are at Studio B, The Parthenon at Centennial Park, taking in a Songwriters Round at the Commodore Grille, driving around Music Row, and take a walking tour of the Murals around town. Lower Broadway is also a fun experience for an out-of-towner. My best friend and I are both book lovers, so I would also drive us over to McKay’s bookstore. For food or drinks, I would include Pushing Daisies for a speak easy vibe, McNamara’s Irish Pub & Restaurant for the live entertainment and delicious food, Hawkers Asian Street Food in East Nashville for the incredible service and tasty food and Elliston Place Soda Shop for a historic diner feel and the best milkshakes in the area.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Creative people tend to be stuck in their own heads a lot. The creative process can also be very solitary, which in large part is why it tends to take longer to find some form of success. When I was a hobbyist music photographer, a guy by the name of Blair Dudley, who I knew from the blues music scene in Nashville, sat me down over cups of coffee and made me say out loud “I AM a photographer”, at a time where I was responding with “but am I really?”. Blair reminded me why it was important to change my way of thinking. Once I changed my way of thinking, I started to have/see positive results with my photography. Blair went on to become my C.P.A. and I went on to have my music photography published over the years in three different music-related books and featured on nine different albums. My photography has been published in multiple print publications, has been seen on network television in Australia and on the live broadcast of the CMA Awards in Nashville, TN.
The NIMA organization in Nashville (Nashville Independent Music Awards), saw value in my music photography work and nominated me three years in a row for Best Visual Artist. I went on to win the Best Visual Artist Award in all three of those years. I cannot say thank you enough to this organization for their belief in me.
A friend of a friend, by the name of Howard Ezell, who had a music photography background, took me under his wings to teach me more of the technical side of a camera and with editing software. Through Howard, I gained a much better understanding of F stops, meter readings, color balance, flash photography and editing.
Olga Alexeeva, a prolific artist in her own right, has been another impactful person in my life. We met each other at a networking function, and she just saw something in me, that I had yet to see in myself. She nudged and then outright pushed me to start selling my photography prints at O’Gallery, an art gallery that she owned. This was the only space where I sold my prints at, while I continued to pursue music photography. The O’Gallery was a space that allowed me to interact regularly with tourists visiting the Nashville area, allowing me to learn which of my images appealed to them most as art buyers.
After the Covid-19 Pandemic ended, it took a full two years for the creative arts to start coming back. Just over two years ago, Olga reached out to me with an opportunity to be a last-minute vendor at the Art Crawl in Franklin, TN. This is where I met Mike Ingram, the President of the Arts Council of Williamson County. Mike also saw something in me and my work and offered me a two-month solo art exhibit in Franklin. Through Mike, I have become more involved with the Arts Council, and he continues to champion my work by presenting me with other opportunities to get my photography out there to the public. I cannot say enough wonderful things about the Arts Council of Williamson County.
Due to the success that I had, with selling my prints at the Franklin Art Crawl, I decided that I really could be a Fine Arts Photographer. I began to apply to various art shows to become a vendor in and around the greater Nashville area. Places like 100 Taylor Arts in Germantown and The Nashville Free Poetry Library in the Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood, host monthly art crawls and the organizers (Crystal and Matt) welcomed me into their communities as an art vendor. I strongly encourage folks to check out these well-organized art crawls that are open to the public each month.
As I started to apply for more art vendor opportunities, I met Rick Reiter and Marc Vera, owners of Nook, a boutique lifestyle store in Mount Juliet, TN. Rick and Marc are huge advocates of giving back to the community that they live in and organize an event called Craft:ed to raise money for the Marching Bands at both High Schools in Mount Juliet. Rick and Marc saw something in me and my photography, that they believed in and offered me a one-month artist spotlight inside of their store Nook. They have been selling my prints of Nashville at their store ever since.

Website: https://www.lynstevensphotography.com

Instagram: lyn.stevens

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyn-stevens-0a26b94/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LynStevensPhotography23/

Image Credits
Lyn Stevens