During the run of COVID-19 mitigation measures, beginning in mid-March, San Luis Obispo-based photographer Nic Stover has had his fair share of ups and downs. While he was able to develop a successful series of online photography tutorials, Stover—like many professional artists—was still hit hard financially over the course of quarantine.
“The pandemic absolutely gutted my print sales,” Stover told the Sun. “Three of the four galleries I sell in remain closed, and print clients were not investing into prints for their homes or businesses.
“The other unfortunate casualty has been arts fairs being canceled along with having to postpone or cancel my in-person workshops,” Stover added.
But in place of said workshops, Stover turned to webinars, where he has continued to instruct classes on photography composition, processing, image planning, and other topics. One of his most recent Zoom sessions, held on July 14, was co-hosted by the Wildling Museum of Art and Nature, where Stover’s works were previously exhibited as part of the Celebrating the National Lands of California group show in 2019.
“I first became interested in showcasing at the Wildling through following the work of Mark Muench, and seeing that he had been involved with them, I elected to enter one of their contests and go from there,” Stover said. “The entire organization is a pleasure to work with.”
While the Wildling webinar was free to join, Stover donated 15 percent of the gross of any prints sold to viewers during the stream to the museum in support of the museum’s diverse programming. The Zoom session was consistent with his other tutorials, Stover explained.
“In the webinars I lead and the classes I teach, I strive to uphold my vision: helping photographers understand the unique perspectives that assist in the discovery of their capabilities, while enabling a deeper connection with themselves and others through creative expression,” Stover said.
While Stover is well known for capturing landscapes during his several travels—ranging from trips to more than 20 different countries—much of his work is based in California, and more specifically the Central Coast. Stover and his wife, Jen, moved to SLO County only three years ago, although their intro to the region was about a decade earlier.
“We ‘found’ the Central Coast on our honeymoon in 2007,” Stover explained. “We were living in Boise, Idaho, at the time but kept finding our way back to SLO whenever we could.”
The couple relocated to San Francisco first before moving to SLO in 2017. Stover warmly sums up their “love affair” with the Golden State with a quote from Ed Abbey: “There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California.”
“California has been my home for the past eight years, and it is easy to forget about the amazing beauty of this state and the incredibly diverse landscapes,” Stover said.
Among the photographer’s international adventures, some of Stover’s favorite trips have been to South America, Greece, and Greenland. Stover recalled his trip to the latter country as an emotional paradox.
“Greenland was absolutely fascinating and terrifying at the same time—seeing the enormity of the ice cap and seeing how fast it was retreating,” Stover said.
Commenting on his trip to Torres Del Paine in Patagonia—at the southern end of South America, shared by Argentina and Chile—Stover described the region as “breathtaking and spellbinding.”
“Both places [Greenland and Patagonia] have hidden beauty that you can easily find and solitude that can’t be taken for granted,” he said.
A portfolio of Stover’s diverse landscapes can be found on his website, stoverphoto.com, where you can also access his various virtual workshops.
When it comes to advice for his students and aspiring photographers in general, Stover uses his own story as a “late bloomer” in the world of photography as a helpful and hopefully inspiring example.
“I had dismissed myself as a creative from a young age in part because I didn’t have natural art talents. It was only later in life where I discovered that creativity can be learned and expression is not something reserved for the gifted few,” Stover said. “It takes time to hone your craft and figure out what you want to say with your images.”
Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood loves hearing from local photographers. Contact him at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jul 16-23, 2020.