Johnie Gall is a writer, photographer and director who specializes in capturing stories at the intersections of art, science, adventure and humanity. She is a hiker, surfer, cyclist, cinema fan and metalsmith who loves all things Star Wars, folklore and science fiction. Select work has been featured in the LA Times, Nat Geo Adventure, Beside Magazine, Men's Journal and more, and she has worked with brand partners such as Alaska Airlines, Backcountry, SeaVees, Hello B.C., Patagonia and Lightroom. She serves as a PADI dive ambassador and regularly contributes her writing and photos to natural history museums and environmental nonprofits to aid in their science communication and public outreach efforts.
Artist Bio
Johnie Gall
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Breweries and snowy hikes to the ski lodge.
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Roller coasters, Coney Island, beach time.
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Sunday night dinners and time with family.
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A glass of wine and a good book before bed.
That spark was reignited in my early 20s when I took photojournalism as an elective course for my journalism degree. We watched the documentary "National Geographic: The Photographers" and I felt that same overwhelming sense of curiosity take hold. I needed to know what was out there. It took a while for me to understand that writing and photography were just different sides of the same coin and the best way to tell the stories I wanted to pursue was to become proficient in both mediums.
I'd been trying to find my place as a writer and was working as an editor at a women's surfing magazine. I loved the creativity of the job, but I found myself wanting to pursue stories that weren't about surfing, but rather all the deep and fascinating people, places and issues the culture touched.
Long story short, I spent the next few years working as a freelancer as I taught myself photography, sometimes writing up to 15 articles a week on unfulfilling topics just to try to earn enough to pay my rent ("10 waterfalls you need to see!") and completely burning myself out. But I did start to put some of my work out there and began getting hired by people who knew and trusted me to help create photo essays and short films on stories that took me all over the world.
The first time I felt the spark of curiosity was watching the end of Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark as a kid. In the final scene, a maintenance worker stashes the Ark of the Covenant away in a nondescript wooden box as the camera pans out, revealing a gargantuan warehouse stacked to the ceiling with similar crates. I needed to know what was in the rest of them.
THE LONGER STORY
About Me
If there's one thing that I took with me from that Nat Geo documentary, it's that a camera doesn't make a good photo. It's everything else: being in the right place, knowing how to use the light, seeing what someone else might miss. Some of the most iconic and important photos every taken aren't necessarily technically perfect. But do have one thing in common: they tell a story.
I believe in the power stories have to change us and am committed to pulling open drawers and uncovering curiosities that might stoke our collective wonder about the natural world — and each other. Anyone can be a storyteller, and the world needs more people who feel equipped and empowered to tell their own. My biggest hope is that one of the stories I share might ignite something in you.
Years later, I was more confident in writing and photography, but I felt lost because I didn't think I'd found my "thing." I was fascinated by so many topics: science, forestry, folklore, cinema, architecture, the list went on and on and on and I couldn't image picking one to cover. Around that time I was invited on as an inaugural ambassador for Lightroom and that's where I met my mentor, who had shot numerous cover stories for National Geographic over the years. It was a full circle moment and she gave me a piece of advice that changed everything:
It sounds so simple, but it connected all the dots for me. Maybe my thing wasn't so much about "knowing," but being curious and sharing what I learned instead. I started reaching out to anyone I could think of who was an expert in a topic I was fascinated by to ask if I could come learn from them. I got a lot of "nos," but eventually I found people willing to let me into their lives with my camera in tow—and people who wanted to publish their stories. I've since been fortune enough to have photographed and penned articles about everything from paleontologists at work in fossil labs to young farmers learning what it means to create radical change through food.
"Don't wait to be assigned the story that fascinates you."
My first official collaboration in 2023, a signature boot for Seavees.
In 2020 got re-certified to scuba dive after an ear injury. It was one of the scariest things I've done. I'm now proud to serve as a Padi ambassador.
My favorite Nat Geo essay is "Alone" by Robyn Davidson. It was one of my first inspirations and the 1987 cover is framed above my desk.
If you have any questions about my journey, want to explore a mentoring session, are looking for someone to capture images for your brand, or just feel like saying hi, drop me a line. I love hearing from you.
It sounds so simple, but it connected all the dots for me. I started reaching out to anyone I could think of who was an expert in a topic I was fascinated by to ask if I could come learn from them. I got a lot of "nos," but eventually I found people willing to let me into their lives with my camera in tow. I've since been fortune enough to have photographed and penned articles about everything from paleontologists at work in fossil labs to young farmers learning what it means to create radical change through food.
I believe in the power stories have to change us and am committed to pulling open drawers and uncovering curiosities that might stoke our collective wonder about the natural world — and each other.