Creativity: A Journey of Learning and Growing

with Photographer Liam Fawell

Liam, you grew up in the Perth Hills, Western Australia. Can you paint the picture of your early years there?

I grew up on a large property with trees, bushes and animals and spent a lot of time outside, running around with chickens and living a very frivolous lifestyle. That's how I fell into creativity initially — spending long days in nature as a kid.

My dad was a photographer from an early age and had cameras lying around the house. I picked one up, and that's how I dived into photography. My brother Evan and I loved getting creative. We would go skating around the neighbourhood — through the parks and forests — explore the areas around, take photos, and make videos. We would throw the clips together on our parents' computer and add music. It was very special to do it together — we were just having fun. And our parents championed that, pushing us to explore.

The way that we were raised obviously influences our future path a lot. Do you think you've been able to build an amazing career at such a young age not only because of your curiosity and hard work but also because of the foundation that your parents’ support provided for you?

For sure. I was very lucky that my parents were open-minded about what I did and how I went about things. There was definitely pressure to do my studies and do well in school. But at the same time, there was this question of "What do you enjoy doing?" As a kid, I was always writing and drawing little things all over the place — mum and dad never stopped that or pushed me in the direction they wanted me to go. They observed what I was doing and facilitated a place for me to explore my interests further. So my brother and I have always had this message that we could do anything we wanted if we were willing to put in the work.

So you played around with different mediums, like drawing, photography, and writing. Did you feel a particular attraction to cameras, or was it at first one of the many interests that equally excited you?

I was a very visual kid. That's how I’ve always learned things — by seeing. I enjoyed expressing myself through visual mediums as well. Even when I wasn't using a camera, I'd try to see the composition of things and how they were lining up. So when I picked up my dad's camera and looked at the world through the lens, it just made sense. It came naturally to me to understand angles and frame things right.

Once I started shooting, this interest grew and grew, and I became obsessed with editing. Music came into that world, too. I had always liked music, but combining it with videos made it so much more exciting. And even with shooting film — there are different tones, colors, and a whole array of things that you can explore in this medium of photography and filmmaking. That blew my mind and to this day really excites me.

Do you see photography and filmmaking as a way to capture reality or to create your own?

It has changed over time. Initially, it was a way to create my own reality — I started taking photos and photoshopping things in, photoshopping the sky, making it seem like a whole different world. It was exciting to create whatever I wanted. And then, throughout the years, it transitioned to a way to document real life and showcase what I’m going through in an artistic and expressive way.

You’ve been doing photography for ten years, and, as you said, it transitioned from creating your own world to documenting real life. When you look back at your journey, are there moments that stand out to you when your perspective on creativity and overall mindset shifted drastically?

There have been big changes in my life, but it was probably more of a gradual progression of my mindset shifting over time.

Around fourteen-fifteen, I was taking photos and making videos at home with my brother. Back then, the creative process was something very exciting, sparking our curiosity. When I was around sixteen-seventeen, I started sneaking into music festivals to take photos. That led to me getting hired to document events and work within the industries I work in now (Music, Lifestyle, and Fashion). That was a big pivotal moment because I realized then that I could use a camera to get into places, to network, and to get experiences that I wanted to be a part of.

After a few years of working commercially, I was trying to keep that naive sense of creating alive, but it became harder and harder. It is still difficult to understand the line between work and play. There is always this question of "At what point does it become a tool to create exactly what I want, and when is it a tool to just capture what other people want to see?"

Coming back to me being around twenty-twenty-one, I started traveling a lot. My camera was taking me places around the world, connecting with people, and giving me a platform online. I was experiencing and growing so much — it really blew my mind. I felt like anything was possible. It was a very abundant time in the sense of how I saw the world.

The end of that period and freedom mentality came about in 2023 when I released my book — a collection of film photos that I took around the globe. I was getting older, I was turning twenty-four. I started thinking about my long-term goals and figuring out what I wanted to do next. It was a bit of a lower time.

I guess there are always ups and downs with everything, but over the past eight years it was constantly up and down, up and down. And lots of growth along the way — even in the down periods. I feel like I’m only now coming back up again and realizing which direction I want to go in next. It's an endless evolution of how I move through creativity and experiences. The only constant for me has been the camera — a tool to learn more about life and about myself too.

Looking at photography or any other creative pursuit as a tool to explore yourself and our world is such an amazing thing. I often think about the fact that, when you follow a creative path, you're constantly trying new things, getting new experiences, and expanding your mind. It gives you so much understanding of the things that you wouldn't otherwise come into contact with or experience.

Definitely. I think you grow up very quickly when you're trying to figure out a unique path for yourself. When you're involved with anything creative, it takes a lot of self-awareness and forces you to ask deeper questions. If I look back at my journey over the past ten years, there is a constant self-reflection. I think the further you can go within yourself, the further you can then excel and succeed externally, because you've figured out all those things for yourself.

Do you go back to your older works to see your personal evolution through them?

I'm pretty nostalgic, so I like to look back at my previous works. It's definitely a way of holding on to older versions of myself, to reflect on and learn from. But it can get emotional because you think, "Wow, that was a moment that I'm so grateful that I documented," but also realize how much you’ve learned and changed since then. You almost don't recognize yourself.

You mentioned that in the last few years it has been challenging for you to get as excited about photography as you once were. Is it why you created Nostalgia Studios — a community and educational course for photographers and videomakers — to pour your energy into a new project?

Definitely. When you have a career, a job, or some sort of creative endeavour for so long, you go back to questioning why you're doing it. After working for other people and traveling for such a long time, I lost my excitement for travel and was craving a new thing. I also wanted to build something that had more meaning. That's why I leaned into a community — to have an impact on a bigger scale. I've always loved sharing my experiences and inspiring others, so this new project is about creating a space where I can pass on the life lessons, the technical knowledge, and the skills that I've learnt to help others on their journey.

Has it given you the fulfilment that you had been searching for, or are you still in the building phase when you're just focused on how to properly execute your vision?

I’m constantly looking at the next thing and am never satisfied with what I’m doing. I've learned to get better at this, but it's easy to get caught up in thinking so far ahead that you forget how important what you're building now is.

With Nostalgia Studios, I have so many more ideas, more products, and a different business model that I want to implement to bring people together on a global scale. But I'm trying to take a step back and just enjoy having one-on-one conversations and helping other creatives with their work. So there is a constant pull between being content with where I am and, at the same time, dreaming bigger.

I would also love to hear your perspective on the price of realizing your dreams. People may look at your social media and achievements and assume how nice your life is. But they don't see what goes into it — all the struggles you needed to overcome to get to where you are now. Can you talk about moments on your journey when you had to overcome some difficulties?

I think anyone who is going after their dream has to make some sacrifices. There is just no way around it. And the bigger the ambition, the bigger the sacrifice. You're going to get used to giving up things, going through hardships and pain. Even just down to a daily basis: some days I'll literally wake up, have a quick stretch, not see anyone, and be on my computer for ten hours straight — and not even get a lot done, because I’m not feeling productive or motivated that day. Sometimes you're just doing the dirty work. It's not that exciting.

For the course that I’ve filmed recently, there were ten-hour days when I'd sit there, redo a script, talk again, not like it, delete it, redo, redo, redo. That took so much mental energy. There are days when you question if this is really worth it. You can spend two months making something, and no one might want to buy it. There is a lot of risk. But if you're driven and want to get somewhere, it's going to be a no-brainer. You just know that it has to happen.

In your recent newsletter, you talked about quitting traveling for a while and sitting still in one place. You've traveled around so much that, I assume, it became a big part of your identity. I can imagine it wasn't easy to stop and realize that the thing that once got you excited doesn't fuel you anymore. Can you share what this transition has been like for you?

For the past five-six years, I’ve been traveling for many months of the year. And it just naturally came to a different season in life, a change in what I want and value. But moving around so much does become your identity, so the transition has definitely been difficult. I had so much excitement and so many experiences when I was on the road. It was like filling up a cup. And now I’m at the point where I want to pour it all out. To execute things, to sit with thoughts, to bring ideas to life, and to create a routine. I want to have a slower life to think about things deeper — especially in terms of business. You can't really think far ahead when you're scattered with so much going on all the time. You're catching flights, you're living with other people, you're thinking about where to travel next. Such a lifestyle can get tiring. So what I’m craving and what excites me now is being in one place and having time and space to think about what I want to build.

What have been your biggest takeaways from this time in stillness?

When you're traveling, you're around people all the time. You're used to having lots of dopamine. And when you slow down, you don't have as much external stimulation. So you have to figure out ways to generate this excitement for yourself to put it into work and business. Everything else also shifts — your friendships, what you do, your routine, even the conversations that you have. Everything becomes more intentional when you have time and space.

And what is your vision for the next few years?

When I think about what has given me clarity and helped me the most on my journey, it's been conversations with others. It always comes down to conversations. So I want to create conversations for photographers and filmmakers — they are the people whom I understand — to help them think bigger. That’s my mission for Nostalgia Studios: to cultivate an environment where people can get inspired.

That's the focus, but I still want to create work with the camera. The stuff that I'm doing now is more intentional. It's not just on the go, it's planned and has more meaning to me and to the people I work with. So I’m trying to balance that and, at the same time, focus on health, relationships, and things that keep you going at the end of the day.

That's the direction for the next little while, but it does always change. I think it's a matter of addressing what excites you the most in every season of life. Then you can move from there and figure out what you want to do next.