Introducing, Jerred Z, Graphic Artist, Tech Guru, and KJP Contributing Photographer

We’re thrilled to introduce Jerred Z, as a contributing photographer for Kurt Johnson Photography. The Z stands for Zegelis, which most people have trouble pronouncing – it’s Latvian (ZEG-eh-liss).  Most people call him Jerred or simply “Z.”

If you’ve been following our work, Jerred’s name and face probably aren’t new.  He’s been part of the KJP team since 2018 and has taken on a bigger role during the past 3 years.

Jerred is KJP’s special projects coordinator, and his specialty is innovating.

Jerred oversees project development, working with Kurt to develop cutting-edge art forms that innovate and inspire.  Jerred is the artist behind KJP’s new Impressionism and Layers images.  He enhances Kurt’s nature images to create unique works of art that have created a lot of buzz in healthcare environments throughout the country.

Jerred’s first passion was art, but after deciding to pursue a degree in education after high school, his career path took an unexpected turn when his first job out of college was teaching photography and journalism at a local high school-something he didn’t know much about.

Jerred is the first person to tell you he didn’t even know how to load a film camera when he was hired to teach.  But from the day he was handed a camera and given the keys to his classroom (and photography dark room), he saw it as a challenging adventure and never looked back.

Jerred discovered he had a natural talent for capturing the details of the landscape he’d loved for so long, and got more inspired with every image he took.

Jerred’s unique perspective and connection with the Midwest landscape, where he’s lived his entire life, contribute to the stories he tells through his lens.  He’s drawn to dirt roads and quiet, forgotten landscapes, and he loves photographing the vast fields of the Midwest and the peaceful moments he finds along the way.

His photographs encapsulate the serenity and wonder of the natural world, making them a perfect fit for KJP’s mission of bringing nature indoors to support healing.

So, what does this mean for you?  More photos.  More choices.  More solutions.  More healing.

You can continue to search The KJP website the same way, using the normal categories and keywords.

Jerred’s images will be shown with a photo credit:

All other images displayed are by Kurt Johnson.

You can often find Jerred exploring backroads with his wife and son, editing photos with a cat in his lap, making YouTube videos about photography, or motivating friends and former students to live their dreams.

Jerred also enjoys traveling across the country with Kurt, listening to true crime podcasts as they explore communities, and take photographs for special projects and clients.

We’re thrilled to feature Jerred’s work alongside Kurt’s, and we’re excited to be able to offer you even more options for bringing the healing beauty of nature indoors.