Today we’d like to introduce you to Megan Otnes.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I’ve always been the artistic type. All things visual and creative are my thing. I’m usually not the best with words, so this interview stuff is all new territory to me. I started my artistic journey as a bored 13-year-old, with my twin sister Amy. As young girls, unlike the 13-year-old now and days who post Instagram baddie selfies and unfairly stylish ootds, we spent our time making stop motion videos of our American Girl Dolls. We created a YouTube channel called UrbanChickenStudios, which kickstarted my creative career as an artist. We gained over 9 million views and over 36k subscribers. Having the freedom to create whatever story we wanted was so amazing and to be limited with our resources and budget as young teens it just increased our imagination even more because we had to think harder of possible storylines to fit our location, clothing, furniture, and accessories.
As we grew older though, near the end of middle school and the transition into high school, making stop motion videos of dolls and taking photos of them, started to become less intriguing and my interests started to change. As I’ve matured, I’ve grown more as an artist and widened my artistic interests. I’m now interested in portrait photography, filmmaking, fashion design, and interior design. My background in art has actually helped me choose my major in college. Creating sets for stop motions and taking pictures of my dolls helped me understand what I really want to do with my life: Interior Design. I’m also double majoring in photography because I’m passionate about so many other creative mediums and couldn’t pick haha.
Please tell us about your art.
I love to experiment in all types of art. I do a lot of photography, filmmaking, fashion design, paintings, etc. but I mainly focus on photography. I try to always be creating and growing as an artist because whenever I get artist block, it’s always because I haven’t been creating anything recently. By making an effort to create something every day, it helps me get one tiny step closer to where I want to be. And I think the hardest thing about being an artist is trusting yourself in putting yourself out there and knowing that your work is worth seeing. In this day and age, expressing yourself creatively has never been easier, now through social media platforms such as Instagram and YouTube, not only is sharing content becoming more convenient but the communities I’ve found through these platforms have been nothing but uplifting and motivating.
They’ve helped me realize that I do have a good eye for color and composition and that I have the potential to take my photography to the next level. My photography and artistic style vary a lot because I don’t like to confine my style in a box, but I do tend to gravitate towards vibrant colors and interesting patterns when it comes to backgrounds and styling. Ever since I started modeling (last fall), I’ve been introduced to a whole new world of photography: fashion photography and I fell in love with the style after my first shoot with a professional model. I strive to create striking and unique styling choices while at the same time complimenting the background of the photograph.
Do you have any advice for other artists? Any lessons you wished you learned earlier?
I sort of already addressed this question earlier, but my main advice is to continue to create, whether you think you’re at an artist block or not, you’re never going to get out of that block until you start making something. I wish I knew that it’s not that scary to DM someone asking if you can collaborate together, whether it’s a brand, model, photographer, etc. The worst they can say is no. And heck, my first brand collaboration didn’t come from some fancy schmancy brand emailing me or sliding into my DMs, I actually reached out and made a deal with them. Most of the time if you want to get anywhere you’re going to have the make the first move.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
You can check out my work at my Instagram and my website. You can support my work by booking a shoot! Haha but for real, if you are in need for new headshots, senior photos, wedding photos, event photos, really anything, I can be there for you! Check out my “bookings” tab on my website for rates and more information.
Contact Info:
- Website: meganotnes.wixsite.com/meganotnesphoto
- Phone: 5128722713
- Email: megan.0tnes@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/meganotnes
Image Credit:
Models: (from left to right) Marthe Teerlynck, Lenke Barthe, Lenke Barthe, Presley Walker, Marthe Teerlynck, Ludvig Tagefeldt, Diana, Sablicova, Jordis Tietze
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