Meet Bethany Owens | Professional Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bethany Owens and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bethany, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I started my own business because I realized at a young age that photography is my passion, and that if I wasn’t doing photography I would not be able to survive. I find myself pausing at times and wondering if my life is some kind of fever dream because I am literally doing what I set out to do. Lately I spend more time thinking about expanding myself by learning more about my craft, collaborating with other artists, and working on personal projects as well. This passion is not only a goal for me but a lifestyle; creating visual art is something I am drawn towards.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
When I think about myself as a photographer, I almost never think of myself as just someone picking up a camera and taking a few pictures. This is mainly to say I am not just framing and snapping pictures, but I am creating photographs; there is absolutely a difference. I bring everyone who stands in front of my camera into the light. I analyze each and every photograph in post one by one and scrutinize all the details until I feel like it’s just right. I believe that is what makes me special and sets me apart from other photographers. I got to where I am today because throughout my life I have never lost sight of my goals or what I wanted for myself in the future, which was to do photography for a living no matter what form it was coming to me in. At the bare minimum, I needed to be doing something related to visual arts. There was not a single thing that could take my mind out of photography and creating photographs. Things have not always been easy. Of course I have had my fair share of “No”‘s and “This isn’t good enough”‘s, or “You could never make a living doing that, trust me. Get a real job”‘s. The thing is, instead of listening to any of that and creating doubt within myself, I always did whatever my heart told me was right. This lead me down many bright paths and that is why I am taking photographs for a living today, while managing to dibble and dabble into my other lucrative hobbies. I have learned in my time of being a photographer to never doubt myself even when things are going wrong, and to never beat myself up for doing anything differently from someone else. This way of thinking I feel is what kept me confident in my work and process even at a young age. This allowed me to really put myself out there even at times when some would say I definitely wasn’t ready. Sometimes you just need to fall into something feet first with nothing but a swimsuit and goggles. I got my photography business name, ‘Punkster Photography LLC’, from a long line of punk. From a young age I always had what people would generally call a ‘punk’ style and wound up with the nickname “Punky” from a school teacher in the 7th grade. Due to the style of dress I had which was mainly petticoats and crazy colored thigh high socks I had also received the name “the tutu girl” colloquially at my school. That evolved to my online screename ‘Punktutu;, which as I became older evolved into ‘PunksterOwens’, and I believe that is what birthed ‘Punkster Photography LLC’. The name just stuck from there and I kept using it. ‘Punkster Photography LLC’ fits my brand and is tied to who I am as a person and a photographer. I love expressing myself, and I love helping others to express themselves as much as possible while making them feel beautiful. I feel my business name really suits that rhetoric.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would definitely be looking to take my friend out for some awesome sushi, then probably some inner city activity such as pool or bowling. Depending on the friend we would probably end up doing something artistic like a photoshoot or painting pottery. My fiance would definitely take us to somewhere fun like a real racetrack or some fast Go-Karts. This is an extremely loaded question, especially since I wing everything and see what life has to offer most of the time. Don’t get me wrong, I do plan sometimes but I would definitely give each of my friends a totally different experience depending on how I know them or what our relationship is! For some friends it would be a family friendly and light experience while for others, it would be quite literally the opposite!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Well, the list of people I would give shoutouts to would be long and I would be afraid to forget anyone, so I will just keep it simple and give a shoutout to my mother, who has always been my biggest supporter!

Website: www.punksterphotographyofficial.com

Instagram: @punksterphotography, @punksterowens

Facebook: @PunksterPhotography LLC