Owen Scarlett
Owen Scarlett
Photographer / Founder of Owen Scarlett Productions
Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA
www.owenscarlett.com
instagram @owenscarlettphoto
WHAT DO YOU DO?
“I manifest people’s creative ideas through photography and visual design within safe spaces that are free of judgement. ”
Allowing people to explores their ideas as expansively as possible.
WHAT STEPS DID YOU TAKE TO GET TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW?
During college, I was gifted a DLSR camera and was opened up to the world of photography. I was Jazz Dance major so at that time everyone I knew was needing headshots because we were about to embark on the professional dance world of auditioning. I found myself to be an amateur so I would capture portraits of my friends with zero expectations. They felt safe with me and that allowed their purest light to shine through. I loved how my work made people feel. I continued to take photos of my fellow dance friends throughout my professional career as a dancer and then one day a photographer who I admired so much told me that I needed to start charging for my work and recognize that I finally knew what I was doing. From there I mainly captured portraits but I expanded from just doing headshots. I soon realized that even though I now "knew what I was doing" I still kept my work spaces free of judgement and people gravitated to me because it showed in the work I produced. It is my goal to continue to create grounding and safe spaces for individuals to express themselves.
How do you stand out in your field?
I had a lot of creative interests as a child so I was always getting into different projects. For the longest time it was just dancing but at the age of twelve I was gifted a camcorder and I realized the magic of capturing moments of other people's creative exploration. I would record my friends dancing and provide them with VHS's of the footage. I had no idea what I was doing but that allowed my subjects to feel free of judgement. I didn't have any expectations. I just found each individual's expressions uniquely inspiring. I love collaboration and love creating safe creative spaces and I truly feel like that's my natural gift as an artist. It's the first thing people notice when shooting with me. There's always a true collaboration and my talents mean nothing without the authentic energy of my subjects.
WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?
I'm working with a 35mm film camera now and capturing portraits of my friends to archive moments from this period of quarantine. My hope is to make them all feel safe and not alone even though we're more isolated than usual. Eventually I'm going to print the photos and archive into some kind of photo book. There's no timeline on this but I find that it's therapeutic for everyone.
WHAT'S YOUR STYLE/PERSPECTIVE/TASTE? DO YOU HAVE A PROJECT THAT REPRESENTS THIS?
I'm ever evolving and so is my work but if I had to describe my style I'd say that it's always a reflection of authentic expression. Usually resulting in bold and contrasting colors/textures.
WE ARE ALL SLASHIES WITH MULTIPLE SKILLS, WHICH ONE DO YOU WISH YOU COULD DO MORE OFTEN?
Being that my creative expression started with dance, I'd like to venture more into choreographing films and music videos.
WHAT IS FRUSTRATING YOU RIGHT NOW?
I recently moved to LA, so expanding my creative network right now feels very limited during this pandemic. I want to work on larger projects and meet other like-minded creatives.
IF YOU COULD HIRE SOMEONE FOR $20/HR, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE THEM DO TO MAKE YOUR DAY EASIER?
I try to stay off of social media but because that's how most people see my work and reach out to me I feel like I need to be connected to it. I would love someone to handle my social media account.
LET'S BRING OUT THE TIME MACHINE. WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU COULD HAVE TOLD YOURSELF, WHEN, AND WHY?
I would have told myself that it's okay to feel like you still have so much to learn. It's that very feeling that keeps me humble and passionate to be better. It keeps my exploration exciting and my work authentic.
IF YOU COULD TALK TO AN EXPERT TO GAIN MORE INSIGHT ON SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?
There's so much that I want to know about setting up a long-lasting business as a freelance artist. I would love to know how to establish a well-oiled machine of a business so that I can focus more on my work.
WHAT KIND OF OPPORTUNITIES/PROJECTS ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
I'd love to shoot fashion for publication purposes and portraits for musicians. My background in dance definitely shapes how people and fabrics are captured on camera.
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL JOB/CLIENT/COLLABORATION.
I'd love to work with anyone who's curious about expanding an idea collaboratively. I feel like that approach allows every party involved to create something even better than what they individually imagined.
Who is a creative that has helped you elevate your work?
Ryan Heffington, Charissa Kroeger and Ryan Pfluger are all artists that create work that captures the authentic light of their subjects. Their work is ever evolving and they are always switching it up. They are my constant sources of inspiration.
HOW SHOULD SOMEONE APPROACH YOU ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER?
I'm a very causal person and I don't want people to feel like they're talking to a "business" when connecting with me. I find that Instagram and email are the best ways to reach out to me. And I always appreciate knowing the scope and the budget so that everyone is on the same page.
HOW DO YOU STAY CREATIVE?
By changing sh$t up!!
This member profile was originally published in January 2021.