THE CHAT with Karen Hutton: Nicole S. Young

Episode #4: Nicole S. Young

I have long admired Nicole S. Young. Not only is she a fabulous photographer… she lives her life as an artist AND a successful entrepreneur, tirelessly creating content and growing her empire. I often hear photographers and other artists wondering how to make a living at their craft and passion… all the while Nicole is cranking out yet another ebook, stock photograph, print book, tutorial, preset photo pack, blog post, interview, guest article, fine art print, you name it.  All the while being a fantastic dog mom, wife and budding potter! It’s all just part of being Nicole…her intense creativity combined with an unparalleled gift for building her business make her a creative force magnificent to behold. She knows that if she can imagine it – she can do it. And boy, does she ever!

I’ve said often; one of my aims with this show is to chat with all kind of people who are “living their life as an artist… or better yet, living their life as if it were their art.” By that, I mean folks who spend their time creating their life by looking up and moving forward. They often make unconventional choices, find success using a combination of their imagination, hard work (which, because they love what they do, doesn’t seem so hard) and, as my mother used to say… using every permissible aid to further their mission and cause. They find joy and delight in doing so… and know that their great ideas are only as good as the actions they take to manifest them.

That’s what’s so inspiring about Nicole. She just has that “can do” attitude. She built her own online store, handles the writing AND the design on many of her eBooks, builds her own websites, cooks all the food she uses for the hugely successful stock food photography arm of her business, the list goes on. She’s also now taking classes and making pottery. I’ve seen a few of her pieces – they’re amazing!

As photographers, most of us use Lightroom and/or Photoshop… it’s just that as Nicole uses them, she also creates presets, actions and texture packs that she then sells on her website’s online store. She not only goes out and takes gorrrrgeous landscape photos, she writes a book and makes an accompanying video tutorial to help others do it better. And then shares some of the best tips on her social streams for free and does a quick (also free) 2 minute tutorial about some important aspect of the process.

I’m constantly fascinated to see how her mind works – the business and creative sides so closely interwoven it’s effortless.

What can I say? Nicole inspires me so much –  I figured you’d love to meet her too.