Today we’d like to introduce you to Merideth Olson.
Hi Merideth, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hiii! I started Merideth Olson Photography in 2019 when a friend at the University of South Carolina asked me to take her graduation photos. At the time, I was studying broadcast journalism with the full intention of becoming a news anchor. I took those grad photos for fun, posted them, and somehow it completely snowballed from there. What started with photographing friends around campus has grown into a business and career that has taken me places I genuinely never could have imagined.
I’ve always been drawn to people, storytelling, fashion, and creating things that feel a little different. When I first picked up a camera, I wasn’t thinking about building a business. I just loved creating and capturing people in a way that felt like *them*. Friends slowly turned into clients, word started spreading, and I realized pretty quickly that photography wasn’t just something I loved. It was something I wanted to seriously pursue.
Since then, my camera has taken me all over. I’ve had the opportunity to photograph luxury weddings and couples across the country and internationally, work with brands and fashion, photograph New York Fashion Week, and shoot in some pretty incredible and unexpected places. I love that my career doesn’t fit perfectly into one box. One week I can be photographing a wedding in a beautiful destination, and the next I can be creating something completely editorial for a brand or fashion project. I think those different worlds constantly inspire each other and have really shaped the photographer I am today.
My style has evolved so much along the way, too. I’m drawn to imagery that feels alive, full of soul, BOLD and immediately brings you into the moment. There’s definitely an editorial and fashion influence to my work, but I never want an image to feel overly perfect or lifeless. I love movement, emotion, personality, bold color, interesting composition, beautiful details, and all of those in-between moments you couldn’t recreate if you tried.
That carries heavily into the way I photograph weddings. I love the beauty and intentionality of weddings, from the fashion and design to the destinations and incredible details, but at the center of it all are still real people having one of the biggest days of their lives. I want my couples to have those gorgeous, frame-worthy, editorial images, but I also want them to look through their gallery years later and instantly remember how everything *felt*.
Today, Merideth Olson Photography is so much more than what I pictured when I started in 2019. I get to travel, meet the coolest people, photograph beautiful celebrations and creative projects, work alongside incredible brands and vendors, and constantly push myself creatively. I’ve also been able to build a team and create systems behind the scenes that have allowed the business to grow while still keeping the experience personal for every client.
I think one of my favorite parts of the story is that it’s still being written. My business looks completely different than it did when I took those first graduation photos at USC, and I hope it continues to evolve. I never want to stop creating, traveling, experimenting, or finding new ways to tell stories. I’m incredibly grateful for everywhere this little business has already taken me, and I’m really excited to see where it takes me next.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I honestly feel really lucky to say that so much of it has worked out in ways I never could have planned (TYJ). I’m a big believer that what is meant for you will find you, but I also think you have to be willing to work really hard when it does. I’ve definitely put a lot of time, energy, and heart into building this business.
One of the biggest challenges came about four years into my business, right when I was experiencing a lot of growth. Within the next few years, I moved three times to three different states. When so much of photography is built on relationships, referrals, and community, picking up and moving just as you’re gaining momentum can definitely be scary.
But looking back, what felt like it could have been a setback actually became one of the best things for my business. Every move introduced me to a new city, new people, new vendors, and new opportunities. Instead of my business belonging to one place, it pushed me to build a brand that could exist anywhere. Now traveling is such a huge part of what I do, and I get to photograph weddings, brands, and people all over the country and internationally.
So no, it hasn’t always been perfectly smooth, but some of the things I thought might make growing a business harder ended up expanding my world in ways I never expected. I think there’s something really cool about that.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My work really lives at the intersection of luxury and destination weddings, fashion, brands, and creative direction. I love that I’ve never had to put myself into just one creative box. I can be photographing a wedding one weekend, working on a fashion or brand shoot the next, and then be on the other side of the camera myself as an actress.
With weddings, I specialize in celebrations that are intentional, design-forward, and full of personality. I’m drawn to beautiful fashion, incredible locations, thoughtful details, and couples who want their photos to feel like art while still feeling completely like them. My approach has always walked the line of editoral/ documentary influence, but I never want a gallery to feel stiff or overly posed. I want it to have movement, bold color, timeless, emotion, a little bit of edge, and a lot of life.
Outside of weddings, I work in fashion, branding, and creative direction, which gives me another space to really play and experiment. I love coming up with a concept and figuring out how to bring an entire vision to life, not just taking the photo. I think that side of my work constantly feeds back into my weddings and keeps me inspired.
I’m also an actress, which feels like a completely different world and somehow not different at all. Being on both sides of the camera has taught me so much about directing people, movement, storytelling, and what it actually feels like to be photographed. I think it has made me a much more intuitive photographer.
What I’m most proud of is that I’ve built a career where I get to create in so many different ways. I’ve never wanted my work to look exactly like everyone else’s, and I think that is probably what sets me apart most. I’m always looking for the unexpected frame, the weird little moment, the movement, the emotion, or the idea that makes you stop for a second. Whether I’m photographing a wedding, shooting fashion, creating for a brand, or acting, I want whatever I’m making to feel alive and have a point of view.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
This is almost impossible to answer because I have so many! I’m incredibly close with my family and have so many memories from growing up that I look back on so fondly.
One of my favorites, though, would have to be making home movies, music videos, and skits with my brothers. We were constantly coming up with some kind of storyline, filming it, playing different characters, and then making our family sit down and watch the final production. We took it VERY seriously, haha.
Looking back now, it’s actually really funny how much that connects to who I am today. I’ve always loved storytelling, creating, being behind the camera and in front of it. Apparently I’ve been doing some version of this my entire life!
Pricing:
- Weddings starting at 8,000
- Branding starting at 1,000
Contact Info:
- Website: https://meridetholson.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mermac/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MerMac
