Today we’d like to introduce you to Megan Fewer.
Hi Megan, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’ve always been drawn to art, creativity, and storytelling. Growing up, I loved pretty much every kind of art—even though I couldn’t draw to save my life. 😂 I always had creative ideas in my head; I just had to figure out what my version of art was going to be.
Photography was always different for me. It was one of my favorite classes in high school, especially when we got to shoot on film and develop our own photos in the darkroom. I loved the entire process. There was something so cool about taking a photo and then watching that image slowly come to life in front of you. Looking back, I think that was one of the first times I realized photography could be my form of art.
But it took me a while to realize it could actually become something more than something I just loved doing.
The real turning point came when my friend Kat of Timberwolf Photography put together a styled shoot and I went along to photograph it. I remember leaving that shoot and having this feeling of, “Wait…I don’t want to stop doing this.”
I wanted to keep creating. I wanted to photograph more people, come up with more ideas, tell more stories, and see what I could actually do with photography. For the first time, I really thought, *I could do this. I could actually make something out of this.*
Kat encouraged me to go for it, too, and having someone believe in me at the beginning meant more than she probably realized. Sometimes you just need that one person to say, “You can do this,” before you start believing it yourself. I’ll always be grateful that she gave me that little push when I needed it.
That styled shoot ended up being the push I needed to start Small Town Memories Photography.
And apparently I really meant it when I decided to go for it, because one of the moments that sticks with me most happened while I was driving to a photoshoot in the snow.
It was snowing HARD, and as I was driving, I remember thinking, *I am actually crazy. Who drives through this to go take pictures?!*
And almost immediately, I knew the answer: apparently, me. 😂
Because I loved photography that much.
It was one of those weird little moments where I realized just how much this meant to me. I was willing to drive through a snowstorm because I was genuinely excited to get there, pick up my camera, and create. I don’t know if I recommend using a snowstorm as a career-realization moment, but it definitely made something click for me.
As Small Town Memories grew, I also started figuring out what kind of photographer I wanted to be. I realized pretty quickly that I didn’t just want to take “pretty pictures.” I didn’t want every photo to be perfectly posed with everyone staring at my camera and smiling.
I wanted the belly laughs. The movement. The wind messing up someone’s hair. Kids being kids. The way someone looks at the person they love when they don’t realize I’m photographing them. The little hands, hugs, tears, chaos, and imperfect in-between moments.
Those are the photos that feel like memories to me.
That’s really where the heart behind Small Town Memories comes from. Life is made up of all these moments that can feel so ordinary while you’re living them, but one day, they’re the things you wish you could go back and experience one more time. I want people to be able to look at their photos years from now and not just remember what everything looked like—I want them to remember what that season of their life *felt like*.
At the same time, I’ve been growing another side of my creative career through content creation. My personal platform has given me another canvas for storytelling and a place where all the different parts of me can exist together—fashion, beauty, photography, books, sports, small-town life, creativity, and everyday life.
That eventually grew into opportunities to collaborate with brands, create UGC and campaign content, attend creative events, and connect with so many other creatives. I’ve learned that a lot of what I love about photography translates into content creation, too. It’s still about telling a story, creating a feeling, and making something that feels human.
My path hasn’t been perfectly planned, and I’m definitely still figuring things out as I go. I’ve had ideas that worked, ideas that completely flopped, moments where I’ve questioned myself, and plenty of times where I’ve changed direction. But I’ve also learned that sometimes you have to start before you feel completely ready.
Today, I’m continuing to grow Small Town Memories Photography while building my personal platform and working as a content creator. I’m still dreaming up shoots, experimenting with ideas, meeting incredible people, working with brands, and finding new ways to tell stories.
It’s kind of funny when I think about it. I started as the girl who loved art but couldn’t draw, fell in love with developing film in a high school darkroom, had Kat of Timberwolf Photography encourage me to take photography seriously, and somehow became the girl driving through a snowstorm thinking, *Yep, I’m definitely crazy—but I really, really love this.*
I think that’s when you know you’ve found something worth chasing.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Definitely not. My road has had a few more plot twists than I probably would have chosen for myself.
Chronic illness has been part of my life since I was 11 years old. I’ve gone through brain surgeries, lived with multiple chronic and rare illnesses, dealt with debilitating migraines, and learned from a really young age that sometimes life doesn’t care what you had planned for that day.
And I definitely had plans.
For a long time, I planned on moving to Nashville. I dreamed about building a career there and hoped to eventually work for Girlilla Marketing. I loved the idea of working somewhere that brought together marketing, music, creativity, content, and storytelling. In my head, that was where my life was going.
But life had other plans.
My health changed things, my family needed me, and eventually my path started taking me somewhere I hadn’t necessarily planned—but somewhere that still allowed me to be creative.
Even when I realized I wanted to pursue photography seriously, I struggled with taking that leap because I never wanted to step on my photographer friends’ toes. Their support means the world to me, and some of those same friends were the people encouraging me to actually do this. I never wanted photography to feel like a competition or like I was trying to take away from something they had built.
I’ve slowly learned that there is room for all of us. We can photograph the same types of people and still see and capture their stories completely differently. Having other photographers who encourage me, answer my million questions, collaborate with me, inspire me, and genuinely want to see me succeed has been one of the best parts of this journey.
Then there’s the reality of building a business while living with chronic illness. Some days I feel like I can take on the world, and other days my body decides we’re changing the schedule. Migraines can be incredibly unpredictable, and balancing my health with sessions, editing, clients, content creation, and everything else isn’t always easy.
More recently, I’ve also become a caregiver for my mom while simultaneously, as I lovingly call it, “babysitting” my dad. 😂 Balancing being there for my family with trying to build something for myself has probably been one of the biggest challenges.
And then there’s actually learning how to run a business. Photography is the part I love, but suddenly you’re also supposed to understand pricing, contracts, marketing, websites, social media, SEO, client communication, bookkeeping, and about 500 other things nobody warned you about.
I’ve had slow periods, inquiries that never became bookings, opportunities I really wanted but didn’t get, ideas that didn’t work, and content I was convinced would be amazing that completely flopped.
I’ve questioned myself a LOT.
But when I look back at where I was just a year ago compared to where I am now, I’m honestly amazed by how much I’ve grown.
Within a year, I’ve gone from wondering if I could really do this to running Small Town Memories, photographing couples, families, milestones and weddings, traveling for photography, creating styled shoots and bringing some of the crazy ideas in my head to life, connecting with an incredible creative community, and continuing to grow as both a photographer and business owner.
My work has changed. My confidence has changed. I’ve learned more about my camera, editing, posing, directing, storytelling, running a business, and—probably most importantly—trusting myself.
I’m still nowhere near finished growing. If anything, seeing what can change in just one year makes me even more excited about what the next few years could look like.
The funny part is that the life I’m building now looks completely different from the one I originally pictured for myself. I may not have ended up in Nashville working the career I had planned, but somehow I’ve still found my way back to everything I loved about that dream: photography, marketing, content creation, brands, creativity, and storytelling.
I’ve just built my own version of it.
So no, it hasn’t been a smooth road. There have been brain surgeries, chronic illness, migraines, changed plans, caregiving, self-doubt, business struggles, and a whole lot of figuring things out as I go.
But within one year, I’ve also proven something to myself that I wasn’t completely sure of when I started:
I *can* do this.
And if this is what one year of taking a chance on myself looks like, I’m really excited to see where I am a year from now.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At the heart of Small Town Memories Photography is exactly what the name says—memories.
I’m a wedding and lifestyle photographer based in the Philadelphia suburbs, but I absolutely love traveling for photography. I specialize in weddings and couples, while also photographing families, maternity, milestones, seniors, and pretty much everything in between. I love the variety because every person who steps in front of my camera gives me a completely different story to tell.
My photography style is candid, emotional, colorful, and vintage-inspired with a little cinematic feel. I love photographs that have that nostalgic, almost film-like quality—like something you could pull out of an old family photo album—but with beautiful color, personality, and life still in them.
I don’t want everything to feel overly muted, perfectly polished, or stiff. I love movement, texture, a little grain, rich color, and photographs that feel lived-in. I think of my work as a mix of nostalgia and real life: a little vintage, plenty of color, and a whole lot of feeling.
Of course, I’ll get the beautiful portraits and the photos Grandma wants framed, but I’m always watching for everything happening in between.
I want the belly laughs. The little hands wrapped around Mom’s fingers. The groom looking at his bride when she isn’t paying attention. Grandpa tearing up during the ceremony. The wind messing up your perfectly styled hair. The toddler who has decided they are absolutely NOT taking another picture.
Those are the photographs that feel like memories to me.
A lot of that comes from my own experiences. I went through major health scares, brain surgeries, and chronic illness diagnoses at a young age. Going through those things made me realize earlier than most that we aren’t promised unlimited time.
There are memories and milestones I hope I get to experience someday, but I also know firsthand that life doesn’t always follow the plan we make for ourselves. That’s made me want to document as much of it as I can—not just the big milestones, but the ordinary moments we don’t realize we’re going to miss someday.
I want the pictures with Mom. I want Dad being Dad. I want the grandparents in the frame. I want the messy kids and the dog who refuses to look at the camera.
I want people to have photographs that remind them of how their life felt, not just what it looked like.
Being a babysitter and a very proud aunt also plays a huge role in how I photograph families. I genuinely love being around kids and making them laugh. I’ve also learned that expecting a three-year-old to sit perfectly still, stare at my camera, and smile on command usually isn’t the recipe for the photographs parents are going to treasure most anyway.
We’ll play. We’ll move. I’ll make ridiculous noises, ask silly questions, and probably make a complete fool of myself. 😂 Whatever gets that REAL laugh and lets their personality come through.
But one of the biggest things I hope sets Small Town Memories apart isn’t actually my editing style or even the photographs themselves—it’s the relationships I build with the people who trust me with their memories.
I don’t want someone to book me, exchange a few emails, show up for pictures, receive a gallery, and then never hear from me again.
Especially with my wedding couples, I want to actually know you. I want to hear how you met, know what you’re excited about and nervous about, understand who the important people are, and learn what moments matter most to you.
By the time your wedding day arrives, I don’t want to feel like some random stranger walking into one of the biggest days of your life with a camera.
I want you to feel like you have someone in your corner.
Someone who will give you direction when you need it, fix something that’s out of place, make you laugh when you’re nervous, help keep things moving when the timeline gets a little chaotic, and then know when to step back and let you actually experience your wedding while I document it.
And I don’t want that relationship to end when I deliver your wedding gallery.
One of the things that excites me most about photography is getting to document multiple chapters of someone’s story. Maybe I photograph your engagement and wedding, and a few years later you come back for maternity photos. Then I’m photographing your baby, their first birthday, and eventually your whole family.
That’s the dream.
I’m not interested in just collecting bookings. I want to build relationships and become the photographer someone thinks of when another chapter of their life deserves to be remembered.
Outside of Small Town Memories, I’m also a content creator, which has become another extension of my love for storytelling. I create lifestyle, fashion, beauty, bookish, sports, and everyday content, along with UGC and campaigns for brands. Having experience in both worlds has taught me to think about storytelling from so many different perspectives—movement, emotion, composition, branding, color, and what makes someone stop and actually feel something.
I’m incredibly proud of how much Small Town Memories has grown within my first year. I started wondering whether I could actually do this, and now I’m photographing weddings, couples, families and milestones, traveling for photography, creating styled shoots, meeting and learning from other creatives, and developing a style and client experience that finally feel like me.
But what I’m most proud of isn’t one specific photograph or booking.
It’s when someone trusts me enough to come back.
Because someone choosing me once to photograph an important moment is incredible. Someone coming back and asking me to continue documenting their story means I’ve created something bigger than a beautiful gallery.
I’ve created a relationship.
And ultimately, that’s what I want Small Town Memories to be—a place where people can come back through every season of their lives and know that someone genuinely cares about them and the memories we’re preserving together.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I think the photography and creative industries are going to change A LOT over the next 5–10 years, especially with AI, social media, and technology evolving as quickly as they are.
AI is obviously going to become a bigger part of the creative world. We’re already seeing it in editing, content creation, marketing, brainstorming, and even image generation. I think photographers and creators will eventually use more of those tools behind the scenes to make running a business easier and give us more time to actually create.
But strangely enough, I also think all of that technology is going to make real photography even more important.
When almost anyone can generate a technically “perfect” image, perfection isn’t necessarily going to be what makes a photograph special anymore.
The fact that a moment actually happened will.
I think people are going to crave authenticity more and more—real people, real emotion, real skin, movement, grain, imperfections, personality, and photographs that actually feel like someone’s life.
We’re already seeing a return to things that feel nostalgic and analog. Film-inspired editing, vintage aesthetics, direct flash, disposable cameras, motion blur, grain, and photos that feel like they could have come out of an old family album are becoming exciting again. Personally, I love that because it fits so naturally with the direction I’m taking Small Town Memories: vintage-inspired, colorful, nostalgic, candid, and full of feeling.
I also think we’ll continue moving away from the idea that every photography session needs to be perfectly posed.
Especially with weddings and families, I think people are realizing they don’t just want 500 technically perfect photographs of everyone looking at the camera. They want Grandma laughing at the reception. They want Dad crying during the first look. They want their toddler running away in the middle of family pictures. They want the blurry dancing photo that somehow captures the night better than the perfectly sharp one.
They want proof that they actually *lived it*.
Video is going to become even more important, too. I think the lines between photographer, videographer, content creator, and storyteller will continue to blur. Wedding-day content creation is already becoming its own service, and I can see couples wanting a combination of professional photography, cinematic video, short-form vertical content, and those immediate little behind-the-scenes memories they can have right away.
Because I work in both photography and content creation, I’m actually really excited about that crossover.
At the same time, I think client experience is going to become an even bigger differentiator.
Technology can help someone edit a photograph. AI can generate an image. A phone can take an incredible picture.
But none of those things can replace the relationship you build with someone.
They can’t make a nervous couple feel comfortable in front of the camera. They can’t make a toddler genuinely belly laugh. They can’t learn someone’s family dynamics before their wedding or recognize that Grandma is an incredibly important person to photograph. They can’t hug a bride who’s overwhelmed, calm someone down when the timeline goes sideways, or know when to put the camera down for a second and just be human.
That’s where I think photographers are going to have to stand out.
The photographers who thrive won’t necessarily be the ones with the most expensive camera or the trendiest preset. I think they’ll be the ones who have a recognizable point of view, create an incredible experience, build genuine relationships, and make photographs that actually mean something to people.
I also hope we see more collaboration and less competition. One thing I’ve learned since starting Small Town Memories is how valuable having other photographers and creatives in your corner can be. There is room for different styles, personalities, and approaches, and I think creative communities are only going to become more important as the industry keeps changing.
Trends will come and go over the next ten years. Editing styles will change. Cameras will get smarter. AI will get better. Social media will probably reinvent itself another hundred times.
But I don’t think people are ever going to stop wanting to remember the people they love.
That’s the part of this industry I’m betting on.
Technology might change *how* we create, but human connection is still going to be the reason we create in the first place.
Pricing:
- Wedding photography packages starting at $800, with options for shorter coverage, full-day coverage, and second photographers
- Couples & engagement sessions starting at $250
- Family, maternity & milestone sessions starting at $250
- Seasonal mini sessions starting at $150
- Senior sessions starting at $250
Contact Info:
- Website: https://smalltownmemories.mypixieset.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smalltownmemories
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584128231341
- LinkedIn: https://smalltownmemories.pixieset.com
- Twitter: https://www.tiktok.com/@small.town.memories
- Youtube: https://www.pinterest.com/smalltownmemoriesbymegan/
- Yelp: https://share.google/NTDXKV5yEtfl26Udo
- Soundcloud: https://smalltownmemories.pixieset.com/booking/
- Other: https://smalltownmemories.mypixieset.com/links/
