November 12, 2016

Meet Kennesaw Student: Emma Kohtanen

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Emma Kohtanen.

Emma, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
For as long as I can remember, I have always had an interest in fashion and putting together looks. It wasn’t until social media got bigger and when fashion blogging became more and more popular, that it hit me that I could actually start my own website where I could share my personal style with the world, too. I wanted to create a platform sharing my style, where women would be guaranteed to find some kind of inspiration each and every time they took a glance. There was a little hesitation, however, to make my blog. It wasn’t because of a lack of passion, but because of lack of skills to write a post, make the website, and take the pictures. I still remember the moment when I pulled up WordPress and started attempting to create a decent looking website for the very first time. Fast forward to about two years (to present time) my hobby of blogging has become almost like a part-time job, however, it didn’t happen overnight. For the very first year, I didn’t even own a digital camera. All of my pictures were taken with an iPhone 5. One thing that I did have, is consistency. Having a plan of posting x times on x days truly helped me get to where I am today, because quite truthfully, I didn’t receive my first business collaboration email until after six months of blogging. However, that’s when the doors opened for me. Ever since then, I have been working with great businesses, which make the early struggles of blogging worth it.

Has it been a smooth road?
It hasn’t been the smoothest road for me. The biggest struggle for me has got to be the technical aspect. I had no idea how to make my very first website somewhat appealing to the eye. Not only the website itself but the content. As I mentioned, I didn’t have a photographer taking pictures of me right when I started. In retrospect, I feel as if I had completely wasted some of those outfits back in the day because of the quality of the pictures were bad. In fact, I got a few comments here and there telling me that hey, your outfits are great but your pictures aren’t. After all, pictures are everything in fashion blogging.

What are some of the influences that have played the biggest role in your journey so far?
I would have to say my little brother has had the biggest role in my blogging career, as cliche as that sounds. As I mentioned before, I didn’t have a digital camera to take professional looking pictures during my first year as a fashion blogger. When I finally got a Nikon, my little brother was the one who learned photography for the benefit of my blog and through trial and error, has taken 90% of my pictures ever since. His help truly has gotten me where I am today.

Do you have a favorite type of client or project?
I absolutely love when a newly launched or a soon launching, business approaches me for collaboration. There is something about the idea of getting to be a part of the team who initially puts the name out there about the new company. However, other than that, I don’t really have any specific types that I absolutely prefer over the other. Whatever business happens to suit my edgy, chic style, will do it. Although I don’t keep the door open just for any business, as I have my readers’ preferences in my mind at all times because I do collaborations for them, too.

What have been some of the most important lessons you’ve learned over the course of your career?
If I had to start over, I would have gotten professional photos done way earlier than a year in. In fashion blogging, pictures, above all, are what attracts new readers and new partnerships. In another word, pictures are what makes you grow as a blogger. So sometimes I wonder, where and how different would things have been today if I had quality photos since day one. However, better late than never. I am very pleased and happy with my blog today.

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