This year, we began looking at how we could do some things differently because that’s just how we like to do things around here. One of the things we looked at was our blog. In recent years, our blogging has been a mix of intermittence and non-existence. Much of that was due to technical difficulty but there were also elements of disorganization and resistance at play. 

Late last year, we launched a new website and with it, a new blog. Initially, we started doing what every other creative business does…posting recent work. And while that’s not a bad thing, it can get repetitive and at times I’m sure, annoying. As a small business, we’re always trying to find that delicate balance of “tooting our own horn” without “toooooooooooooooooooooooting our own horn.” So along with keeping you informed of our recent images and projects, we’ve also decided to take this year and create our own interesting mix of subject matters to blog about. 

When people come to our site, we want them to see our work because we’re proud of it and also because that’s probably what they’re looking for. But one thing we’ve learned in our 7 years of small business experience is that business is personal. Customers and clients deal DIRECTLY with us instead of dealing with middlemen or automated telephone menus. When you call our studio, it’s me (Philip) that answers the phone. Everything is hands-on and customized and in the course of working so closely with clients and customers, relationships are built, friendships formed and connections made. That’s just how our business works. When someone comes to our website, we want them to see our work and the professional side of our business. But we also want them to see beyond our work; beyond the portfolios and the professionalisms. We want them to get a glimpse of our what makes us tick, what we find fascinating or interesting, what we’re passionate about and where we’re headed in the journey of business, creativity and life in general. 

And while our blog is great for sharing recent images and projects, it’s also a place where we can open and up share other parts of our life as a small creative business. This year, we’ve created a few personal projects for ourselves as a business. We’ve decided to “meet our neighbors”, tinker with and photograph with antique cameras, explore more of our surroundings and in general, continue to push the creative boundaries of our business. To date, we’ve already blogged about a favorite ghost town, a favorite antique camera that still works, a camera bag that doubles as a man purse, an elderly shoe repairman who works a few doors down from our studio and we took the liberty of posting vacation pictures. We’ll be continuing with this trend and we’ll also be focusing on a fine art photography non-profit venture called Art From The Everyday. We’re very excited about this year and as the journey unfolds, we sincerely hope you all enjoy of our blogging ventures.

Onward.