What's in the Name

     Without a doubt, it is 100% official that blogging is not my specialty.   Ladies and gentlemen it has been two years since my last blog.  Something lately has been sticking in my mind when I am asked for the Follow the Light Photography name.  Whether it be at a festival so I can pick up my pass or to book a studio, it always mesmerizes me to hear other photographers' names.  Sometimes making me think why did they choose that?  We name our babies and I cannot speak for everyone, but for the most part I think we all do our research before picking a name.  There are baby books that tell you the meaning.  There's name affiliation.  There's family history.  So while I am not good at blogging I felt like this one was important.  Here it goes.

     What's in the name Follow the Light Photography?  This will come as no shock that I am visual learner, so I am going to tell you the three points in what's to the name.  Family, faith, and photography.  Plain and simple I could leave it like that.  The main things, but maybe not in that order were those three things that drove the name choice.   A lot of photographers will use their names as an easy way to remember who they are, but if you know me in person I simply cannot go with the flow. 

     Family.  Let's start there.  It turns out my maiden name, which when saying it to anyone growing up had to be spelled out.  L-I-G-H-T.  Because who knew so many people would try to make it more complex than it is.  My maiden name not only had a sense of flow to the name, but also meaning.   Growing up my mom was always the one with the camera.   These were the original days of film when not everyone had a camera on their phone.  She captured memories and moments in time regularly.  Her home is filled with photo albums that my kids love to look through.  Her passion for not caring if people questioned why she had to always be taking pictures drove me to love them just as much.  That passion to capture memories led me to photography, so there was never a question as to whether "Light" needed to be in the name.

     Faith.  Let's be honest.  There's more to the word "Light" than just it being my maiden name.  But how is faith shown in the name you ask?  It's simple.  Through my name I was hoping to represent my love for Jesus in some way.  Following the Light of Jesus has made even the toughest of days seem possible for me.  Many of you reading stuck it out with me and were extremely flexible in rescheduling last year when my lung unexpectedly collapsed.  For that I am beyond grateful, and many of you had even checked in regularly to see how I was doing.  Moments like these allow me to cherish the relationships I have been able to build through this business, and also to see the Light of God in many of my customers.  Some of my favorite verses about the Light of God are these:  

Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine so others can see it. Then they will see the good things you do. And they will bring glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Psalm 27:1 – “The Lord is my light, and He saves me. Why should I fear anyone? The Lord is my place of safety. Why should I be afraid?”

John 1:5 – “The light shines in the darkness. But the darkness has not overcome the light.”

Through faith and Following the Light of God, I pray that in those tough moments of photography I am able to show His light to my clients.  Photography is very much the happy moments of babies being born, a couple getting engaged, and a senior graduating.  But there are also the more solemn moments of the last chance to take photos with a long time family dog, a grandparent that may not be around much longer, a single parent struggling, or someone who found out they are sick.  It's in those moments that I hope my clients are able to see the light that God provides in the darkness.  

     Photography.  So how does the photography part of the name pan out?  Well, I could simply say that's what I am doing. :P  But that would be too easy.  Light is a huge part of photography.  Lighting can change the feel of a photo and create emotions to a picture that a person didn't even know could exist.  That is a portion of why I love photography so much.  The art student in me hears the age old question..."What are you wanting your audience to feel when they see this?"  Following the light in the correct direction is extremely important to me in creating the photo that I hope you the client will love.  Getting it right from the beginning in the camera is something that has always been important to me.  It is my intentions to take a photo that will spark emotions you didn't realize just a photo could spark.  The photo that looking at it now or even later down the road brings up memories of that time.  

     So you ask, what's in the name?  A whole lot because it is more than just a name.  When naming Follow the Light Photography I thought deep into it, just like I was naming my baby.  Because after all, this is one of my babies that I have started from the beginning nurturing it to become what it is today.  The name needed to contain some of the things I hold dear to my heart: family, faith, and photography.  It is the inspiration behind why I became passionate about photography.  It is the hope that I have the chance to share the light that God has shown to me to others through my photography.  It is the joy that comes from capturing the light just right to bring you all a photo that you can cherish for years to come.  Next time you hear the name I hope you remember this:

"Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12