The Search for a Name...

So, I'm in a bit of a dilemma - I am designing a new website in my web 2 class, and it will be my new wedding photo site. Issue being that my current business name, Hannah Epley Photography, needs to change, because in less than 8 months now, my last name will no longer be Epley. I want Hannah Goering Photography to be a site for my more personal/documentary work, while for weddings, I need something peppy but professional.

How would you describe my photography? I need to come up with a logo, but I don't want to do that until I have a name. Any ideas?

What I've been up to...

So I know I'm not living up to a post per day, and yes, I even disappoint myself. But with school the way it is right now and taking 18 credit hours, I am not perfect and am learning to trust God with my time!

Here are two web galleries you can look through from the past two weddings I have photographed. These were both lots of fun and the first weddings I have done entirely digital and shooting in RAW format. (Exciting!) I'll be shooting two more weddings in the next 5 weeks, so stay tuned for more photos!

Here's Abbey and Matt's wedding

and Nora and Bojan's wedding.

Both were beautiful weddings, and were so much fun to be a part of! I love my job!

I have some explaining to do...

I spoke with my mother last night on the phone, and we discussed how I haven't blogged the past few days, NOR have I posted any pictures. Guilty as charged. So, I feel I should explain this mishap...

My computer has been at Apple being repaired (getting a new screen) since August 30th. I have, in the meantime, been using Josiah's old laptop for homework, internet, and pictures. My reasons for not having blogged? 1 - I've had friends from Iowa visiting since Sunday, 2 - Josiah's computer is pretty darn slow, 3 - For some reason, the Adobe Bridge I installed on Josiah's computer is missing Adobe Camera Raw, a necessary part of the program which allows my computer to read RAW files. Which I have been shooting in now, since I'm using my photos for class.

Yes, I have excuses. And they are valid, mother. Nonetheless, my laptop is being shipped back to me as we speak, and I should have photo-processing capabilities again very soon! I promise I have lots of pictures to show you and I have still been keeping my tally and forcing myself to shoot every day. I'll keep you posted.

Blah...

I have been slightly dizzy for the past 6 hours, it started while I was giving a Segway tour tonight (I didn't let on as if I was feeling ill, I finished it, so no biggie). I went to the movie "3:10 to Yuma" with Josiah and some other Moody Bible kids after work, it was good but I felt as if in an attempt to look old fashioned, the movie was slightly out of focus 75% of the time, and I got a headache watching it. Nausea.

Lazy Day.

Though I did run some errands today, it was a pretty lazy day around here. This evening Josiah and I watched "Catch Me if You Can," he hadn't seen it, it's a fun movie.

Today's picture: My new beloved friend. I picked him up at Home Depot. Wanna help me name him? (I've been dying to get a new plant since last spring. And now I finally have one.) He's a happy red-tipped jade plant, and I intend to keep him for years and years.


p.s. Josiah and I realized tonight that if all goes as planned, we will be getting hitched in exactly nine months from today! Hooray!

Carpe Diem

It's been nearly two months since I've blogged. It's hard to believe how time can fly when you get busy. I've had RA training, move-ins, wedding planning is underway, and now school has started. Over the past few months I've gotten to feel as if I'm missing out on something. Like I'm not pushing myself as hard as I should be in this field. Tonight in my first Photojournalism I class with John White, a photojournalist at the Chicago Sun-Times, I came to the conclusion that it's time now to start kicking myself into action. No more lazy days with the camera sitting on the shelf. No more memory cards and film stashed away being unused. No more lens caps. If I am going to be a great photographer, I need to be constantly shooting pictures.

New shot: All I shot today was during class, when my teacher was challenging us to be quick with our reflexes and with the shutter, we were required to shoot exactly when his hands clapped, which is quite difficult when you teacher fakes you out 9/10ths of the time. I caught him twice, out of 45 shots.


And for your viewing pleasure, here are some old pictures from late June, Holly's senior shots:

Shoutout to Mike Colon

I just was reading through Mike Colon's web blog, and have found it very interesting the conversation that is going on in his recent blog's comment box. Check it out, it's sure to rouse some deep thoughts, let alone a bit of emotion.

{Photo taken from another photographer's blog - David Burke Photographers}

Mike is a very successful wedding photographer in Newport Beach, California, and is a devoted Christian, and is always so open about his faith on his website and blog. Though I have never met Mike, some of my friends grew up with him and witnessed how he built his business. From what they've told me, Mike's success came from a lot of hard work, and faith in God. And though I may never charge $20,000 as my base price for wedding packages, I truly appreciate Mike's approach (as he knows how to MARKET himself) and his dedication to sharing his insight, rather than hoarding his knowledge to himself.

As a wedding photographer in the early stages of my career, gaining perspectives from my internship, school, and other photographers as Mike, I have come to pick and choose certain tips, practices, and styles that are forming into my own personal approach on wedding photography. And although I don't intend to follow Mike Colon's exact footsteps in his approach, I have come to respect him very much. Mike has found a system that works for him, and his clients are willing to fork up the extra money for what he offers. And Mike explains that he is always pushing himself to get better at what he does, which is something that I definitely want to do. It is so sad to me when I see a photographer so set in his or her ways that the market passes them by. Mike is definitely not one of those photographers.

So, here's a shoutout to Mike, check out his great portfolio, which is one of the reasons I wanted to get into the business in the first place. Again, Mike, thanks for being open about your faith on your blog.

Aloha Oe, My Dear Hawaii

As promised, here are some photos from my family's trip to Hawaii this past March. I know, I know, these are coming really late in the game, but they are finally here, nonetheless.

I flew separately from my family to Hawaii, since it didn't really make sense to drive to Cedar Rapids, then fly to Chicago before flying to the Island. Adam picked me up at the airport, and I marveled at the full rainbow between the mountains. It was as if the Island of Oahu was welcoming me personally... Once we got settled in, we did some grocery shopping with Adam at the commissary, since we had a full kitchen in our hotel room, and we went out and took a walk on Waikiki beach later that evening.

Our next day, we scheduled our guided tours for the upcoming week, then took a trip to Hilo Hattie's, a huge store with all kinds of Hawaiian souvenirs and goods. Hilo Hattie's has, in their lobby, the world's largest Hawaiian shirt, a 400XL.


Dad really enjoyed this shopping trip after we had been there for a couple hours.


The next day, Sunday, my dad surprised my mom, informing her that they would be renewing their wedding vows in Turtle Bay, where they honeymooned nearly 20 years ago. (Dad and I had been scheming for months secretly to set this up.) We visited New Hope Church, then visited Adam's base at Palm Circle (he is really roughing it being stationed in Hawaii).


After our visit, we then headed for the north shore. On the way there, we stopped at a restaurant my parents ate at while on their honeymoon, Jamieson's By the Sea. SUCH great seafood.


The ceremony, led by Ron Valencia - a pastor who my parents met on their first visit to the island.

At Turtle Bay, during the ceremony. I love the look on my mom's face.


Family photo op - look for this one in the Christmas card, people.



The next day, we headed off bright and early for Hanauma Bay, a collapsed volcano-turned coral reef. It was our first time snorkeling, and we all had to learn the hard way how far down you CAN'T go before your snorkel fills up with salt water. It was an amazing experience. The snorkeling, not the inhaling seawater.


Hanauma Bay


That afternoon, after returning from the bay, Sam, Jacob and I headed down to Waikiki again (a grueling 4-5 block trek) and relaxed by the shore. Thanks to Sam for making Jacob into a sand woman, anatomically complete. Classy.


An acquired friend, we built lots of sand castles and sand carwashes and sand jacuzi's together.


I just couldn't get enough of the beach... consider me a natural beach bum.


The next day was a busy one for us, we headed via tour bus to Pearl Harbor and were taken to the Arizona Memorial which rests on top of the actual ship sunk during the attack. It was sombering to be there, standing on top of a ship that became a permanent tomb for so many sailors, seeing the oil surface that still seeps up from within the ship.


Next stop was a guided tour of the battleship Missouri. This thing was gigantic, and amazing. Our tour guide was really great.


The next day was our big trip to the Polynesian Cultural Center, where Polynesian customs, dances, etc. are demonstrated throughout the day. On the way there, we saw a sign for a "scenic point," and after getting out of the car, came to realize just what "scenic" really meant - a fascinating maze of lava formations stretching out into the water. We went exploring.

Mom included in the photo to give you a sense of scale...




We were hungry after all that exploring, so we decided to try out a Hawaiian McDonald's.


We actually didn't try the platters, but we DID all have Haupia pie. And oh, was it amazing.


More scenes along the way...



At the Polynesiah cultural center







She was really excited about getting to try that Luau food.


After the night show



And fun was had by all...


I hated to leave Hawaii, but if there's anything I can do about it, this will NOT be my last visit. Hope you enjoyed the photos!

Can You Hear me Now?

Just a quick note to let anyone reading this know that my cell phone is dead. I dropped it, and it has bitten the dust. Permanently. And in my new place, there is no land line, so I am unreachable, except by email and other online messaging methods, until I get a new phone. Blah.

Coming soon... (tomorrow?)... Hawaii photos!

Since this is a photo blog...

I've begun to realize my "shutterblog" has taken on a non-photographic form lately, mostly due to a crazy schedule and a lack of internet connection at my new apartment. While I'm here at Panera downtown, I thought I would upload some new pics, and hopefully continue this at least once per week. There's a LOT of work I've done lately that I haven't put up.

Tonight's photos are of Jen and Steve's engagement shoot, I will be shooting their wedding later this year. They are a very laid-back couple, and a lot of fun!










And just so you know, this one was NOT really my idea, but once Jen had mentioned it, I forced them to let me shoot it. :-)



Coming up next... the long-overdue Hawaii vacation pics