New Name, New Look, New Focus! | Business | Fort Bliss, El Paso Portrait and Event Photographer

Re-branding.  It's a big undertaking.  Websites, blogs, email addresses, domain names, Facebook pages and, most importantly, business documentation all need to be changed over.  It's a pricy endeavor when the entire look is overhauled and one has to purchase new business cards, packaging, logos, etc.  It can be risky, too.  It's impossible to follow a band that changes their name all the time.  It is possible to lose the following one has worked hard to gain.

So why did I choose to do it?  There are several reasons.  First and foremost, my initials are not as unique as one might think.  MMU may not have been trademarked or used in the USA, but it is used at Manchester Metropolitan University, which I imagine must have been confusing for some of their students.  I would frequently see photos or social invitations posted on my wall, and felt a sense of guilt for unintentionally misleading others.

My business name was originally beget from my indecision to use either my maiden or my married name.  Legally, I did not want to get into any kind of trouble for assuming a false name, and I did not want to settle for my maiden name only to have to change it later.  So my nameless business became MMU Photography.

But the name never really fit, and neither did my branding elements or colors.  They were sleek and professional, but they did not fit the warm, curled-up-by-the-hearth storytelling, heirloom feel that I want my work to convey.

I have been mulling these changes for a good long while, but I was not inspired to pull the trigger until I planned and executed my recent fairy tale session.  So much of my heart and pure creative energy was poured into the project, and the end result was a perfect example of the romantic, timeless work that I strive for.  Everything fell into place naturally.  Now, when I look at the new name, warm colors and the antique touches, I feel like I'm at home.

Admittedly, I should have had more consideration for how the elements of my business might come together and represent me as a photographer.  Like many new photographers, I was so swept up in the excitement of starting my own business that I did not take the time to select branding that would accurately reflect me as a person or my goals as an artist and a professional photographer.  But, like other photographers, I evolved, I tweaked, I adjusted as I went, and finally found a place where I am happy and excited about what the future holds.  It can be scary to create something different and put yourself out there, but once you find yourself and your brand, it is such a revelation.  To thine own self, be true.