Let it flow.

Oct 14

There's something about stormy weather that creates this sort of vulnerability inside of me. Not quite comfortable, but relaxed, a little weary, left open, but a little curious, excited, and for some reason so at peace. Instead of letting my doubt and fear get in the way of enjoying what's to come, I sat back and watched the wind push the trees to dance, the rain crash against the windows, and the dark sky cover my little corner of the world.

I was going to wait to launch my new logo. I was going to attempt to get everyone pumped up, and post things like "Exciting new changes are coming! Stay tuned!" I thought maybe this would drive traffic to my pages and build excitement within my friends and clientele. But, we're being real here.. so does anyone really care about what you say you're going to do? Does anyone care about what you tell them is going to happen or how you're going to grow or evolve? It seems like nobody cares about your plans, your dreams, your goals, until they're happening. After all, you can't Instagram a thought. Nobody can click like or double tap on your thought. So I decided to make my thoughts into my brand, and finally, I'm left with something that represents me and my business.

I've always been an everlasting love, sappy romance, long walks on the beach kind of person. A big part of my business is photographing weddings, documenting the love and joy in a wedding day is so special and so rewarding. This puts me to be a huge lover of the symbolism in circles. As much as I love photographing weddings, I don't want to be bound down to one aspect of the art of photography. I wanted the circle open in my logo, because I wanted some wiggle room. Some room to be a little different, to do things a little outside the lines. Not only is there so much to learn while holding a career in photography, but you are free as an artist to do things your way and still create a remarkable image. My initials in my logo are hand drawn! It means so much to me to have that touch on what will be the first impression of my business. The curls of my initials represent waves, something that will always be important to me in life, and in business. When I went to take some photos of what I wanted to brand myself around I had to block out what was racing through my mind and just let it come to me. There is such thing as inspiration overload. Too much inspiration can leave you feeling a little like a failure just because you don't have a white desk or a leather camera strap. I needed to shut it out for a minute and let my own inspiration grow. And what grows better than ivy, than moss, than anything green. I stared at this logo for hours and hours, and it obviously means a lot to me.. so much so that you'd think I would know everything about it. Hours after I had my final piece and it was posted for the world to see, to judge, to care or not to care, my fiancé realized something about it that I hadn't. The middle of my logo, the initials JL, for Jahni Lynn, create the letter H. (I'll wait while you figure that one out......) Ha, just kidding. Jon and I get married in May and my last name will become Hazen! How amazing is that, that it was totally unintentional but so so so perfect! The H in the logo just makes it so much better to me.

I won't go on about what dreams and goals I have for my business, because... we went over this. Just enjoy your storm. Don't let fear and doubt cloud your vulnerable state of mind. Let it rain, and shut out what you need to with some of those dark clouds. Curl up and watch your little corner of the world change, and don't be afraid to change with it. It will be calm again, soon. Until then, let it flow.