Design Aglow Blog

Summer 2017 would probably go down as one of the most memorable summers of my life.

Firstly, I think people need to understand that my life is not all about traveling, taking pictures, and making videos. I am a pretty normal college student that studies marketing and information systems at a decent university in the city of Chicago. My life can get pretty boring during the semesters besides the occasional traveling I try to do on short breaks. This is why I really look forward to the long winter and summer vacations. I guess I kind of lied when I said I’m a pretty normal kid because I am blessed to be able to tell people that I am from Honolulu, Hawai’i.

As a small business owner, we’re sure that you’ve got a lot on your plate. You want to do what you love, and make a good living doing it, but at times it can feel like you’re doing everything besides photography to keep your business running. Besides all the workflow tasks of being a photographer, we know the one BIG project that almost never gets done: marketing. It’s on all our to-do lists, but it’s huge. It’s daunting. And, where do you even begin?

Our studio marries the best of an industrial loft with boutique elegance. We had the opportunity to design the floor plan, pick the finishes, and make it our own. We both love interior design, so we loved the process of designing and decorating our space and really feel at home here. We collect unique props from around the world to complement our cute little clients.

Dear Ashley and Graham circa 2008,

Your business will not live and die by social media. You're going to be tempted to put more time into Facebook and Instagram than you do into in-person relationships because it will feel like that's what everyone else is doing; it will feel like the only way to keep up. Resist that temptation. Resist the urge to jump on the ever changing hamster wheel of social media. When you get on that hamster wheel it will feel like you're running as fast as you can and getting nowhere. And that's exactly where sinking unscheduled, unintentional time into social media will get you: nowhere.

Next to framed art, albums are a favorite, no-brainer product you should be offering every client. Albums are the one product that truly stands the test of time and will be treasured for generations to come. Not long ago, album design went a bit “photographers-gone-wild” with acrylic, metal, and even fur covers. Remember that panoramic ultra-wide album fad?

Luckily the tide has turned back to favoring a classic, luxury presentation.  

Netflix. HBO. & Hulu.

That could be about 70% of my off season. The time a friend introduced me to Game of Thrones was the most epic two months of my life (sorry adulthood). BUT, the keyword in that first sentence is “could be”. My biggest love during off season is stepping out of my living room for a travel adventure.