You’ve heard it said a million times, “Just be yourself”.  It doesn’t matter if you’re walking into a big interview, a first date, a big speech or whatever, just before you got there someone texted you to say “Just be yourself”.  It starts to sound cliche after hearing it so much, doesn’t it?  You start to think to yourself, “Who is this me that I am supposed to be?” or “How to do I find out who I am?”  It’s so easy to walk into a party or a dinner and have a friend introduce you to the person sitting next to them.  You strike up a conversation and before you know it you feel like you know a little about who they are.  They are laid-back or uptight, out-loud or quiet, funny or introspective or a million other things.  But how do you introduce yourself to yourself and find out the same kind of things?

When I started Fyrefly I knew that I wanted to start a photography business.  I knew that my ultimate goal was to support my family by building it into a full-time job for me and possibly my wife and/or friends.  I knew I wanted to take family, kid and wedding pictures.  I envisioned a lot of what I wanted Fyrefly to become down the road.  But early on I realized that there was only one thing that could set me apart from hundreds of others in Cincinnati just like me: ME.

There are so many photographers out there that take great pictures and have great websites and know lots of people.  There are so many things that I have that you can find in any other photography studio in town.  But I am the only Nathan Peel that exists in Cincinnati, or Ohio or the world for that matter.  When people hire Fyrefly they are getting great photography laced with my personality.  With that in mind, I figured I better get someone to introduce me to me quick!

The easiest way I have learned to infuse myself into my business is to write down words that describe who I am and let those carry over into my photography.  So over the last little while I have been whittling down a list of words that describe who Fyrefly is and what kind of pictures I want to produce.  It’s important for me to burn these words into everything I do and not stray from them.  They will color the experience people have when they interact with Fyrefly.  I wanted to share with you guys, the ones who have made it this far in the post, the ones who truly care about where this thing is going and who I really am:

• Laid back – We will never be uptight about our photography.  I want clients to be relaxed so I am relaxed.
• Fun – I want you to remember your session or wedding for all the right reasons.  We’ll laugh at each other, the people walking by or just because…but most of all we’ll have fun.  We’ll discover new places, try new things and most of all just have a good time.
• Believable – This is a word that I need to remind myself of every day.  I want pictures I take to be REAL!  There are a lot of amazing photographers out there that can do crazy tricks with light and camera.  I don’t want to get caught up in that.  I want the pictures I take to look like a real kid or family or couple.  I want them to look like they enjoy each other.  I want the emotions that come across on film to have been there when I took the shot.  This puts some pressure on me to lead people to this place, but it is so worth it when you look at the final product.
• Love - This is an overflow of the last one but the emotion you are most trying to capture in photography is love.  It doesn’t matter if it’s couples or families or brother and sister, you want them to show their love to each other in a visible way on camera.  Genuine love is the most beautiful thing on earth and we all want more of it, even in our pictures.
• Timeless – This is the hardest one to produce.  There is so much competition in photography to keep up with fashion, or lighting tricks, or certain fad poses.  Sometimes I wonder if we will look back on our photography 5 years from now, maybe 2 years from now, and think, “What was I thinking?” (i.e. www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com).  I want to take the kinds of pictures described in the first 4 words to create timeless shots.  These are the shots that no matter how old your album is or what the newest fad is you will always look at them and love them.

Basically if I can stay away from being posey and trying too hard to produce a “fashion” or “rock star” shot then I should be able to be me.

I am still learning what it means to be all of these things consistently.  I am constantly trying to overcome envy of all those great photographers out there that have their style and nail it every time out.  Sometimes I look at other’s websites and get a little depressed over how much more talented they are than me.  But the truth is they are more talented than me at being them…I am more talented at being me.

If for a minute or a week I forget to be myself I pull out this list of words, reintroduce myself to myself and maybe even buy myself a drink and get to know me better:)

*if you want to talk to, hang out with or book Fyrefly visit our website or email us.

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1. Cincinnati Photographer – Some of my favorites.
2. This week @ Fyrefly – Photographer – Cincinnati, OH
3. Cincinnati Photographer | Is creativity a habit?